I had to cut about 10 games out of my original rundown of the highlights of the week. There is so much “oh, that’s interesting!” going on here in both men’s and women’s basketball in the Big East this week, and at some point, I’m highlighting half the calendar and then what’s really a highlight after all? In any case, the shakedown cruises are over and teams are starting to venture forth and really start testing what they’re made of this week. That’s always a good time for a college hoops fan trying
to find something to watch every night of the week.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: What you see in the highlights and the tables below are the rankings in the PRESEASON Associated Press polls. We’ve got three men’s games and two women’s games on deck for Monday, so I wanted this out on Sunday night to help everyone get set for the week ahead. When we get the new polls on Monday afternoon, I’ll update things as needed.
Okay, let’s get into it!
Monday, November 9: Creighton Bluejays at North Dakota State Bison (6pm Central, Midco Sports Plus) — The Bison are favored in this one at BartTorvik.com, but Jim Flanery’s Bluejays clipped South Dakota State in their opener on the road. I also wanted to put this in here because this is the second of a three game road trip through the Dakotas for Creighton but with a week off between #1 and #2…. and then they’re at Northern Iowa on Sunday. This schedule is WILD, give yourself a home game at some point, y’all.
Tuesday, November 10: RV Villanova Wildcats at Princeton Tigers (6pm Central, NBC Sports Philly/SNY) — Going on the road against the co-favorites in the Ivy League is an interesting challenge for the Wildcats, but remember: Carla Berube is coaching Northwestern now.
Wednesday, November 11: RV Marquette Golden Eagles at Michigan Wolverines (6pm Central, FS1) — It’s a trip to Ann Arbor in the first official test of the season for the Golden Eagles, while the Wolverines are coming off a neutral site loss to UConn.
Thursday, November 12: #2 Connecticut Huskies at #18 Ohio State Buckeyes (5:30pm Central, FS1) — Spinning off of a point I made last week, go take a peek at what Geno Auriemma is doing with his non-conference schedule. Go use BartTorvik.com or something like that to get a read on precisely what is happening over the first month or so here. It is WILD.
Thursday, November 12: Seton Hall Pirates vs RV Fairfield Stags (6pm Central, ESPN+) — It’s the first of four straight big tests for the Pirates, and this is the only one of the four where they’re favored.
Friday, November 13: Marquette Golden Eagles at Missouri State Bears (6:30pm Central, ESPN+) — Beth Cunningham’s Bears would love to take a bite out of a Big East team in their building, so Halle Vice and company are going to have to do a lot better on defense than they did against Minnesota back on Saturday.
Friday, November 13: #4 Connecticut Huskies vs RV Ohio State Buckeyes (6:30pm Central, TNT) — Presuming that they’ll get through Wagner just fine, this will be Silas Demary’s squad putting the In-Season Cup on the line since acquiring it from Michigan. It’s also the first of three straight notable games for the Huskies and it’s the only one at home.
Friday, November 13: Seton Hall Pirates at #20 Alabama Crimson Tide (8pm Central, SEC Network) — Shaheen Holloway’s guys just struggled with LIU, so perhaps jetting off to Tuscaloosa isn’t the best thing for them right now. Notable game for the league, but maybe not a very fun time for the Pirates.
Friday, November 13: Xavier Musketeers vs Mississippi State Bulldogs (8pm Central, FS1) — Whatever else happens in this game, I’m going to need Richard Pitino to drop the after action report into the Big East Coaches Dropbox for Shaka Smart’s staff to puzzle through before December.
Sunday, November 15: Seton Hall Pirates vs #25 North Carolina State Wolf Pack (12pm Central, ESPN+) — Big spot for the Pirates to get the Wolf Pack inside Walsh Gym for a tangle.
Sunday, November 15: RV Villanova Wildcats at RV Fairfield Stags (1pm Central, ESPN+) — Remember Seton Hall’s game against the Stags earlier this week? Well, now Jasmine Bascoe and friends are going there to deal with them, and this is VU’s third game this week, too.
Sunday, November 15: RV Marquette Golden Eagles vs RV Missouri Tigers (1:30pm Central, Peacock) — This works interestingly in concert with MU’s game at Michigan in terms of figuring out what the Golden Eagles are. Win or lose in Ann Arbor, what do Nigel James and Friends do here as a follow up?
Sunday, November 15: Creighton Bluejays vs RV Iowa Hawkeyes (2pm Central, FS1) — Playing this in Des Moines instead of Iowa City isn’t quite really a neutral site game, but it is the second game against a high major squad away from the CHI Health Center for Jackson McAndrew and teammates following a visit to Not Good Kansas State earlier in the week.
Sunday, November 15: #2 Connecticut Huskies at #7 Louisville Cardinals (4:30pm Central, ESPN) — Again, this schedule is insane, Geno.
Here’s the Big East men’s basketball schedule for the week, with all times Central, as always.
Here’s the Big East women’s basketball schedule for the week, with all times Central, as always.
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