Big East Breakdown: Conference Takes Over The Bubble In Final Weekend

Right Side Of The Bubble:

After their loss to Georgetown on Feb. 11, the Golden Eagles were 15-10 and not considered an NCAA Tournament team. Markus Howard and company needed a late-season run to get their names back into the ring, and that’s exactly what they got.

Over the course of their last five games, Marquette turned red-hot and finished the year on a 4-1 clip. They beat No. 43 Xavier twice, No. 93 St. Johns, and capped it off with a huge win over No. 26 Creighton in the season finale.

Also helping the Golden Eagles cause was the late-season success of Vanderbilt and Georgia, two teams that they beat in their non-conference schedule.

Leading the charge for Marquette is the a fore mentioned Markus Howard, a freshman sharpshooter from Arizona. Howard leads the entire nation in three-point field goal percentage, shooting it at a 55.1 percent clip.

Correspondingly, the Golden Eagles are the No. 1 three-point shooting team in the nation, hitting 43 percent from beyond the arc.

Thanks to his impressive freshman campaign, Markus Howard earned a selection to the Big East All-Freshman team.

According to Joe Lunardi, the Golden Eagles are in the “Last Four Byes” category, holding onto a No. 11 seed in the South Region.

The Friars have had one of the more interesting roads to the right side of the ‘bubble’ this year. They started red-hot, going 10-2 in their first 12 games, but then faltered over their next 13 games with a poultry 4-9 record.

At that point, the Friars seemed doomed for the NCAA Tournament, especially since two of their losses came to sub-par teams (No. 158 Boston College and No. 179 DePaul).

However, Ed Cooley and company stormed back on the scene, ending their conference schedule on a perfect 6-0 run. During their streak, the Friars knocked off some of the Big East’s best teams, beating No. 22 Butler, No. 26 Creighton, and No. 28 Marquette.

Junior Kyron Cartwright is the driving force behind the Friars resurgence. In their recent winning streak, Cartwright has dished out 7.2 assists per game and poured in 13.7 points per game. In fact, on the year, Cartwright leads the entire conference in assists per game with 6.8 per contest.

Joe Lunardi currently has Providence in the “Last Four Byes” category, holding a No. 10 seed in the Midwest Region.

Don’t look now, but the Pirates are back.

Last year, Seton Hall was one of the best teams in the Big East, finishing with a 22-8 record before winning the Big East Tournament. However, the program had a tough time sustaining their success this year, stumbling out to a 13-8 record through their first 21 games.

Surprisingly, Kevin Willard’s team went on a tear to finish the year, winning seven of their last nine games and finishing the season at the “magic” number of 20 wins. In their season finale, the Pirates beat No. 22 Butler, all but solidifying their spot in the Big Dance.

Going forward, Seton Hall looks like one of the best sleeper teams out there. They’re a very experienced bunch, full of veteran players who have NCAA Tournament experience.

Leading the way is a trio of junior stars; Angel Delgado, Desi Rodriguez, and Khadeen Carrington, all guys who are supremely talented and looking to vanquish their early exit from last year’s dance.

Through 30 games, all three players are averaging more than 15 points per game, while playing 31 or more minutes per night.

In addition, Delgado leads the entire country in rebounds per game.

Joe Lunardi also has Seton Hall in his “Last Four Byes” category, giving the Big East three of the four teams in the group. According to Lunardi, the Pirates hold a No. 10 seed in the East Region.