Coming into the 2025–26 college basketball season, the Big East was projected to earn five to six bids in the NCAA Tournament. With about a month remaining until the conference tournament, the league is now projected to receive just three. Last year, the Big East had five teams in March Madness and appeared relatively strong compared to the rest of the Power Five. This year, however, the conference is rated comfortably last among the five in most metrics. What happened to the so-called ‘basketball-first’ conference?
One thing that was projected somewhat correctly to this point is the emergence of the Big East’s two leaders: the UConn Huskies and the St. John’s Red Storm. After their first head-to-head meeting on Friday, the Johnnies have taken the tiebreaker in the standings with their 9-point home win over the Huskies. Following the victory, Rick Pitino’s team rose to No. 17 in the country, while UConn fell to No. 6. St. John’s now appears much closer to its preseason expectations than it did early in the season, while Dan Hurley has built yet another strong championship contender.
These two programs have drawn the bulk of national attention, but even in a down year, they are not all the conference has to offer. After three incredibly disappointing seasons with Kyle Neptune without a tournament appearance, Kevin Willard has brought a new life to the Villanova Wildcats and might be able to get them back to their blue blood status. The Wildcats currently sit comfortably around the No. 8 seed line and appear to be a near lock for the tournament. Ranked No. 30 on KenPom, Villanova could very well be ranked in the coming weeks if they can take care of their remaining schedule. Two spots below Villanova in the Big East standings, the Seton Hall Pirates have blown past their preseason expectation after being picked to finish last in the conference. The Pirates may be the only other team that could earn a bid for the conference. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi currently places them among the ‘Next Four Out,’ leaving little margin for error as Selection Sunday approaches.
Although the aforementioned teams have had quality seasons to this point, the Big East has been defined by disappointment this year. Going down the preseason poll, the Creighton Blue Jays, picked No. 3 in the conference and widely considered a shoo-in for March Madness, currently sits fourth in the standings but outside the top 75 of the NET Rankings, placing them well beyond the bubble conversation. Next, at No. 4 in the preseason poll, the Providence Friars, selected fourth in the preseason, have had almost as bad of a season as one could predict given their significant NIL spending, posting an 11–13 overall record and ranking No. 9 in the conference. Head coach Kim English is almost certainly going to be in the job search following this season. Marquette, the No. 5 preseason team in the preseason poll, sits dead last in the Big East with a 9–16 record. Safe to say, head coach Shaka Smart might need to start using the transfer portal this offseason. All of these failures combined have left the Big East extremely top-heavy and fragile. At this point, the conference will need its three top teams not just to make March Madness, but to make noise in it. In a year where depth has disappeared, the Big East’s national credibility now rests on the shoulders of its elite.
