Player of the Week:
Zach Freemantle (Xavier)
A big reason for Xavier’s success is that they have arguably four All-Big East First team candidates. Freemantle is the best player on this roster and here’s why. Standing at 6-9, Freemantle has the skills of a guard being able to knock down the three. He doesn’t shoot it much but he’s shooting 63.6% from three this season. In the post he has great moves and uses his athleticism to finish around the rim. He’s coming off season high 29 points against Villanova and now currently leads the Big East in scoring in conference games alone at 19.8 points a game. Finally, he leads his team with 8.0 rebounds a game and field goal percentage at 60.1%.
Who’s Hot
Providence Friars
Ever since losing to TCU in the Big East-Big 12 battle, Providence has won nine straight games. Providence is now ranked No. 19 in the nation, their first top 25 ranking of the season. Ed Cooley is truly a master coach winning so many close games. Four of their six Big East wins have been decided by five points or less with one game being decided in double overtime. It’s crazy to believe that their win over UConn was a double-digit victory. Who would have thought that Providence would be sitting in first in the Big East after being picked to finish 5th.
Xavier Muskateers
I have to give them credit and keep Xavier on the who’s hot list this week. Two big wins against No. 2 UConn and on the road at Villanova, the Musketeers are on a nine-game winning streak now being ranked No. 12 in the nation. They are on top of Big East and are looking to be a potential No. 3 seed in March Madness. Their most recent win at Villanova might be one of their more impressive wins of the season. It’s not every day where you go into the Pavilion and beat Villanova. They dropped 88 points on the Wildcats. That’s the most Villanova has allowed since February of 2018. Best offense in the conference averaging 84.1 points per game.
Who’s Not
Georgetown Hoyas
It’s starting to look like the same season as last year for the Hoyas. They have yet to win a single Big East game and they are not even looking competitive. Their closest game was on the road at DePaul, who sits at the bottom of the conference with Georgetown, where they lost by 7 points. Their offense hasn’t been terrible with several talented scorers in Primo Spears, Brandon Murray and Jay Heath. Unfortunate for the Hoyas that Heath and Murray are both dealing with injuries not helping to get this team wins.
DePaul
The Blue Demons have won just won game in their last six with that sole winning being at home against Georgetown. In their five recent losses they are averaging just 58.8 points a game struggling to score from the field. The team’s second leading scorer Javan Johnson has made just one three in his last 14 attempts. He will need to get going, being one of the better three-point shooters in the entire conference. Thankfully for DePaul forward Da’Sean Nelso is averaging just above 15 points in the last two games. This is huge for a team that needs more contributions from other players.
Top 5 Passers
#5 Andre Curbelo (Saint John’s)
The transfer from Illinois has a great feel for the game and racks up a lot of assists especially to his big man Joel Soriano. He’s averaging 5.1 assists a game, the best of his career. The point guard can score the basketball, but he does a great job of facilitating the offense for the Red Storm.
#4 Primo Spears (Georgetown)
Another transfer coming from Duquesne has become the best player immediately for Georgetown. Not only is he averaging 15.6 points a game, but he also finds his teammates getting 5.3 assists a game. He recently had a double-double with 17 points and career high 11 assists against DePaul. In the last four games he’s averaging 8.0 assists.
#3 Ryan Nembhard (Creighton)
For his entire collegiate career, Nembhard has lead Creighton on offense being a true point guard. Last year he earned the Big East freshman of the year award leading the Bluejays with 4.4 assists and 1.3 steals a game. This year he’s averaging 5.4 assists and has improved overall in several statistical categories.
#2 Colby Jones (Xavier)
Jones is a known scorer on the perimeter for Xavier, but he doesn’t get the credit he deserves as a passer. With so many other talented players on this roster, he’s taken on the role getting his teammates open for easy looks. He’s had at least 4 assists in every game this season showing his consistency as a gift giver compared to the other players on this list.
#1 Tyler Kolek (Marquette)
This was an easy choice. Kolek leads the Big East and is third in the nation with 8.0 assists per game. Averaging 9.2 points a game, he’s had 10 games this year with more assists than points. Every game he’s had 10+ assists, he scored less than 10 points. His recent game against Georgetown he dished out career high 15 assists. One of the best passers in the nation.