Three Big East Plays for Stacked Friday in College Basketball

It is no secret that the Big East had a down year last season. Only three teams — UConn, St. John’s and Villanova — made the NCAA Tournament. The league — which is the sole basketball-only power conference in America — needs a major bounce-back season to regain its status as one of the premier conferences in the sport. 

The way to do that quickly is by stacking wins in November and December in non-conference play to boost your resume for Selection Sunday. In a massive Friday night in college basketball, six Big East teams are playing against other power conference opponents. This is the perfect night for all six teams to pick up big resume boosting wins before conference play.

Let’s dive into three games where the Big East can find success on Friday. 

DePaul vs Northwestern:

Play: DePaul ML

I first have to make a disclaimer for this play: I’m a DePaul graduate. My allegiances are with DePaul and will always be with DePaul — especially against Northwestern.

Putting that aside, I believe DePaul can win this game simply because they are the better team. The Blue Demons haven’t won in Evanston in over a decade — which, by the way, is not in Chicago — but they also haven’t had this good of a roster and coaching staff in that time period. Chris Holtmann is a legit, qualified head coach and the roster he has built is experienced, tough and skilled. 

DePaul is one of the tallest teams (39) in the country, according to KenPom, while Northwestern is more in the middle in average height (129).With all the length and size DePaul has inside, it can attack the Wildcats’ biggest defensive weakness: inside scoring. Northwestern ranks 138th in 2-point field goal percentage, 170th in close 2-point field goal percentage and 239th in far 2-point field percentage, according to BartTorvik. 

It might require DePaul to change its offensive gameplan from what it has been doing in the first three games. The Blue Demons, who are 3-0 to start this season, are 14th in the country 3-point rate, according to BartTorvik. Northwestern has yet to be challenged this season, winning its first three games against teams ranked near the bottom of KenPom. 

Now playing its first power conference game, Northwestern’s offense will be challenged against DePaul’s stout defense. The Blue Demons pressure the ball, limit chances inside and don’t allow many second-chance opportunities. 

The injury report is questionable for DePaul right now, with point guard Noah Meeusen and forward Theo Pierre-Johnson being game-time decisions for this rivalry game. Nonetheless, the Blue Demons’ defensive prowess will be too much of a step up for Chris Collins’ team. DePaul will finally defeat Northwestern in Evanston. 

Georgetown vs Clemson:

Play: Georgetown +4.5

As someone who has been very critical of Ed Cooley, I will have to swallow my pride and back his Hoyas against Clemson. Both teams are 3-0 but Georgetown has a win over Maryland on its resume already. This is a pivotal season for Cooley and he needs all the wins he can get to boost the resume for March. 

This should be Cooley’s best team since he took the Georgetown job. Point guard Jaland Lowe has been a phenomenal pickup from Kentucky, averaging 18.3 points and 8.3 assists per game this season. The frontcourt is also very stout, led by senior Vince Iwuchukwu, who is averaging 20.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. 

This Hoyas team is more experienced than from previous seasons. The team is more balanced all around the court. Clemson, on the other hand, has major defensive concerns. The Tigers rank 327th in defensive 3-point percentage and 284th in effective field goal percentage, according to KenPom. These defensive issues come after playing three games against Stetson, American and North Dakota in the first three games of the season. Not exactly a murderous row to start the year. 

Clemson is also facing major injury issues right now. The Tigers are only running an eight-man rotation to start the season. Lowe is just the perfect guard to keep Georgetown in this game deep into the second half. Maybe not enough to win outright, but Cooley’s team is offensively gifted enough to keep up against Clemson. 

Xavier vs Mississippi State:

Play: Under 162.5

This should be a fun game between two teams and two coaches that are looking to get back into the NCAA Tournament. Both squads haven’t faced tough starts to the season, with each team sitting at 3-0 heading into this matchup. 

Both Richard Pitino and Chris Jans have built exciting teams that play in contrasting styles. Xavier has played at a fast tempo to start the season, ranking fourth in adjusted tempo per KenPom. The Bulldogs, however, are 154th in the nation in adjusted tempo and have a history to being a slower, more defensive team under Jans. 

Josh Hubbard is a certified stud for Jans’ team. He is once again filling up the stat sheet for Mississippi State, averaging 18 points and five assists per game. But this game might be a stern test for the veteran guard. Xavier is one of the tallest teams in the country, ranking eighth in average height, and can throw different looks at Hubbard to slow him down. 

Pitino has always tried to have elite defensive teams and he might finally have another one this season. The Musketeers rank in the top 10 in 3-point defense, 2-point defense and effective field goal percentage.  

This is a big number with the game being played on a neutral court. There should be no real home-court advantage to give one team the advantage. With the Bulldogs looking to slow down the tempo and Xavier being below average shooting from behind the arc, this total should stay below the number.