Big East Tournament Previews

No. 8 seed Georgetown

Record: 21-9, 10-8

RPI: 8

SOS: 1

Overview: The Hoyas, despite being one of the most potent offensive teams, have been in a slump as of late. The team has lost four of its last five games, and an injury to guard Chris Wright has limited what Georgetown can do offensively. Despite the losing streak, the Hoyas earned a first-round bye in the Big East Tournament, and are a lock for the NCAA Tournament already, based on wins at Villanova and Syracuse earlier this year.

Coach: John Thompson III (seventh year, 150-70)

Best player: First-team all-Big East forward Austin Freeman (17.8 ppg) shoots nearly 50 percent and hits nearly 90 percent of his free throws.

Keep an eye on: Forward Julian Vaughn (8.3 ppg) is one of the most underrated big men in the Big East. When he plays well, so do the Hoyas.

Defining stat: Without second-leading scorer Wright in the lineup, Georgetown is averaging just 49 points per game – more than 20 points lower than its average.

— Compiled by Tony Dobies

No. 9 seed Connecticut

Record: 21-9 (9-9, Big East)

RPI: 21

SOS: 11

Overview: Connecticut is one of the most physical teams in the Big East Conference, and it is led by National Player of the Year candidate, Kemba Walker. The Huskies have stumbled into the Big East Tournament by losing four of their last five.

Coach: Jim Calhoun (24th season, 596-229)

Best player: Guard Kemba Walker (23.1 PPG) is by far the Huskies' best player, but he may also be the National Player of the Year. The junior guard helped carry UConn from being unranked in the preseason to a national contender.

Keep an eye on: Forward Alex Oriakhi is one of the Big East's most physical post players and can rebound the ball on both ends of the floor. Oriakhi benefits primarily from Walker's ability to drive the ball into the paint.

Defining stat: The Huskies have been a tough team to score on as they are holding teams to just a 39.5 field goal percentage.

— Compiled by Brian Kuppelweiser

No. 10 seed Villanova

Record: 21-10, 9-9

RPI: 32

SOS: 26

Overview: After suffering a late meltdown last season in which it lost four of its last six regular season games, the Wildcats are on a similar track this year. Villanova has fell in six of its last eight games, all but one of those losses have been to ranked opponents.

Coach: Jay Wright (10th year, 224-109)

Best player: Senior guard Corey Stokes (14.9 ppg) is the Wildcats' do-it-all player. Stokes enters the Big East Tournament as the top free-throw shooter in the conference (89.5-percent) and has made the second most 3-pointers in the league.

Keep an eye on: Fellow senior guard Corey Fisher averages over 15 points-per-game and has scored over 1,000 career points. He also leads the team in assists and steals.

Defining stat: Villanova is the best free-throw shooting team in the Big East, having shot 76-percent from the line during the regular season. The Wildcats also get to the line an average of 24 times a game, ranking them fourth in the conference.

— Compiled by Brian Gawthrop

No. 11 seed Marquette

Record: 18-13, 9-9

RPI: 56

SOS: 25

Overview: After finishing the regular season 9-9 in the Big East, the Golden Eagles need a strong showing at the tournament if they want a big into the NCAA Tournament. Marquette is just 3-8 against ranked teams this season, and fell to Cincinnati and Seton Hall to end its regular season.

Coach: Buzz Williams (3rd year, 79-49)

Best player: Six-foot-7 small forward Jimmy Butler (16 ppg) has been as reliable as possible for the Golden Eagles this season. Butler has scored in double-figures in all but one game this season and has shot 50 percent from the field. He is second on the team in rebounds (6.2 rpg).

Keep an eye on: Junior guard Darius Johnson-Odom has the ability to lead the team in scoring any given night. The guard has scored at least 20 points in seven games this season, but scored just three points in the team's regular season finale against Seton Hall.

Defining stat: Despite the Golden Eagles being 3-8 against ranked teams, it hasn't because of lack of production on Butler's part. Butler has averaged 16.7 points against ranked teams, including scoring 22 in back-to-back games against Duke and Gonzaga.

— Compiled by Brian Gawthrop

No. 12 seed Seton Hall

Record: 13-17 (7-11, Big East)

RPI: 92

SOS: 8

Overview: Seton Hall has struggled at times this season, but other than a loss to Rutgers at home it really doesn't have a lot of bad losses. The Pirates have shown that they can be very dangerous at times, though. They were able to beat a solid Syracuse team at the Carrier Dome 90-68 in January and finished the season with double-digit wins over St. John's and Marquette.

Coach: Kevin Willard (1st Year, 13-17)

Best Player: Jeremy Hazell (19.4 ppg) is coming off another great regular season and continues to be one of the Big East Conference's best pure scorers. He was plagued by injuries early on in the season and has only played 17 games this season, but he has really turned it on as of late. He's averaging nearly 22 points per game over his last seven games.

Keep an eye on: Herb Pope. The junior forward has struggled at the end of the year. He's only scored in double figures twice in the final eight games of the season and hasn't rebounded as well as he did last season. But he has shown in the past that he can be a great presence in the post and he could do that again this week in the Big East Tournament.

Defining stat: If Seton Hall scores well, they will have a chance to win games. In games that they have lost this season, the Pirates is averaging just 57 points per game, when they win, however, they've scored much better, averaging more than 80 points. So, if they're able to put up a lot of points, they could have a shot of winning a couple of games.

— Compiled by Michael Carvelli

No. 13 seed Rutgers

Record: 14-16 (5-13, Big East)

RPI: 124

SOS: 48

Overview: After beginning the season off with a strong 9-3 nonconference record, it looked like Rutgers could have been a pretty good team this year. But once the Scarlet Knights hit their Big East schedule, those hopes went downhill. They finished 5-13 in the conference and their only quality Big East win came in the way of a dramatic, come-from-behind upset over Villanova.

Coach: Mike Rice (1st Year, 14-16)

Best Player: Senior Jonathan Mitchell has been great for Rutgers all season. In his second season since transferring from Florida, the 6-foot-7 forward leads the team in points (14.2) and is second on the team in rebounds, averaging 5.7 per game.

Keep an eye on: Sophomore wing player Dane Miller. Miller has been a versatile threat for the Scarlet Knights all season. He's averaging 9.3 points, six rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.6 blocks and one steal per game and has registered three double-doubles this year.

Defining stat: It's not like St. John's has been blown out of every game it has lost in Big East play. The Scarlet Knights have been able to keep it close many times, but just haven't been able to close games or do what they need to do to get the win. They lost by three to Pittsburgh, two at St. John's and they lost by four in an overtime loss to Syracuse at the Carrier Dome.

— Compiled by Michael Carvelli

No. 14 seed Providence

Record: 15-16, 4-14

RPI: 147

SOS: 70

Overview: After starting off the season 11-2, the Friars have struggled down the stretch when stronger teams have challenged them. In the second half of the season, Providence has had losing streaks of six and seven games, respectively. That doesn't mean the Friars don't have the ability to upset an opponent in the Big East Tournament. In January, Providence defeated then-No. 15 Louisville and then-No. 7 Villanova in back-to-back games.

Coach: Keno Davis (third year, 46-49)

Best player: Guard Marshon Brooks (24.8 ppg) was named a first-team all-Big East selection. He is the best offensive player in the conference.

Keep an eye on: Guard Vincent Council (13.5 ppg) is the second-best option on offense for the Friars.

Defining stat: Brooks scored nearly 33 percent of Providence's offense in 2010-11, which is the highest in the conference for any player.

— Compiled by Tony Dobies

No. 15 seed South Florida

Record: 9-22 (3-15, Big East)

RPI: 158

SOS: 17

Overview: This season has been a struggle for the Bulls, but that does not mean that they haven't been competitive. With one of the better frontcourts in the country, USF has proven to be tough competition for any opponent.

Coach: Stan Heath (4th year, 50-75)

Best player: Forward Augustus Gilchrist (13.0 PPG) leads the Bulls in scoring and is one of the team's most efficient shooters from the field at 44.4 percent. The 6-foot-10 transfer from Maryland is a long, athletic forward that can hurt a team without a post presence.

Keep an eye on: Guard Hugh Robertson is the typical jack-of-all-trades, but ace of none player that each team needs. Robertson averages 8.9 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game, while also being able to open things up for his teammates with his decent passing ability.

Defining stat: The Bulls have struggled all season long and much of that is to blame on the team's scoring offense, which ranked No. 301 in the nation with 61.9 points per game.

— Compiled by Brian Kuppelweiser

No. 16 seed DePaul

Record: 1-17 (7-23, Big East)

RPI: 238

SOS: 56

Overview: The Blue Demons have struggled mightily this season, mostly due to their inexperienced lineup. Despite its shortcomings, DePaul has come on in the recent weeks and been a tough matchup for Big East teams.

Coach: Oliver Purnell (1st season, 7-23)

Best player: Guard Brandon Young (12.4 PPG) is the team's best pure scorer after Cleveland Melvin was lost for the season due to a sprained thumb. Young is a talented freshman that was named Big East Rookie of the Week in December.

Keep an eye on: Forward Tony Freeland will most likely be depended upon to step up with the injury to Melvin. Although he started just seven games this season, Freeland has scored in double digits 13 times.

Defining stat: The Blue Demons are one of the youngest team's in the nation, which is evidenced by their lack of discipline. The team ranks No. 253 in the nation with 20 fouls per game.

— Compiled by Brian Kuppelweiser

For previews of the top eight teams in the Big East Conference, check out The Daily Athenaeum over the next two days as the Big East Tournament continues.