What has happened to the Big East?

Last season at this time we thought things were going badly. They were, really, Xavier only had two Q2 wins, had been pummeled by Michigan and blown a great chance at TCU. Thankfully, the Big East slate was ahead. It was replete with chances to add big wins, stack Q1 and Q2 games, and play their way in. That happened. Xavier beat Texas, then Texas stole our coach. So, here we are.

This season Xavier is in a less envious position. No good wins, no resume bad losses but a hammering by Santa Clara that is torpedoing the computer numbers, and the non-con ending with Q4 Missouri State at home. UC can usually be counted on to be a decent win, but they can’t even manage that this season. (Wes Miller is excited about how good they’ll be, though.) Looking ahead, the Big East looms. Surely by the time the calendar turns in to the bleak midwinter, there will be chances to grab good wins.

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You’d think. Something has happened to the Big East this season, though. Namely, it isn’t very good (comparatively). At this same time last season, the average Big East team had a NET ranking of 73. That’s good for a Q2 at home and Q1 on the road. This year, the average ranking is 83. That drops both of those an entire quadrant. Last season X went to UConn to play a Q1 to start Big East play, this year they host a highly rated Creighton team that has dropped to a Q3.

The bad news doesn’t end there. After all, that’s just one data point in a sea of them. Here’s a more comprehensive picture: last year the Musketeers played a total of six games outside of the top two quadrants once conference play started. That created a simple path to follow. All you do is avoid tripping up in those games, snag a couple of the other ones, and you’re in. This season Xavier will hit six “bad” games before Valentine’s Day. Two of those conference games will be Q4 (as of this writing) where there were none last season. There is one further trap game on the schedule after that. That, of…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/happened-big-east-181626258.html

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Publish date : 2025-12-11 18:16:00

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