Big East teams continue to push through high-contact, low-scoring games, and a logjam has formed at the top of the Big East standings. The top nine teams in the standings sit between 7-2 and 6-4 in conference play. All but two teams have a winning record overall.

The regular season conference championship remains within reach for most Big East teams with roughly a month left in regular season conference play.

“The only teams not playing well at the bottom have some injuries,” Louisville head coach Rick Pitino said in a Jan. 28 Pittsburgh athletics press release. “St. John’s and Rutgers are as good as every team at the top. It’s the Big East, that’s what it’s all about and, until two years come, we’re going to have a hell of a conference.”

The NCAA Tournament selection committee sent out nine bids to Big East teams in 2012, and the conference may come close to matching that this season. Seven Big East programs are ranked in the AP’s top 25, more than any other conference.

The rankings show how much parity exists in the conference, and as conference play has grown more competitive, the Big East elite is finding it harder to maintain dominance.

Louisville and Syracuse, the clear conference favorites at the beginning of the season, firmly held control of the league until recently. Louisville lost three straight games after a 16-1 start and a brief stint as the No. 1 team in the country.

Syracuse, meanwhile, lost two straight games Jan. 26 and Saturday after an 18-1 start before bouncing back with a win against No. 25 Notre Dame on Monday.

The streaks are a result of the strength of the conference. Every team plays quality competition day in and day out. Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim had high praise for sleeper Pittsburgh (7-4 Big East) after the Panthers beat the Orange on Saturday.

“They’re the best team we’ve played, without any question,” Boeheim said Saturday. “It’s not even close.”

Syracuse still sits at the top of the Big East standings at 7-2, while Louisville has fallen into a tie for third place with a 6-3 mark. As Syracuse and Louisville have faltered, other Big East teams have surged.

Marquette sits at 6-2 in the Big East, its most recent loss coming Sunday at No. 12 Louisville. Cincinnati and Georgetown both hold 6-3 records in the Big East. The Hoyas have gone 6-1 in the conference since Jan. 12, their first game after suspending second-leading scorer Greg Whittington.

St. John’s has gone 5-2 in the conference since that point, with its only losses coming at the hands of Georgetown. The two up-and-coming teams know the stakes of each game as they vie for position down the stretch.

“In this league, there’s such a small margin for error,” St. John’s head coach Steve Lavin said Saturday after the Red Storm’s loss to Georgetown. “And if you have a couple of lapses in play or you have a half where you don’t play at a high level, then you’re going to end up with a loss.”

With preseason favorites showing signs of weakness and teams in the middle of the pack making strides, the race for the Big East conference championship is wide open once again this season.

Teams in the conference are trying to stay hungry and healthy down the home stretch of conference play. While teams may experience peaks and valleys during this time, Big East players and coaches know that peaking at the right time is critical.

“We know we’re judged in March,” Pitino said after a Jan. 26 loss to Georgetown. “We don’t like losing, and we’re fighting hard, but all college basketball is judged in March.”

Published on February 6, 2013 at 1:12 am

Contact Jacob: jspramuk@syr.edu