Big East Basketball Rankings: Villanova rising, Creighton struggling

VILLANOVA, PA - NOVEMBER 06: Jermaine Samuels #23, Phil Booth #5, Eric Paschall #4, Collin Gillespie #2, and Dylan Painter #42 of the Villanova Wildcats huddle prior to the game against the Morgan State Bears at Finneran Pavilion on November 6, 2018 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. The Wildcats defeated the Bears 100-77. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

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VILLANOVA, PA – JANUARY 02: Cain #11 of the DePaul Blue Demons shoots (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

This is not the DePaul team that many may be accustomed to. Sure, the Blue Demons would need a miracle in order to reach the NCAA Tournament this season but they are not a team that simply be overlooked. Unlike some seasons in the past, DePaul can compete with just about anyone in the conference and it seems likely that they will escape the cellar of the league for the first time since 2015-16.

On the whole, the Blue Demons are not rated very highly by predictive metrics (126th in KenPom) but they have a few quality wins and have shown the ability to stay competitive with many teams. Most notably, the Blue Demons can boast victories over Penn State (home), Seton Hall (home), and St. John’s (away). They also gave Villanova a run for their money on the road. To put it simply, DePaul has enough talent to secure far more wins than normal.

For reference, head coach Dave Leitao’s team has won just eight conference games in the past three years combined and I would not be surprised if they threatened to match that number in this season alone. The smart money might still be on DePaul only winning five or so games but they could overachieve thanks to the experience and star power on the roster. With Max Strus, Eli Cain, and Femi Olujobi leading the way, they can be dangerous.

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