Big East Roundup: Upset Strengthens Villanova’s Standing

Villanova remained in the No. 2 spot in the Big East during the first week of 2026, rebounding for strong second half performances against DePaul and Butler to improve to 3-0 in conference play. This week, they’ll face two teams who entered the season with legitimate NCAA Tournament hopes but have since tabled off.

Creighton remains a tough matchup, but the Blue Jays have struggled mightily away from home, winning just one of four road games. Marquette has fallen off a cliff, currently occupying the Big East basement with a 5-10 record under head coach Shaka Smart.

Elsewhere in the conference, Providence upset St. John’s 77-71 at Madison Square Garden, overcoming a 33 point night from Zuby Ejiofor to pick up a statement win under head coach Kim English, who’s firmly on the hot seat. The Red Storm’s loss might rank Villanova firmly as the conference’s second-best team behind UConn.

Seton Hall added to the Blue Jays’ road woes, putting up 38 second half points in a low-scoring battle at the Prudential Center and stealing a 56-54 win with a Najai Hines and-one with 0.8 seconds remaining. 

UConn beat up on the Golden Eagles and Xavier, the latter of whom went 0-2 on the week with a loss to DePaul; Butler also went winless, losing to Creighton in Omaha.

Big East Standings as of Jan. 4, 2026