Busting Brackets
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Big East Basketball: Top 50 players from the legendary 2010-11 season

By Tristan Freeman

HOUSTON, TX - APRIL 04: The Connecticut Huskies react after defeating the Butler Bulldogs to win the National Championship Game of the 2011 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament by a score of 53-41 at Reliant Stadium on April 4, 2011 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - APRIL 04: The Connecticut Huskies react after defeating the Butler Bulldogs to win the National Championship Game of the 2011 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament by a score of 53-41 at Reliant Stadium on April 4, 2011 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 09: Jason Clark
NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 09: Jason Clark /

2010-11 season overview

There were signs early on into the season that this league was going to be really good when the teams from the Big East not only participated but won in the following events:

  • Maui Invitational (UConn) (two top 10 teams were defeated)
  • 2KSports Coaches vs. Cancer Classic (Pittsburgh)
  • Charleston Classic (Georgetown)
  • Great Alaskan Shootout (St. Johns)
  • Old Spice Classic (Notre Dame)
  • Legends Classic (Syracuse)

These collective wins propelled the league to conference play where every night was a top 25-50 caliber win. So even if a team went 10-8 in league play, there’s a good chance that six of them came as a good win. With the bottom five teams a non-factor in terms of the postseason, the other 11 were selected for the NCAA tournament, a record that still holds up today.

It’s not too surprising that those who were on the bubble got the eventual nod, as their resumes were always going to be superior to the other resumes in the at-large conversations.

Based on expectations from preseason polls, Cincinnati and Notre Dame surprised people the most, each finishing near the top. Although Villanova eventually made the Big Dance, their late finish struggles sent them down the standings, different from the expected second place finish.

Pittsburgh came in as the heavy favorite to win the league, and despite the increased competition, still won the Big East regular-season title with a 15-3 record. UConn finished the regular season in the middle of the pack as expected, but no one saw coming what happened in both the conference tournament and NCAA tournament.

And even the other five teams that didn’t make March Madness, which were Rutgers, South Florida, DePaul, Providence and Seton Hall, still had great players that made every Big East game that much more enjoyable to watch.

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