The official Big East coaches' poll, released this morning...
|
Team/ Points |
|
| 1. Pittsburgh (12) | 222 |
| 2. Villanova (1) | 208 |
| 3. Syracuse (2) | 187 |
| 4. Georgetown | 173 |
| 5. West Virginia | 164 |
| 6. St. John’s (1) | 145 |
| 7. Notre Dame | 123 |
| 8. Louisville | 121 |
| Marquette | 121 |
| 10. Connecticut | 113 |
| 11. Seton Hall | 104 |
| 12. Cincinnati | 91 |
| 13. USF | 54 |
| 14. Providence | 36 |
| 15. Rutgers | 32 |
| 16. DePaul | 26 |
Uh... what? I don't know how they picked St. John's higher than any other publication (and higher than I would have), and higher than our bloggers. And Seton Hall at 11? They were a middle of the pack team last year and they might even play defense! Curious.
St. John's has a lot of returning minutes, had some good games late, and has new direction. But it's strange to see the coaches going a direction no other publication has been willing to go yet. And for the Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and all-Big East teams in 2010-11 (DJ Kennedy gets props on the second team):
Preseason Player of the Year
Austin Freeman, Georgetown
Preseason Rookie of the Year
Fab Melo, Syracuse
Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team
Austin Freeman, Georgetown (Player of the Year), G, Sr., 6-3 ½, 227, Mitchellville, Md.
Kemba Walker, Connecticut, G, Jr., 6-1, 172, Bronx, N.Y.
Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh, G, Jr., 6-2, 190, Scotch Plains, N.J.
Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall, G, Sr., 6-5, 188, Bronx, N.Y.
Corey Fisher, Villanova, G, Sr., 6-1, 200, Bronx, N.Y.
Kevin Jones, West Virginia, F, Jr., 6-8, 255, Mount Vernon, N.Y.
Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team
Chris Wright, Georgetown, G, Sr., 6-1, 208, Washington, D.C.
Jimmy Butler, Marquette, F, Sr., 6-7, 220, Tomball, Texas
Tim Abromaitis, Notre Dame, F, Sr., 6-8, 235, Unionville, Conn.
D.J. Kennedy, St. John’s, G/F, Sr., 6-5, 214, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Kris Joseph, Syracuse, F, Jr., 6-7, 207, Montreal, Quebec
Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention
Yancy Gates, Cincinnati, F, Sr., 6-9, 260, Cincinnati, Ohio
Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette, G, Jr., 6-2, 215, Raleigh, N.C.
Rick Jackson, Syracuse, F, Sr., 6-9, 240, Philadelphia, Pa.