by herodotus » Sun Jan 20, 2019 12:04 pm
Looking at the four "contenders/pretenders", I'm not quite as down on SJ's as some of their fans are. Nine of their last 12 games are very winnable. They have to defend their home court. A loss to Nova won't kill them, but they have to win the other games. What will decide their fate are 4 road games vs 4 of the weaker teams in the league. Obviously a win against Duke, Nova, or MU would help immensely, but they can make it without that if they take care of business in the other games.
Butler took care of business this week, but their road is still very tough. 4 games vs Nova, and MU, plus a road game at SJU leaves little room for error. I'm not optimistic here.
Seton Hall has made their road much tougher by losing at home to DePaul. After playing Nova on the road, they have 8 winnable games in a row, before hosting Marquette, and Nova to end the season. The door is open for them if they are really a quality team. This is by no means a bad schedule, but it will certainly expose them if they are a fraud.
Creighton has their backs to the wall. At 1-4, they can't afford to slip any further behind. They have 4 winnable games coming up before going to Nova. They absolutely have to win 3 of these games. Do or die!
DePaul, X, GU, and PC will continue to act as land mines to the other 4 schools.
My guess is that St. John's, and Seton Hall will be the survivors. Nothing would shock me though.