Big East Power Rankings

1. Georgetown. They need to do better in scoring, just 15th in the league, but their defense tops the conference. They’ve played Michigan and Alabama and won both convincingly. We will see if this team is ready to dominate when they face Memphis on December 22nd. Will they be able to slow down the fast running Tigers?

2. Marquette. They destroyed Oklahoma State and lost to Duke but this team is 6th in the league in scoring and 9th in defense. They have a great field goal percentage of .493 a game. Their only weakness is their rebounding, ranking a lousy 13th.

3. Pittsburgh. They have played an easy schedule so far this season and it has skewed their stats but we will see if they are for real on December 20th when they play Duke. Pittsburg ranks 4th in scoring, 3rd in defense and 1st in rebounding margin. An encouraging sign for Pittsburg to take into legitimate competition is their 1st ranking in free throw shooting.

4. West Virginia. The only team of note that West Virginia has played is Tennessee and they lost by 2. They are possibly the most surprising team in the league but that seems to happen every year. They rank 1st in offense, 2nd in defense and 1st in field goal percentage.

5. Villanova. Losing to NC State isn’t a huge knock against this promising team. They are only 8th in scoring and 11th in defense but rebound very well with +8.1 a game.

6. Connecticut. They played the toughest schedule so far but lost against the two toughest opponents. They rank 7th in scoring but an uncharacteristic 12th in defense. They are only 11th in free throw percentage and 9th in field goal percentage a game.

7. Notre Dame. Notre Dame’s losses to Baylor and Georgia Tech put them slightly behind the Huskies but they rank 5th in offense and 6th in defense, coming in first in three point shooting and second in rebounding margin. This team will scare anyone if they have their shot going.

8. Syracuse. This team has to much talent to lose to the likes of UMass and Rhode Island but they did. Its not their offense that is the problem, ranking 3rd, but their zone is Swiss cheese at the moment coming in dead last. They need to sure up this part of their game or they are prime to plummet.

9. Louisville. Where is the Final Four contender? Louisville has already lost to many games against far lesser talent. Who thought this team would lack offense, coming in at 11th? They bring it defensively ranking 4th. Their back court needs to get going coming in 14th in assists. Losing David Padgett for the season doesn’t help.

10. Seton Hall. Playing three overtime games already, winning two, has given Seton Hall fans near heart attacks but they have a way to score points, 83.7 a game but give up 78.6 a game. They need to find a way to play solid defense and cherish every possession.

11. Providence. They beat BC in overtime to then come out with back to back losses. This team is a mystery. They are middle of the pack in both offense and defense but are not attacking the boards like expected, coming in 11th in rebounding margin.

12. Rutgers. Smile Rutgers you're 6 and 2 and most likely peeked at 12th in the power rankings but they deserve credit even if they play below par teams. They are terrible on offense but bring it every game in defense, ranking 7th. They do house the best home court advantage in the league.

13. USF. After starting the season on a three game losing streak, they have turned it around winning the last seven. They are an average offensive and defensive team but rank 5th in the league in assists and can hit the three, ranking 2nd.

14. St. John’s. They have only played 5 games and rank 5th in defense but 13th in offense. They need to find a way to make outside shots.

15. Cincinnati. Losing 4 games already is terrible and having those come to the likes of Bowling Green and Belmont doesn’t help. They are dead last in offense and 10th in defense. They are also dead last in rebounding margin and steals.

16. DePaul. They are 12th in offense and 14th in defense, coming in last in scoring margin a -3.4. They can’t even make free throws only hitting .604 and letting teams shoot a league worst .456 a game. They can hit threes making .405 a game though but that won’t get you far.