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NCAA Basketball: Every conference’s biggest surprise and disappointment for 2018-19

By Joey Loose

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Jarrett Culver #23 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders celebrates the play against the Virginia Cavaliers in the second half during the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Jarrett Culver #23 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders celebrates the play against the Virginia Cavaliers in the second half during the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – MARCH 21: Myles Powell #13 of the Seton Hall Pirates reacts in the second half against the Wofford Terriers during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – MARCH 21: Myles Powell #13 of the Seton Hall Pirates reacts in the second half against the Wofford Terriers during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /

Big East

Biggest Surprise (Seton Hall)

The Pirates lost a lot of talent off last year’s squad, but Myles Powell was ready to pick up the slack. His ninth season might have been one of his best for Kevin Willard. A team predicted to finish 8th in a deep Big East would nab the 3 seed in the Big East Tournament. Seton Hall knocked off Villanova and twice beat Marquette in March, nearly winning the conference tournament before falling to Villanova again. They earned a 10-seed and fell to an extremely talented Wofford team, but that doesn’t undermine what this team accomplished.

light. Related Story. Way-too-early Big East power rankings

This is going to be a very dangerous team next season if Powell comes back, a team that could play in the second weekend of the Tournament if not the third. They’ll have a lot of talent back on this team and a great coach in Willard who will be back on the sidelines for the Pirates. Expect this team to surprise again next year, but don’t be shocked if they win the Big East; this team could be that good in 2020.

Biggest Disappointment (Butler)

The Bulldogs were expected to be a middle of the pack Big East club, but they didn’t expect to struggle as much as they did this year. This was a competitive year in conference play, with a 7-11 conference record tying them for last. However, they were swept by Villanova and Marquette, the league’s two top teams, and faltered down the stretch, losing seven of their last nine games.

Finishing at 16-17 constitutes a disappointing effort in LaVall Jordan’s second year coaching his alma mater. Losing Nate Fowler and Joey Brunk sets up potential big man issues going forward, but Jordan should be able to put together a solid squad. There is still hope, as Kamar Baldwin will be back for his senior year for the Bulldogs. This should be a talented team that could be back in the NCAA Tournament next season, or is their end of season fall a sign of things to come?

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