Who Has Had the Best Program in the New Big East?

[MUBoxer]

5th seems fair. But what a "blah" 5th it's been. We've had three years where we've missed the tournament but had solid records (admittedly there was no tournament for one of those), one that horrific and one that was the most disappointing season of any sport I've ever watched.

Also not to nitpick with the author but Dawson Garcia is in the same mold as Ellanson and Joey Hauser. Tall guy that can post up, stretch the floor, handle the ball, and play back to the basket. The question is if he can be reigned in unlike Ellanson and if he doesn't have an attitude problem unlike Joey Hauser.

[Novachap]

Just loved the dig that Jay went 0/6 for recruits in 2020. Good God...gotta find something to say that is negative. BTW, the roster was full, whoever would have come-somebody would have had to red shirt. Watch, the class for 2021 will be one of the best classes Jay will have had.

I think X at 2 is spot on. I think Hall is way to low.

Listen, to the people who actually pay attention to my posts, I have a pretty good grasp on Villanova recruiting, and probably recruiting as a whole. I have sometimes had access to REAL inside information since I had direct contacts with former St. John's and Pitino connections, as well as a previous Villanova assistant. Not so much anymore. With that being said, it was well known that Jay wasn't going full press on 2020, he just wasn't. We already have a logjam at several positions, and we weren't graduating anybody of significance. The whole team is back, besides Bey obviously, but he almost came back as well. Not to mention Bryan Antoine is now healthy.

This is not a, "OH MY GOD! YOU CAN'T SAY ANYTHING BAD ABOUT VILLANOVA OR JAY WRIGHT OR I AM GOING TO AUTOMATICALLY LOSE MY MIND" post. This is just coming from a guy who truly has a grasp on Villanova's 2020 recruiting, and if I knew who the 6 players these guys were referring to, I could shoot down their claim pretty quickly.

Anyway, just look at Villanova's 2021 class. We are about to land Angelo Brizzi as well, and many people feel Trevor Keels will end up at Nova as well. If Jay was truly looking to land anybody for the Class of 2020, he would have. End of discussion. That 0-6 comment is baseless.

Hey man I agree with you for the most part. I'm actually the guy who wrote it, so I'll clarify. What Nova has put together since realignment has been incredible. I knew Jay Wright wasn't really going that hard recruiting for the 2020 class, because if he was, he wouldn't have gotten nobody to sign. I was just looking for a little something to poke fun at since there's not really much else you can say about Villanova's resume that's negative at this point. Just a little joke, that's all! Thanks for reading!

Missed the sarcasm font! thanks for the follow up.

[DudeAnon]

Not gonna lie, I am definitely the target demographic for this article. Loved these quotes:

1. Big East: "When people bring up the Big East in conversations, it’s always “well it’s not as good as the old Big East” or “Creighton and Xavier and Butler can never be the type of traditional prestigious programs Georgetown or Villanova are.” First of all, both of those statements are stupid, they’re ill-informed, and they’re coming from the mouths of people who clearly do not pay enough attention to college basketball. Second of all, tradition means you have a lot of cool stuff to read about, a couple of banners in the rafters, and a great fanbase full of older alumni who were around for all the said historic moments."

2. Xavier: "I still stand by my original statement that Xavier is the best kept secret in college basketball."

3. Butler: "I’m really happy the facts backed me up here, because I have always thought Butler was overrated as a program. Outside of the Brad Stevens years, they really have not done a lot other than play their games in the same place Hoosiers was filmed. They haven’t really recruited all that well compared to the rest of their conference, they’ve only been to one Sweet Sixteen since realignment, and for all the press Hinkle Fieldhouse gets, a 77% winning percentage there doesn’t really say a lot in my opinion. They still have the reputation of a tradition-rich program, though, which makes no sense to me.

[GumbyDamnit!]

Not gonna lie, I am definitely the target demographic for this article. Loved these quotes:

1. Big East: "When people bring up the Big East in conversations, it’s always “well it’s not as good as the old Big East” or “Creighton and Xavier and Butler can never be the type of traditional prestigious programs Georgetown or Villanova are.” First of all, both of those statements are stupid, they’re ill-informed, and they’re coming from the mouths of people who clearly do not pay enough attention to college basketball. Second of all, tradition means you have a lot of cool stuff to read about, a couple of banners in the rafters, and a great fanbase full of older alumni who were around for all the said historic moments."

2. Xavier: "I still stand by my original statement that Xavier is the best kept secret in college basketball."

3. Butler: "I’m really happy the facts backed me up here, because I have always thought Butler was overrated as a program. Outside of the Brad Stevens years, they really have not done a lot other than play their games in the same place Hoosiers was filmed. They haven’t really recruited all that well compared to the rest of their conference, they’ve only been to one Sweet Sixteen since realignment, and for all the press Hinkle Fieldhouse gets, a 77% winning percentage there doesn’t really say a lot in my opinion. They still have the reputation of a tradition-rich program, though, which makes no sense to me.

RE: Butler, I don't think a school that went to back to back FF's fairly recently can be called overrated. There are historic programs that either haven't ever made it or haven't been there in a long while. But I do think having 4 different coaches since then doesn't help. Look at the teams that seem most stable right now--Nova, SHU, PC, Creighton--and look no further than their coaching consistency. You have to build a culture IMO. Could happen with Steele and Jordan and Wojo and Hurley and Anderson and Ewing--all seem very capable. But each will need time to get the right kids, set the right expectations and have consistent results.

[MUBoxer]

Not gonna lie, I am definitely the target demographic for this article. Loved these quotes:

1. Big East: "When people bring up the Big East in conversations, it’s always “well it’s not as good as the old Big East” or “Creighton and Xavier and Butler can never be the type of traditional prestigious programs Georgetown or Villanova are.” First of all, both of those statements are stupid, they’re ill-informed, and they’re coming from the mouths of people who clearly do not pay enough attention to college basketball. Second of all, tradition means you have a lot of cool stuff to read about, a couple of banners in the rafters, and a great fanbase full of older alumni who were around for all the said historic moments."

2. Xavier: "I still stand by my original statement that Xavier is the best kept secret in college basketball."

3. Butler: "I’m really happy the facts backed me up here, because I have always thought Butler was overrated as a program. Outside of the Brad Stevens years, they really have not done a lot other than play their games in the same place Hoosiers was filmed. They haven’t really recruited all that well compared to the rest of their conference, they’ve only been to one Sweet Sixteen since realignment, and for all the press Hinkle Fieldhouse gets, a 77% winning percentage there doesn’t really say a lot in my opinion. They still have the reputation of a tradition-rich program, though, which makes no sense to me.

RE: Butler, I don't think a school that went to back to back FF's fairly recently can be called overrated. There are historic programs that either haven't ever made it or haven't been there in a long while. But I do think having 4 different coaches since then doesn't help. Look at the teams that seem most stable right now--Nova, SHU, PC, Creighton--and look no further than their coaching consistency. You have to build a culture IMO. Could happen with Steele and Jordan and Wojo and Hurley and Anderson and Ewing--all seem very capable. But each will need time to get the right kids, set the right expectations and have consistent results.

I have to agree with dudeanon on this one. BU has had a fantastic run since 2007 but before that their history is pretty blah. Even for a Mid Major I mean 2002 is the only year they missed a bid due to being in a one bid conference. That being said in five years they went to a sweet 16, and two championship games and the boost that publicity have them cannot be understated.

[DudeAnon]

[GumbyDamnit!]

Well it’s official. X is the best program in the BE. (Pay no attention to the 5 NC’s and 11 FF’s of the others.)

[Xudash]

Well it’s official. X is the best program in the BE. (Pay no attention to the 5 NC’s and 11 FF’s of the others.)

Not that Dude and I agree on certain things, but I doubt his inference was about making that data point an example of what makes Xavier the best program in the Big East. I would think everyone agrees that national championships provide a hard stop in conversations about that. So, nobody is disputing Nova’s position here.

Nonetheless, it is an interesting data point and speaks to the quality of Xavier’s program over time. Does a program have to have made it to a F4 in order to be considered a great program? Does anyone here consider George Mason, VCU, or Loyola Chicago’s basketball programs better than Xavier’s program?

Either way, it isn’t bad company to be in.

[kayako]

How is Gonzaga not in that list.

[Xudash]

Perhaps they are only counting the major conferences. Otherwise, good question.