Georgetown Coming off Big East regular season and tournament titles and a trip the… Georgetown Coming off Big East regular season and tournament titles and a trip the Final Four, Georgetown enters this season ranked No. 5 in the nation by both the AP and USA Today/ESPN polls. The Hoyas return four starters from a year ago, including preseason conference Player of the Year Roy Hibbert. Hibbert, a top NBA prospect last year, could have jumped to the professional ranks but returns to a program with national title aspirations. Last year the Hoyas went 30-7, splitting their regular-season games with Pitt, but beating the Panthers in the finals of the Big East Tournament. Manning the bench will be John Thompson III, returning for his fourth year. Thompson recently agreed to a six-year contract extension with the school after leading the Hoyas to their first Final Four appearance since his father, John Thompson Jr., was the team’s leading man. The Hoyas were selected as conference co-favorites with Louisville, as voted by the Big East coaches. – Evan Burgos

Villanova The Wildcats return two starters, including Big East Rookie of the Year Scottie Reynolds, from a 22-11 team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year last season. Villanova ranks No. 25 in the preseason USA Today/ESPN coaches’ poll. Reynolds was unanimously selected to the preseason All-Big East team. Pitt and the Wildcats clashed last year at Villanova, a 65-59 victory for the Panthers. Villanova also returns athletic forward Dante Cunningham to the starting lineup, and the departure of leader Curtis Sumpter will leave Cunningham with added scoring responsibilities. Villanova will rely on young talent to get them through the season with no seniors on the squad. – Evn Burgos

West Virginia Don’t think the departure of head coach John Beilein pushes the Mountaineers back into irrelevancy. The hiring of homegrown Bob Huggins means WVU will have a new sense of physicality and toughness. Huggins already has accepted the 3-point shooting talents of his roster, and has implemented a hybrid offense consisting of the old WVU shooting and some of his preferred slashing style. Expect WVU to play physical man-to-man defense this year. -Jeff Greer

Louisville There’s a reason the Big East coaches picked the Cardinals as the co-favorite for conference champion. Rick Pitino returns dynamic sophomore point guard Edgar Sosa, who continues to grow from a pure scorer into an unselfish distributor. That’s scary for the Big East because of the talent he has around him – shooting guard Jerry Smith, who led the Big East in 3-point percentage last year, forwards Earl Clark, Derrick Caracter, Juan Palacios and Terrance Williams and center David Padgett. Louisville is loaded. – Pat Mitsch

Syracuse The Orange finished last year 24-11 and fifth in the Big East. Returning are junior guard Eric Devendorf and sophomore Paul Harris, but it’s who’s coming in that has Syracuse as threat to return to the NCAA Tournament this year. The Orange’s recruiting class is ranked No. 4 in the nation, and features Donte’ Greene and Jonny Flynn, who were elected as preseason co-Rookies of the Year for the Big East. Last year the Panthers defeated the Orange 74-66. Levance Fields scored a career-high 24 points to lead the Panthers to victory. The mesh of incoming and returning talent should be enough for the Orange to play some postseason basketball, and make sure head coach Jim Boeheim feels no need to worry about his team’s RPI. – Adam Littman

Notre Dame Even though Russell Carter and Colin Falls are both gone, Mike Brey restocks the Irish with his signature pesky overachievers. Point guards Kyle McAlarney and Tory Jackson are both back, and they have shooter Ryan Ayers, guard/forward Rob Kurz and bruiser Luke Harangody to dish to – Pat Mitsch

Marquette If there is a team that has been Pitt’s Achilles heel, it’s the Marquette Golden Eagles. Since Marquette joined the Big East in 2005, Pitt has lost three of four regular season battles between the squads. Last year, the Golden Eagles swept the regular season series with a 77-74 thriller at the Petersen Events Center and a 75-71 victory in Milwaukee. However, Pitt knocked off Marquette in the second round of the Big East Tournament 89-79. With the new expanded conference schedule, these two teams only play once – but a rivalry is certainly brewing. The Golden Eagles enter the year with a No. 12 ranking and have been predicted by Big East coaches to place third in the conference. The speedy backcourt gives them a huge advantage over most opponents. Point guard Dominic James heads the offense with lightning quickness and has a killer shooting touch. Jerel McNeal is a top defender not only in the conference but throughout the nation. Wesley Matthews can score, as well, and is expected to make a leap this year. Marquette’s frontcourt will be the factor that determines how far it goes. Dan Fitzgerald is softer than most inside men but has an uncanny knack for the big 3-pointer. Ousmane Barro can get the tough rebounds inside but has to avoid foul trouble. The backcourt depth is excellent with David Cubillan and Maurice Acker coming off the bench but the forwards need to stay on the court as long as possible. Tom Crean has developed the Golden Eagles into a national power the last half-decade and his energetic and temperamental personality distinguishes him from most coaches in the Big East. – Zack Chakan

Connecticut With the exception of forward Marcus Johnson, who recently decided to transfer, the Huskies return everyone of importance. In large part, the Huskies’ struggles last season were experience related. Four of UConn’s starters touched the court as a Husky for the first time last season. A year of experience brings lofty expectations for the Huskies who have a wealth of talent, namely Hasheem Thabeet, Jeff Adrien, A.J. Price, Jerome Dyson and Stanley Robinson – Tony Ferraiolo

Providence The Friars graduated Herbert Hill, a tough inside player, but return 6-foot-7-inch point forward Geoff McDermott. McDermott is the closest comparison to Georgetown’s Jeff Green in terms of passing, scoring and rebounding abilities in this year’s Big East. Sharaud Curry can light it up from anywhere on the floor, and Weyinmi Efejuku isn’t afraid of any defenders. The Friars have a tough inside-outside group, but expect more man-to-man defense from Tim Welsh’s squad. – Jeff Greer