Here’s where Xavier Musketeers were picked to finish in Big East

The last time the Xavier Musketeers were in New York City, they were sputtering toward the end of the program’s second losing season in 30 years.

Xavier pulled out a win in the Big East Tournament over Marquette, then got crushed by No. 2 UConn by 25 points in the quarterfinals at Madison Square Garden.

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That loss ended Xavier’s season at 15-18 overall. It was Xavier’s fewest wins in a full season (13-8 in 2020-2021) since going 13-15 under Skip Prosser in the program’s first year in the Atlantic-10 in 1996.

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Nearly seven months later, the Muskies were back in Manhattan for Big East Media Day, this time at the Marriott Marquis near Times Square. The feeling around the program shows how quickly things can change in the current college basketball landscape.

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In March, Xavier was stuck in the cellar of the Big East. After an offseason spending spree in the transfer portal and a few key returning players, Xavier has lofty goals of contending near the top of the conference and returning to the NCAA Tournament.

Xavier Musketeers head coach Richard Pitino watches his defense in the first half of the NCAA Big East conference basketball game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Seton Hall Pirates at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. Xavier trailed 33-32 at halftime.

Thursday marked the unofficial start of the college basketball season. Optimism for each program was accompanied by polling projections and all-league preseason selections.

Xavier men’s basketball was picked to finish sixth in the Big East preseason coaches’ poll.

Big East preseason men’s basketball poll

The Big East preseason poll has been hit or miss in recent seasons for Xavier. During the three-year return of Sean Miller, Xavier made the NCAA Tournament both times it was picked in the league’s preseason top 3 (No. 2 in 2022 and No. 3…

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Publish date : 2026-10-01 12:03:00

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