NEW YORK – In the Big East it is St. John’s, UConn, Creighton as a distant third and then everyone else.
UConn was ranked right above the Johnnies at No. 4 in the AP preseason Top 25, but the coaches gave the Johnnies the edge as favorites in the league ahead of Big East Media Day at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.
Dan Hurley’s Huskies, who finished third in the conference standings last season, received four first-place votes, but Rick Pitino’s Johnnies got seven after bringing in arguably the most talented transfer portal class in the nation.
“I think there’s nothing probably more useless than preseason polls and picks – the 2023 (national championship) team not being ranked in the preseason and then starting the dominant run. Preseason polls are pretty meaningless,” Hurley said. “I don’t even do mine. I think I told Luke (Murray) to go do that (stuff).”
UConn was the first team since Villanova in 2005-06 to have three players voted first team all-Big East in Alex Karaban, Solo Ball and Tarris Reed Jr. They were represented on the second team by Silas Demary Jr. and have the Big East Preseason Freshman of the Year in Braylon Mullins, yet they weren’t No. 1. And they don’t care.
“I think we’ve got the talent to compete and win the Big East,” said Karaban, the only unanimous selection. “It’s great that we got the recognition, but at the end of the day it’s a long season, it’s only preseason rankings and we’re gonna see what happens. But in our locker room we have the utmost confidence in getting better every single day and making sure we can reach No. 1 when it does matter.”
Karaban, the Huskies’ senior captain, is looking for his third national championship in four years. He was voted to the league’s preseason first team for the second year in a row after being UConn’s lone representative last season.
This year, there will be less of a load on his shoulders.
Hurley and his staff used the transfer portal to address areas of weakness and load the roster with players like Demary, who was brought in to sure up the point guard spot and help fix the Huskies’ defense.
Ball was tabbed part of the “Big Three” alongside Karaban and Reed after a breakout sophomore season where he shot a team-best 41.4% from beyond the arc. Hurley and the staff continue to harp on him improving on the defensive end to fortify the backcourt.
“It’s what you do at the end of the season,” Ball said, echoing Hurley and Karaban. “You’ve just got to prove yourself every day, that’s all I’m focused on… My goals are definitely to be an All-American, I think I have the capabilities to do that, become a first-round draft pick. Also to win the national championship above everything for sure. I feel like UConn deserves it more than anybody as hard as we work, and I feel like this is the year for it. We have such a talented team.”
Mullins, expected to be up there with Ball among the best shooters in the nation this season, followed Stephon Castle and Liam McNeeley as UConn’s third-straight preseason Big East Freshman of the Year selection. Castle and McNeeley were the last two players to claim the end-of-season award before they each went on to be first-round NBA Draft picks.
Reed and Zuby Ejiofor, the St. John’s center named Big East Preseason Player of the Year, figure to be among the best big men in the league, if not the nation.
Reed missed about two weeks with a hamstring injury, returned for a few days of practice and re injured it, causing him to miss the team’s first exhibition game against Boston College. He is doubtful to play in the second exhibition against Michigan State on Oct. 28 and the Huskies hope he will be ready to go for their Nov. 3 season-opener, but they won’t rush it.
“He means everything to us,” Karaban said of his center. “Having an established inside presence is really going to help us out and he provides that, just what he’s able to do for us defensively, too, he’s really a game-changer for us out there and one of the strongest players I’ve ever played against.”
“I think we’re gonna be one of the best offensive teams in the country again this year. We’re incredibly deep – we’re deep on the wing, we’re deep at point guard and we’re deep at center,” Hurley said. “The question for us is, ‘Did we fix the defense?’ If we fixed the defense, then we have as good a chance as anyone to win all the trophies.”
2025-26 Big East Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
St. John’s (7 first-place votes)
UConn (4)
Creighton
Providence
Marquette
Georgetown
Villanova
Xavier
DePaul
Butler
Seton Hall
Preseason Player of the Year
Zuby Ejiofor, St. John’s, F, Sr., 6-9, 245, Garland, Texas
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Braylon Mullins, UConn, G, Fr., 6-6, 196, Greenfield, Ind.
Preseason All-Big East First Team
Solo Ball, UConn, G, Jr., 6-4, 200, Leesburg, Va.Alex Karaban, UConn, F, R-Sr., 6-8, 230, Southborough, Mass.Tarris Reed Jr., UConn, C, Sr., 6-11, 265, St. Louis, Mo.Owen Freeman, Creighton, F, Jr., 6-10, 240, Moline, Ill.Chase Ross, Marquette, G, Sr., 6-5, 210, Dallas, TexasBryce Hopkins, St. John’s, G-F, Sr., 6-7, 220, Oak Park, Ill.
Preseason All-Big East Second Team
Silas Demary, UConn, G, Jr., 6-4, 195, Raleigh, N.C.Josh Dix, Creighton, G, Sr., 6-6, 205, Council Bluffs, IowaKJ Lewis, Georgetown, G, Jr., 6-4, 210, El Paso, TexasJason Edwards, Providence, Gr., G, 6-1, 180, Atlanta, Ga.Ian Jackson, St. John’s, G, So., 6-5, 195, Bronx, N.Y.
Preseason All-Big East Third Team
Nik Graves, Creighton, G, Sr., 6-2, 190, Durham, N.C.Jackson McAndrew, Creighton, So., F, 6-10, 225, Wayzata, Minn.CJ Gunn, DePaul, Sr., G, 6-7, 200, Indianapolis, Ind.Malik Mack, Georgetown, G, Jr., 6-2, 175, Oxon Hill, Md.Oswin Erhunmwunse, Providence, F, So., 6-10, 235, Benin City, NigeriaDillon Mitchell, St. John’s, F, Sr. 6-8, 210, Tampa, Fla.Joson Sanon, St. John’s, G, So., 6-5, 200, Fall River, Mass
Originally Published: October 21, 2025 at 8:31 AM EDT
