Player of the Week:
Julian Champagnie (Saint John’s)
It was only a matter of time until Champagnie (pictured) earned player of the week. He has been fighting for the #1 scoring position all season after winning that title last year. He earns player of the week after the performance he had against DePaul. This was his first game in almost a month due to COVID-19 concerns and he was hungry to play. He scored career high 34 points AND grabbed career high 16 rebounds. Add 3 blocks in this game as well to show he is working hard on defense. Champagnie has been doing everything within his power to increase his draft stock.
Who’s Hot:
Villanova Wildcats
Nothing screams a blowout like a revenge game for Villanova at home. After losing by 20 points to Creighton on the road, they decided to give the Bluejays a taste of their own medicine and beat them by 30 two weeks later. Villanova is on a four-game winning streak after losing to that game to Creighton. Their latest was a 15-point win over DePaul. Collin Gillespie played his best game all year with 28 points and while sitting two minutes of the entire game. The Wildcats are back to the top of the standings in the Big East.
Marquette Golden Eagles
The Golden Eagles record does not explain how formidable they actually are. No one predicted that they would give Providence their first Big East loss of the season which came in blow out fashion. Shaka Smart is making a case for conference coach of the year with the way he has his team playing. They have back-to-back 20+ point wins in the Big East. It’s clear that both their offense and defense are clicking at the same time. In their most recent win over Georgetown, they had 11 different players contribute to their 92 points.
Who’s Not:
Butler Bulldogs
Many would say that playing three home games in a row to start conference play would be a huge advantage. In Butler’s case they couldn’t utilize the home court dropping two out of three games. They just lost to both Seton Hall and Xavier by double digits. While Butler has a talented and experienced starting five, they lack on the bench. In their loss to Seton Hall their bench had 0 points. The only bench player who has been beneficial is Chuck Harris who is averaging 10.3 points per game.
Creighton Bluejays
The Bluejays just scored their season low 41 points in their most recent loss to Villanova. Alex O'Connell was the only player to score double figures. Leading scorer Ryan Hawkins was held to season low 0 points. Give credit to Villanova’ defense, but this is a Creighton team that just beat Villanova earlier in the year by 20 points. This loss was a 50-point swing from the last game. As a collective group they shot 35.6% from the field and 13% from the three.
Top Five Big East 6th Men
#5 Jared Bynum (St Joseph)
After starting the first few games of the year, Bynum got moved to a new role. Even though he does not start, he is averaging more minutes in his past five games then he did as a starter at the beginning of the season. His new role is allowing him to be more successful averaging 12.4 points in those past five games. He is coming off a big performance scoring season high 18 points in their win over Saint John’s that gave Ed Cooley is 300th career win.
#4 Kam Jones and Oso Ighodaro (Marquette)
Both Jones and Ighodaro see significant minutes and contribute a lot to their team, so they had to be combined in this top-five. It changes every game who comes off the bench first with Jones stepping up into the starting position when Darryl Morsell was out earlier this year. Jones has a bright future ahead of him being a freshman with multiple double-digit games. Ighodaro has exploded in the past three games. He displayed a game high 22 points in their overtime win over Creighton.
#3 Jack Nunge and Adam Kunkel (Xavier)
Nunge and Kunkel could very easily be starters at a plethora of schools across the nation. They are a big reason why Xavier has been so successful this season. Nunge is coming off the bench after being a starter while Zach Freemantle was injured at the start of the season. Kunkel was a pivotal bench player for the Musketeers last year. He is a great option for head coach Travis Steele when the offense is struggling to score. Both Nunge and Kunkel have a combined four 20+ point performances this year.
#2 Caleb Daniels (Villanova)
After starting in all but one of his games for Villanova last season, Daniels has been a key player off the bench. He’s another veteran player who fits perfectly in Jay Wright’s system. He’s a great perimeter player that can also create off the dribble giving him driving lanes to the basket. He’s averaging 9.7 points per game with 6 double digit performances this season.
#1 Bryce Aiken (Seton Hall)
The special number for Aiken has been 22 this season. He’s scored 22 points three times so far, two of those games he came off the bench. He has started a few games due to players being on COVID-19 protocol, but he is easily the most talented player to come off any bench on the Big East. In the past six games he is averaging 16.5 points per game, the best on his team.