Around the Big East 19/20

[quote="Mike Zaun" post=367029]Disagree regarding UConn being bad for the conference. Villanova can't always carry the conference. When Villanova isn't good (and G'Town is a mess), our conference is much weaker in terms of national respect. We needed another team like that to add. I don't think they'll be the same UConn we remember...their natty championship days are probably over, but I think they can be a top 15-25 team fairly consistently. That gives us 2 more chances for good wins in conference play. That's how I see it. More fans, more money, more hype, more prestige for conference, more chances for good resume wins. BET is going to be nuts.[/quote]

Seems to me you forgot Xavier, Butler and Creighton all very competitive and well respected around the country. Screw Connecticut.
 
What exactly does Yukon joining the BE do for St. John's?
 
You can make an argument UCONN strengthens the BE. But Ive always argued we have the most to loose because they recruit right in our back yard. Also a game at MSG will have 50% UCONN fans.
 
I think Seton Hall has really raised their basketball profile in the last 5 or 6 years under Willard. They're not thought of as an elite program but I think the average college basketball fan now views them as a solid, winning program who will usually be in the tournament even if they don't do much damage. I'd be happy if I was a fan. We'll see if that remains the case moving forward.

It's too early to say for sure, but I do believe that they were overrated this year. I thought (and still do think) they'll be a good team and I certainly thought top 3 or 4 in the Big East but them being touted as a preseason Top 10-15 team in the country was a bit much for me. Everyone assumed because they brought almost everyone back that they would be better. The supporting cast around Powell was mediocre last year. Not bad but not good. Guess what? The supporting cast around Powell still looks mediocre. They're a year older but that doesn't necessarily mean they're a year better. I have a hunch that most of the conference improved just as much as Hall did and much more in some cases. I see them going 11-7 or something like that. Good but not especially so. Mamu going down is a killer for them. If anyone was Powell's sidekick it was him.

The only hesitation I have with declaring them overrated is Powell. He is a very special player capable of playing out of his mind for stretches. He's the type of guy who could get hot at the right time and drag them on his back to a Big East Tournament Title, Elite 8 or Final 4. As long as they have him, they can't be written off as real contenders.
 
[quote="fordham96" post=367032][quote="RedmanMike" post=367031]Gents - Read that NYT article before you high five each other about UConn joining the conference. Their recruiting has already picked up and it will only go up from there.

And don't say that their national championship days are over. Who even saw their first rise coming? They were a complete afterthought in the BE in the 80's. We routinely routed them. No one thought Calhoun would do what he did. But they hired the right coach (Calhoun is a shyster for sure, but still a great coach) and within five years they were on their way to elite status and they stayed there for more than twenty years.

They've stolen two recruits from us over the years, they are a mulitple NCAA violator, and they have access to bottomless taxpayer resources. By all means let's throw them a life raft!

Plus, they have no loyalty. They were sniffing around for ways to leave the BE for years, but no one would have them. If there is another round of realignment, and the ACC comes calling, they will be the first ones out the door.

I have no idea what they bring to the conference. They are out in the boonies with no TV market, they have been a middling program at best since 2014, and they aren't exactly Harvard academically. They bring nothing to the Big East.[/quote]

This is utter nonsense. You act like they are new.

You do realize they were a BE member for decades winning in the 90's and 2000's at a rate commensurate with a big time power. This all occurred despite of the things you said about them just now were the same. If everything you said were true then why did they have so much success when the BE was for years the elite conference in the country.[/quote]

Man he clearly stated they reached elite status in the old BE.
 
[quote="AlexSTJ" post=367046][quote="Knight" post=367041]What exactly does Yukon joining the BE do for St. John's?[/quote]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$[/quote]

Yukon should have had to pay an entrance fee.
 
[quote="Knight" post=367041]What exactly does Yukon joining the BE do for St. John's?[/quote]

More money. More money from our next TV contract (rumored to be renegotiated this summer), more money from ticket sales due to an additional MSG game every year, more money from the Tournament credits UConn will bring in, etc. Also, a lot more exposure and exciting basketball. We'll essentially be replacing 2 of these cupcake games with 2 games against UConn each year. After losing Syracuse and Duke we badly needed another MSG game, and UConn certainly fills that void.

There shouldn't be a debate as to whether they'll bring benefits to us and the rest of the conference. They will. The only question is whether they'll also bring significant negatives. I personally think the positives will far outweigh any negatives.
 
Last edited:
Top NYC recruits do not want to be here. If that hasn't been made painfully obvious by now I don't know when it will. Yes we had Ponds and Harkless over the years but they are the rare exception. UConn is attractive to local kids who want to get away with the key word being "away". That means they probably wouldn't have ended up here anyway. So i don't see the big deal recruiting wise. My point is that we control our own destiny. Regarding attendance, we control our own destiny with that too. Unfortunately, only the diehards attend most of the games whether we are expected to be good or not. We haven't yet reached the point where casual fans come out in droves. Happened in 2011 and also happened last year. We need to have legit success first. If it's 50/50 so what? It's still our house and they have a much bigger student population what do you want us to do? They will get loud but we can get loud too. It's all on us guys...this is not elite UConn anymore. This is a different era without Calhoun and Kemba. This is not the old conference. They will be in for a surprise when they realize no games are gimmes anymore in the new Big East.
 
Last edited:
It’s understandable for Setom hall to lose to MSU but that loss to Oregon was absolutely disgusting and showed the flaws with Seton Hall. You can’t be up 19 in the second half and lose that game.
 
Love the addition of Uconn. I trust Cragg if the ADs didn't think Uconn would be a positive addition for their respective schools they wouldn't have let them join. Just have consistent winning seasons and you don't have to worry about schools like uconn poaching recruits. winning cures all.
 
First off I abhor the U of Con's and their fans. But to say they will not contribute to our/BE coffers is not correct. We will get the revenue from 19K at MSG with no tickets going to youth groups. The BE will get sell outs for its tournament at MSG which will fend off other conferences trying to take "our time" at the Garden. As to media appeal, U of Con's has an exclusive with SNY which saw the value of the Connecticut market for its programming franchise and as others have said our Fox contract may be extended and the addition of U of Con men's and women's BB will add to the attractiveness of the BE product--BE women's BB will now be extremely relevant. They will enhance other BE sports as their teams in WBB, baseball and soccer are highly competitive
 
The "UConn to the Big East" discussion has been lively as always. I've been having this discussion on this board and with actual live people in person for a while now, and no one has shown me anything tangible that UConn would bring to the conference.

Do they bring a media market that will enhance our TV footprint? No.

Do they bring a great team? No. They have been mediocre or worse for the past five years.

Do they bring academic excellence? No.

Do they share the same mission as the other teams? No.

Are they basketball only? No.

Do they have similar resources as the other Big East teams? No - they have much greater resources.

So I'm not sure what the advantage of having them in the league.

I'm very clear on the disadvantages - they recruit in our backyard, and we just gave them a leg up in recruiting.

They've stolen two recruits over the years - after both had commited to us. Get ready for that happen more, now that Hurley can whisper in their ears that UConn will be playing at the Garden too...

I get it that lots of folks here want UConn back in the Big East, but I'm just not sure why. Why do we want to help one of our regional recruiting rivals get stronger at our expense?

And I'm not willing to say, "well, let's just trust the ADs - they know what they are doing." People make mistakes, all the time - even groups of people. The Big East making one now.
 
I would venture a guess that most of the pro-yukon are under 30. With age and experience comes wisdom. Any short term revenue is fool's gold. The fact that there were not massive financial penalties and buy-ins show this was an ego move for the head of the BEC. She may well be positioning for the head of the NCAA job.
 
[quote="Paul Massell" post=367066]I would venture a guess that most of the pro-yukon are under 30. With age and experience comes wisdom. Any short term revenue is fool's gold. The fact that there were not massive financial penalties and buy-ins show this was an ego move for the head of the BEC. She may well be positioning for the head of the NCAA job.[/quote]

I'm 36 and can see the argument for both sides. In fact this argument has been had on this board many times over the past decade. Totally get the hatred of UConn. What I prefer to focus on is how I don't see any downside to having them join the conference. We are perfectly insulated should they decide to bolt in a few years.
 
I would be surprised if Yukon's admission to the Big East was not done with the urging of FoxSports to increase the inventory of games.
 
[quote="Room112" post=367067][quote="Paul Massell" post=367066]I would venture a guess that most of the pro-yukon are under 30. With age and experience comes wisdom. Any short term revenue is fool's gold. The fact that there were not massive financial penalties and buy-ins show this was an ego move for the head of the BEC. She may well be positioning for the head of the NCAA job.[/quote]

I'm 36 and can see the argument for both sides. In fact this argument has been had on this board many times over the past decade. Totally get the hatred of UConn. What I prefer to focus on is how I don't see any downside to having them join the conference. We are perfectly insulated should they decide to bolt in a few years.[/quote]

i'm 42 and have been around long enough to know what having UCONN in the BE feels like.

bottom line, it's good for the league and good for SJU.

1. 1 more game at MSG
2. perennial NCAA team = more money for league
3. more eyeballs on fox = more money for league
4. more people at Big East tourney

all the other stuff as far as recruiting shouldn't bother us. we take of our own business and we'll be fine. no need to worry about what hurley is doing.
 
[quote="redmen4life" post=367070][quote="Room112" post=367067][quote="Paul Massell" post=367066]I would venture a guess that most of the pro-yukon are under 30. With age and experience comes wisdom. Any short term revenue is fool's gold. The fact that there were not massive financial penalties and buy-ins show this was an ego move for the head of the BEC. She may well be positioning for the head of the NCAA job.[/quote]

I'm 36 and can see the argument for both sides. In fact this argument has been had on this board many times over the past decade. Totally get the hatred of UConn. What I prefer to focus on is how I don't see any downside to having them join the conference. We are perfectly insulated should they decide to bolt in a few years.[/quote]

i'm 42 and have been around long enough to know what having UCONN in the BE feels like.

bottom line, it's good for the league and good for SJU.

1. 1 more game at MSG
2. perennial NCAA team = more money for league
3. more eyeballs on fox = more money for league
4. more people at Big East tourney

all the other stuff as far as recruiting shouldn't bother us. we take of our own business and we'll be fine. no need to worry about what hurley is doing.[/quote]

Good last point, if we are going to return to any level of national relevance we sure can’t be afraid to compete with anyone.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top