Feb 28, 2026; New York, New York, USA; St. John’s Red Storm forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) drives to the basket in the second half against the Villanova Wildcats at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images They’ll start the tournament with a bye and face the winner of Seton Hall and Creighton, two teams that might need to win the whole tournament to make it into the dance. St John’s at +200 is my favorite bet to win the Big East tournament, in what is realistically a three-team race.
Villanova is the final team in this third-team race, and even they still feel like a distant third. Kevin Willard has done a phenomenal job turning around Nova in his first season at the helm, but I don’t think this team is much of a threat in the Big East or the NCAA tournament. They played UCONN tight in both matchups this season, but I don’t think they have enough match-up with the top of the Big East.
If you were looking for some long-shot bets, Seton Hall at +1600 is a decent bet. Their small-ball lineups can give St John’s some fits, and Shaheen Holloway is a great coach, so I’ll never count them out. Xavier is a massive underdog at +20000, but has one of the best players in the conference with Tre Carroll, who finished First Team All-Big East. I’d never pick them to win the conference, but they could be a potential cashout team if their shooters get hot around him.
The Big East player of the year will be announced later this week, but it will likely be St John’s, Zuby Ejiofor. Behind him and Bryce Hopkins, I love St John’s to repeat as Big East Champions, and put themselves in contention for a three seed in the NCAA Tournament
