Big East Basketball: 5 biggest questions for rest of 2019-20 season

5. Who is the biggest threat to Markus Howard winning Big East POY?

Washington

With Myles Powell out, I’m going to go with Mac McClung. Ever since Georgetown’s current roster has taken shape, McClung has been off the charts. He’s averaging 22 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists a game. If the Hoyas finish top 3 in the league, McClung will get serious consideration.

Foley

Kamar Baldwin, largely because of team success. If Butler runs away with the Big East while Marquette finishes in the middle of the pack, voters might turn towards Baldwin. But as the calendar flips to 2020, the statistical comparison between the two isn’t really that close. Howard is averaging 26/3/3 with a 114.2 offensive rating on a 37.1 usage percentage; Baldwin is certainly the superior defender, but with several poor scoring games to start and finish non-conference play and his below-average offensive rating despite a high usage, he neither has the raw totals nor advanced metrics to make a true statistical claim for the award.

Around the league, Marcus Zegarowski has impressed for Creighton this year, as has Omer Yurtseven for Georgetown, but I would be surprised if either team finished with a vastly superior record to Marquette in Big East play. The award is Howard’s to lose.

Harkins

That dude named Myles Powell that I mentioned earlier. He is essentially Seton Hall’s entire offense and will likely carry his team to the NCAA Tournament. I think this answer was pretty much a no-doubter. With regard to potential dark-horses, give me some Kamar Baldwin stock. He is in the midst of a rough scoring stretch but is well-known as one of the best two-way guards in the Big East. If Butler lives up to its potential as a contender to win the conference, then Baldwin will be a contender for POTY. The biggest threat to Howard, though, is Powell.

Mullen

The biggest threat to Markus Howard’s repeat as Big East Player of the Year is DePaul senior guard Myles Powell. Will Powell be able to unseat Howard? Not if Howard continues at his current pace. Powell averages 21.2 points per game compared to Howard’s 26.3. Although Powell averages more rebounds per game (4.4 compared to 2.7), Howard is dishing out 1.2 more assists per game, has more steals per game and his player efficiency rating is over four points higher than Powell. Further, Howard has led his team to a strong 10-2 start while Seton Hall is sitting at 8-4. It is a close call but Howard distinguishes himself from Powell by being more efficient and producing a bit more than Powell.

Gerena

Markus Howard is the man to beat this year for Big East Player of the Year, posting an average of 26.3 ppg, but if I had to choose someone that can prevent him from winning this award again I’d have to choose the senior center from Georgetown Omer Yurtseven. The main reason why I chose him was because of him averaging a double-double with 18.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, both are in the top-5 in the Big East. He also leads the conference in field goal percentage (.582) and in offensive rebounds(58).

While Howard may be the best at scoring, Yurtseven’s ability to be a top-tier threat in both the scoring and rebound game has made him a contender towards the reigning Player of the Year.