Basketball season must be getting closer because the Big East just released its men’s basketball schedule on Thursday. Things get underway in the Big East basketball universe on Dec. 10 when Providence plays at DePaul.
UConn won both the Big East regular season and tournament titles last season with the Huskies finishing four games ahead of Creighton and Marquette during the regular season. After winning an entertaining 95-90 game against St. John’s in the semifinals, the Huskies cruised to a 73-57 victory over Marquette to win the Big East Tournament for the first time since 2011.
UConn came in at No, 3, Creighton was 15th and Marquette was 17th in ESPN’s Way-too-Early Top 25 poll. Xavier just missed the top 25. The Huskies just visited the White House to be honored for winning the national title and now the focus is squarely on the upcoming season.
Now that the Big East schedule is out, here’s a look at 10 conference games to watch as the Big East promises to be one of the elite conferences in the country yet again.
Breaking Down The Top 10 Big East Men’s Basketball Matchups
Big East Basketball Games To Watch
Dec. 17: Seton Hall at Villanova
An early treat for Big East basketball fans as the Pirates hit the road to meet up with Villanova in the conference opener for both teams. Seton Hall brought in six transfers including Providence guard Garwey Dual, Ohio State Scotty Middleton, and Boston College forward Prince Aligbe. Former Miami Hurricanes guard Wooga Poplar is a player to watch for Villanova.
Dec. 18: Xavier at UConn
Xavier threw a scare into the Huskies at home last season. It was a different story when the teams met in Connecticut with the Huskies rolling to the 99-56 win. This will be a pretty challenging stretch for Xavier with conference games against UConn, Marquette, and Seton Hall in a two-week span. The Musketeers look to turn things around after a disappointing 2023-24 season.
Dec. 31: Marquette at Providence
This is a great matchup to end 2024 with. Providence lost plenty of talent off last year’s team. The Friars added Miami guard Bensley Joseph and Chicago State forward Wesley Cardet to help fill some of that scoring void. Leading scorer Kam Jones and forward David Joplin are among the returnees for Marquette.
Jan. 3: Creighton at Marquette
Creighton and Marquette games are always fun, and this showdown will be a great way to jump into the New Year. After losing the previous games by two and five points to Marquette, Creighton made a statement with a 14-point win the last time the teams met. Ryan Kalkbrenner had 19 points the last time Creighton faced Marquette and he could be ready for a huge senior season. The Big East basketball rematch will be on Feb. 8 in Omaha.
Jan. 18: St. John’s at Seton Hall
This storyline for this game isn’t too hard to figure out. The 247sports.com top-rated transfer heading into the 2024-25 season is guard Kadary Richmond who left Seton Hall to play at St. John’s. It is a big loss for the Pirates considering that Richmond led the Pirates in both scoring and rebounding.
Jan. 18: Creighton at UConn
This is the first of two meetings in less than a month between a pair of teams expected to compete for Big East supremacy with Creighton welcoming the Huskies to town on Feb. 11. Alex Karaban will have plenty of new running mates at UConn with four starters from the latest national championship team being taken in the NBA Draft. The last conference loss for the Huskies came at Creighton as Steven Ashworth had 20 points and five three-pointers in the 85-66 win.
Feb. 1: UConn at Marquette
The Huskies are 7-2 against Marquette since returning to the Big East. Marquette did win a home game with the Huskies back in 2023. When the Huskies played at Marquette last season, it was the most competitive of the three games between the teams. It will not be a surprise if the teams are on a collision course in the Big East Tournament after the teams squared off in the 2024 Big East title game.
Feb. 7: St. John’s at UConn
Things are already getting spicy between head coaches Dan Hurley and Rick Pitino. This will be a nice litmus test to see how close Pitino’s Red Storm might be to being a title contender in the Big East. If the game resembles the 2024 Big East Tournament semifinal that saw the teams combine for 185 points, the fans could be in for a real treat. RJ Luis is the only double-digit scorer back for St. John’s. While Hassan Diarra is a player to watch for UConn.
Feb. 12: St. John’s at Villanova
A highlight of Rick Pitino’s first season at St. John’s was a sweep of the two games against Villanova. After winning 81-71 on the road, 18 days later the Red Storm had no issues taking down the Wildcats by 20 points. Expect to see more of a battle from the Wildcats this time around.
Mar. 8: Butler at Creighton
It remains to be seen how many of the five games being played on the final day of the regular season will shake up the Big East Tournament seeding. The Bulldogs and Blue Jays engaged in one of the more entertaining games of the season last season with Butler pulling off the road upset with a 99-98 win. Pierre Brooks and Jahmyl Telfort lead the returnees for Butler. The Bulldogs also added Maryland guard Jamie Kaiser and Iowa forward Patrick McCaffrey via the transfer portal.
