Hoops Haven

Author: Ed Quarry (10 Articles)

Ed Quarry is one of our newest scribes to Hoops Haven, specializing in College Hoops. He grew up in Philly, was a former Division 1 athlete at the University of Florida, and is a huge Philly Sports Fan. He also was a Wall Street derivatives trader, as well as an owner of a beer distributor.

After one of the most successful seasons in conference history which saw 5 teams in the Elite Eight and 2 teams in the Final Four, the Big East has emerged as the marquee conference in the nation. While they may not have as many elite level teams, the bottom of the conference is catching up to the top, creating much more depth. This year’s competition should again be fierce and fun to watch.

Villanova returns probably the best backcourt in the nation. Scottie Reynolds has been brilliant as Jay Wright’s QB, and Corey Fisher could emerge as one the best shooting guards in the country. Their weakness has been post play, or lack of it. Bringing in 2 Top 50 frontcourt players should help that. Some nights the 3’s don’t go down. If they can be more consistant with inside-outside play, the Cats will be back in the Final Four. UConn lost Hasheem Thabeet and A.J. Price to the NBA, but Jim Calhoun is well acquainted with McDonald’s and I don’t mean hamburgers (All-Americans). They return super shooting guard Jerome Dyson, sophmore point Kemba Walker, and smooth small forward Stanley Robinson. Jim Calhoun is one of the best in the business and will have the Huskies in the hunt. West Virginia’s coach Bob Huggins, welcomes back a tough veteran group which includes Devin Ebanks (6’9 F, 15.2 ppg) and DaSean Butler(11.2ppg) to lead a potential Final Four team in 2010. The fiery and volatile Huggins, who left Cincinnati in turmoil, would relish a Big East championship as answer to his critics. Louisville lost its top two players in Earl Clark and Terrence Williams. The Cardinal completed an impossible double play last year winning the regular season and the conference tournament titles . Guard Edgar Sosa and forward Samardo Samuels will once again lead a talented, athletic group. Newcomer guard Peyton Siva is the real deal, and Rick Pitino is a master at mixing and matching the right combinations. Cinncinnati may very well be a contender after two consecutive 8-10 campaigns. Look for the Bearcats to join the upper echelon of the Big East. Deonnta Vaughn and Yancy Gates are all-conference, and newcomer Lance Stephenson might be the best freshman in the country. If the Bearcats can steal a few on the road, they will be in the hunt for a NCAA berth.

Georgetown was a huge disappointment a year ago. Losing close games in the last 5 minutes, the Hoyas are still a very dangerous group. 6’11 Greg Monroe, who is a future NBA player and star defender, is back and watch out for a major turnaround from John Thompson Jr. and company.  Syracuse lost All-American Johnny Flynn(17.4 ppg) and Eric Devendorf (15.7 ppg), but Andy Rautins is an excellent player and 6’7 Wesley Johnson, an Iowa State transfer, will be an impact player for the Orange . Coach Jim Boeheim, like Calhoun, regularly visits McDonald’s. The problem is he sometimes coaches like Ronald McDonald. Notre Dame spent the early part of last season in the Top 10 before disappearing. They have, All-American Luke Harangody(23.6 ppg), who will keep them in most games, but they need to play much better defense under overrated coach Mike Brey. Pitt lost 4 starters from an Elite 8 team. Coach Jamie Dixon won’t be down for long, since he has proven that he knows how to win(the last six years in the top 20). Jermaine Dixon will lead a young and inexperienced team that welcomes highly recruited 6’9 Dante Taylor as a replacement for Dejuan Blair in the paint. Seton Hall has all league selection Jeremy Hazell(22.7 ppg) along with a cast Bobby Gonzalez calls his most talented. The Pirates were 15th out of 16 in scoring defense, which is not acceptable in this high-powered league. This year is critical for Gonzalez, who is on the hot seat

St John’s once proud program has spent the 21st century at the bottom of the conference. Coach Norm Robert’s starts the year with his best player injured(Anthony Mason Jr), and unless a miracle occurs, the Red Storm will fire him in the spring. Marquette’s coach Buzz Williams had an awesome 1st year in the league, but most of former coch Tom Crean’s players have departed. Now we shall see if Buzz can handle the big stage. Providence finished 10-8 in the league, on their way to their first winning season in 6 years under 1st year coach Keno Davis, but loses their starting five. They return only 3 scholarship players, which will leave them on the wrong side of many blowouts. Rutgers is 8-44 in coach Fred Hill’s 3 years in Big East play. The Scarlet Knights were near the bottom in almost every statistical category(not exactly a recipe for success). Hill will pound the final nails in his coaching coffin at Rutgers in 2010. South Florida is still overmatched on a nightly basis in the country’s premier league. DePaul was 0-18 last year in conference play. Put it this way,………it can’t get any worse!

Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Villanova

2) West Virginia

3) UConn

4) Louisville

5)Cinncinnati

6) Georgetown

7) Syracuse

Notre Dame

9) Seton Hall

10) Pitt

11) St John’s

12) Marquette

13) Providence

14) Rutgers

15) South Florida

16) DePaul

Teams on the Rise:

Cincinnati,    Georgetown,    Seton Hall

Teams on the Decline:

Pitt,    Marquette,    St. John’s

Coach of the Year Candidates:

Huggins, WV      Thompson, G-Town      Wright, Villanova

Player of the Year Candidates:

Scottie Reynolds, Villanova      Luke Harangody, ND      Devin Ebanks, WV

Other Big East Players to Watch For:

Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati

Jerome Dyson, Connecticut

Samuardo Samuels, Louisville

Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall

Corey Fisher, Villanova

Greg Monroe, G-Town

DaSean Butler, WV

Freshman of the Year Candidates:

Lance Stephenson, Cinncinnati

Dante Taylor, Pitt

Dominick Cheek, Villanova

Mouph Yarou, Villanova

Peyton Siva, Louisville

Alex Oriachi, UConn

Top Transfers:

Wesley Johnson, Syracuse from Iowa St

Taylor King, Villanova from Duke