Guards Uphold the Prestige of the BIG EAST Backcourt
By Sean Brennan
Special to BIGEAST.com
Since its advent, all the way back to the 1979-80 season when it was born, the BIG EAST has always been a conference replete with wondrous guard play.
Sleepy Floyd, Chris Mullin, Pearl Washington, Billy Donovan and Mark Jackson were just some of the standouts who helped bring the conference national attention when they shined in the 1980s.
The 1990s brought along another brilliant crop of backcourt talent led by Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, Terry Dehere and Kerry Kittles to name but a few. In the 2000s we were introduced to such top-shelf talent as Troy Bell, Brandin Knight, Ben Gordon, Andre Barrett, Gerry McNamara, Randy Foye, Allen Ray and Kemba Walker.
The 2010s saw the reconfiguration of the BIG EAST as it went back to its roots of being a basketball-centric conference. But despite the departure of some brand-name schools, there was no dropoff in the backcourt talent pool. Think Bryce Cotton, Semaj Christon, Josh Hart, Kellen Dunham, Kris Dunn, Jalen Brunson and more.
Last season saw a mass exodus of premier players from the league, both through graduation and the NBA draft. But still the talent level remained high. In fact, it could be argued that this season’s crop of guards, led by the triumvirate of Marquette’s Markus Howard, Seton Hall’s Myles Powell and St. John’s Shamorie Ponds, is among the best the conference has ever produced.
“I think the BIG EAST has always been known for great guards and I think these three really keep that great tradition of BIG EAST guards,” said Villanova head coach Jay Wright, who knows a thing or two about premium backcourt talent. “I definitely think the three of them are the best in the country and I think (Villanova’s) Phil Booth is right up there with all three of them. And (Creighton’s) Ty-Shon Alexander is playing that way for Creighton. I just think our conference has arguably the best guards in the country.”
Yes, it is an embarrassment of riches the conference boasts in the backcourt as you can look at every roster in the conference and see game-changing guard talent.
It all starts with Howard, the brilliant Golden Eagles’ junior whose shooting range seems to begin right about where the team bus parks. This season Howard has not only logged a pair of 45-point games (in wins over Kansas State and Buffalo, both ranked in the Top 15 at the time) but he set a Marquette and BIG EAST record with his 53-point performance in an overtime win over Creighton. Combined with his 52-point outing against Providence last season, Howard is the only player in the past 20 years to log two 50-plus point games.
“He’s a great player,” Providence coach Ed Cooley said of Howard. “He’s a talented individual scorer. He’s one of the best players in our league. I love how he carries himself on the court. He’s very humble.”
Butler head coach LaVall Jordan is another fan of the Marquette wunderkind and he sees a dominant player from last season only become more so this year.
“I think the difference I see (this year) is that he is imposing his will on games,” Jordan said. “And that’s different than just scoring points. He was a talented scorer a year ago when he had a 50-point game but now he’s got a sense of the moment. He doesn’t force it and he puts his will and imprint on the game when the game needs it.“
Marquette head coach Steve Wojciechowski might be the luckiest coach in the BIG EAST as he gets a front row seat to take in the Markus Howard Show on a nightly basis. And as you might expect, Howard’s record-setting night in Omaha is one experience Wojo will likely never forget.
“(That game) was one of the best college basketball games that I’ve ever been a part of and fortunately I’ve been able to be a part of a few,” Wojo said. “Markus is playing as well as any guard in the country. We’re past the point of being surprised (by his performances). Markus is capable of having magical moments as a player. His performance in Omaha was as good a performance as I’ve seen from a player. He’s a very special young man and an outstanding player.”
And while Howard is leading the conference in scoring at a 25.3 per-game clip, he is not alone among the elite guards in the BIG EAST. Seton Hall’s Powell is second in the league at 21.9 points a game and is the cornerstone of the Pirates’ program.
“I think what makes him so coachable is the fact that he is genuinely a great kid,” Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard said. “He’s got a great heart and he wants all his teammates to do well. It’s never him first, he’s always thinking of his teammates. When you have an unselfish player on the court and off the court, it just makes it that much more fun to coach and it’s a big reason why he is being so successful, because his teammates want him to be successful.”
Powell has logged six games of better than 27 points this season, with hs 40 against Grand Canyon and 28 vs. both Kentucky and Rutgers representing his finest outings this season. And Willard sees a lot of Howard in Powell.
“I think they both have unbelievable range,” Willard said. “You got to guard them when they get off the bus and I think they’re both very willing to pass the basketball. Just because they have it doesn’t mean they’re going to shoot it. I think Markus is very underrated for the fact that he gets his teammates involved and makes right decisions and I think that’s something Myles also does.”
Powell’s play this season has made a fan out of Marquette’s Wojciechowski.
“I think he’s playing as well as anyone,” Wojo said. “Obviously his scoring is elite but I’ve been so impressed with his decision making. From the time he got to Seton Hall to where he’s at now, I just have the utmost respect for how he’s improved. It speaks to the job Kevin has done and it also speaks to how hard that kid must work because he’s one of the best guards in the country. There’s no question about that.”
St. John’s Shamorie Ponds is the other ringleader of the BIG EAST’s golden guards. The Red Storm junior is third in the conference in scoring (19.7 ppg.) and is second in assists at 5.1 per game.
Ponds has posted four 30-point games this season with his top two outings being his 37-point performances against Georgia Tech and Georgetown. He also had 35 vs. VCU and 32 against Cal and has eclipsed the 20-point plateau 16 times this season for a Johnnies team that is currently tied for third place in the BIG EAST.
Howard, Powell and Ponds are all represented on the Wooden Watch List, but that doesn’t mean they are the only shows in town in the BIG EAST. Butler’s Kamar Baldwin (17.6ppg.) is sixth in the league in scoring. How about Creighton’s Ty-Shon Alexander and DePaul’s Max Strus, who are among the more lethal three-point shooters in the league? Don’t sleep on Providence’s Alpha Diallo, who is a Top 10 conference scorer at 16.4 per contest, or the steady Eli Cain at DePaul and another emerging talent in Xavier’s Paul Scruggs.
And need we remind you of what is blossoming down at Georgetown with freshmen phenoms Mac McClung and James Akinjo?
But no talk of brilliant guard play would be complete without mentioning Villanova’s savvy senior Phil Booth. When you own a pair of championship rings and you scored 20 points in a title clincher against North Carolina you are considered conference royalty.
“It feels like Phil has been in the league since I’ve I was an assistant at Boston College,” Providence head coach Ed Cooley joked. “He’s been in the league a long time. With his maturity he is the leader of that team. He knows it’s his time and he’s made some big shots for them. He plays at a great pace and is really tough. He’s played in big, big games and he’s really good. I just think his maturity, his toughness and his experience, the way he’s coached, I think you add all those things in there and he’s got to be one of the leading candidates right now for the league’s Most Valuable Player. He’s done a hell of a job.”
And in 10 days or so, the whole group will be under one roof when the BIG EAST Tournament tips off at Madison Square Garden. It’s a chance to see Howard, Powell, Ponds and Company mesmerize the Garden crowd with their particular skills. It promises to be a show you shouldn’t miss.
“I’m not sure I’ve seen three guards that can take over a game like the three guards in our conference, with Markus and Ponds and Powell,” Wojo said. “The performances that those guys are capable of having are just incredible. And I hope that the fans of the BIG EAST and people who watch and support our league appreciate what they’re seeing because guys like that don’t come around very often. I think it’s a real challenge as a coach to figure out how to stop those guys. It’s a Rubik’s Cube that I’m not sure anybody has figured out.”