Louisville

The 2008-09 Big East season should bring as much excitement as any.  Commonly regarded as the toughest conference in college basketball, it has the potential to put 9+ teams into the NCAA tournament come March.

 

At the backbone of a great team comes a great coach, and the Big East has plenty of great coaches.  But which coaches are the best?  Let's just say that a well-padded résumé is not enough to give a coach top honors in this conference.

 

 

A rivalry that in recent years switched from the Big East to the ACC takes center stage on Thursday night, as Virginia Tech (6-3, 3-2 ACC Coastal) visits Miami (6-3, 3-2) at 7:30 PM on ESPN. The winner gets a leg up in the unpredictable Coastal Division race, while the loser would be in serious trouble. Although Miami has a 16-9 advantage in the series, the Hokies have the upper hand of late winning nine of the last thirteen meetings. A star was born last Thursday night for Virginia Tech, with redshirt freshman Darren Lewis rushing for 253 yards in their win over Maryland.

Louisville Cardinals

 

A solid frontcourt is a must-have component of a national championship team. Good rebounding gives a team second and third chances to score on offense and eliminates those chances on defense. Shot blocking can take the wind out of the opponents sail. Versatility is a must as is the ability to the run the floor. Scoring inside the paint adds another dimension when the shooters go cold.  To sum it up, the men down low and on the wing are huge difference makers for their team, offensively and defensively.

Big East Player Grades

 

 

Conference Rank: 1st

For all intents and purposes, the majority of front court players in the college game today are power forwards, there are just too few true centers out there. Like the point guard, having a solid big man is extremely important to a team’s success. All four Final Four teams from last season featured at least one NBA caliber big man (Kevin Love, Joey Dorsey, Darrell Arthur, Tyler Hansbrough). Is it any wonder then that each of the players featured on this list will be suiting up for a team primed to make an extended run into March? Probably not.