Big East Weekly Basketball Wire

Five Teams In “Preseason Sweet 16”
The Big East has placed five teams in the top 16 of the Preseason Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN Polls. In the AP, Connecticut is No. 3, Villanova is No. 5, Louisville is No. 7, West Virginia is No. 14 and Syracuse is No. 16 in USA Today/ESPN it’s: Connecticut No 2, Villanova No. 4, Louisville No. 8, West Virginia No. 15 and Syracuse No. 16. No other conference has more than two teams in the top 16 in either poll.

Syracuse Gets Out Of The Gate First With Two Wins
Coach Jim Boeheim’s Syracuse club is already 2-0 after victories over Bethune Cookman (68-37) and Cornell (67-62) in the 2K Hoops Classic that benefits Coaches vs. Cancer. SU advances to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden in New York on Nov. 17. ESPN2 will televise. The Garden was almost a second home for the Orange last season. They played seven games there, which included winning the Coaches Vs. Cancer tourney crown with a 77-62 triumph over Memphis. In March, SU won The Big East Championship Presented by Aeropostale.

West Virginia Shoots For Kansas City
Coming off an amazing season that ended in the NCAA Elite Eight, West Virginia begins 2005-06 as one of four hosts of the Guardians Classic. The Mountaineers play Louisiana-Monroe on Satuday and either Wofford or Fairleigh Dickinson on Sunday. If WVU wins both games, it will advance to the semifinals in Kansas City next week. Other teams in the 16-team field include Texas, Kentucky and Iowa.

Seton Hall Prepares For Preseason NIT
The Seton Hall Pirates are the Big East representative in the Preseason NIT. The Pirates host Manhattan on Nov. 14. In the history of the Big East, Pirate head coach Louis Orr is the only person to be a player (with Syracuse), assistant coach (Providence and Syracuse) and head coach (Seton Hall) in the league. If the Pirates beat Manhattan, they will meet the winner of the Boston U.-Duke contest.