Shaka Smart’s first four seasons at Marquette were defined by sublime point-guard play. Tyler Kolek led the Big East in assists in all three of his years with the Golden Eagles and was the conference’s Player of the Year in 2022-23. Kam Jones slid over to the point last year and was a consensus second-team All-American.
And as for who is next, Smart points to three candidates: 5-foot-10 junior Sean Jones, 6-foot freshman Nigel James Jr. and (in spurts) 6-foot-5 senior Chase Ross. “It’ll be different from Kam and it’ll be different from Tyler,” Smart said Tuesday at the Big East’s media day at Madison Square Garden. “But the one thing those guys have in spades is speed and so we are really working hard at helping them combine poise with speed because if we can do that, we’ll be hard to deal with.”
Perhaps the most intriguing of the three is Jones, who played in 49 games in his first two seasons at Marquette. But he suffered a torn ACL in January 2024 and is in line to play his first game in nearly 22 months when the Golden Eagles open Nov. 3 against Albany. It’s a long layoff, but it’s provided Jones an extended learning opportunity. “He’s become a real student of the game,” Smart said. “He watches so much video on his own, more than probably any player I’ve ever coached. He’ll be a guy who will be a coach some day when he’s done playing. He just looks at the game through that lens. He’s become very serious about the aspects of playing the point guard position that he needs to attack and improve upon. That gives him a chance to take a really big jump once he gets some more games under his belt.”
The Golden Eagles’ new look at point guard was one of several subplots percolating Tuesday with the start of the season less than two weeks away. Among the other headlines from Big East media day …
Creighton forward Owen Freeman still hasn’t practiced much
The Iowa transfer underwent meniscus surgery over the summer, and while Bluejays coach Greg McDermott says Freeman will be fine, there’s also some urgency given the 6-foot-10 junior’s part in filling the lineup spot of five-year mainstay Ryan Kalkbrenner.
“We need to get (Freeman) back,” McDermott said. “We need to get him healthy. He’s an important part of our team…His ability 15 feet in to operate and get to the rim and get to the foul line is really impressive. I think he’s going to add an element to our team where we can throw that thing inside and get a basket.”
Bryce Hopkins is settling in well at St. John’s
A first team All-Big East pick at Providence two seasons ago, Hopkins has logged just three appearances since suffering a torn ACL in January 2024. He ultimately opted to redshirt last season, then transferred within the league.
He had 13 points, six rebounds and four assists off the bench Saturday in the Red Storm’s exhibition opener against Towson, enough to earn a starting nod in the team’s second exhibition game this Saturday.
“Bryce has been great the last week,” coach Rick Pitino said. “He played terrific in the opening exhibition game. He’ll start out against Michigan. His body looks great. He’s lost a lot of weight.”
Georgetown is waiting on Langston Love’s debut…
The 6-foot-5 grad-transfer guard from Baylor missed all of 2021-22 and portions of the last two seasons because of a variety of injuries, but he has plenty of value as a career 38.8-percent three-point shooter. He didn’t play for the Hoyas during their August trip to Toronto, and did not dress for Saturday’s exhibition victory at George Washington.
“He’s coming along,” coach Ed Cooley said. “He was banged up a little bit and has been banged up…Hopefully, we’ll have him ready for the Kentucky scrimmage (Oct. 30).”
Steven Pearl, Rising Son, Has A Tough Challenge Ahead at Auburn
After his father, Bruce, retired, Steven took over a roster that has just one returning player from last year’s Final Four squad
… And Seton Hall hopes to get Josh Rivera on the court soon, too
The senior has worked his way up from the Patriot League (one season at Lafayette) to the Atlantic 10 (two seasons at Fordham) and now the Big East. Yet he’s missed time with a broken hand, and coach Shaheen Holloway said Rivera is expected to get back in two weeks.
That would put Rivera, a 6-foot-7 forward who averaged 10.7 points and 4.3 rebounds last season, in line to get on the floor right around the Pirates’ Nov. 3 opener against Saint Peter’s.
Nagging injuries are slowing Villanova’s development.
First-year coach Kevin Willard didn’t seem too concerned that transfer guards Devin Askew (Long Beach State) and Zion Stanford (Temple) and forward Tafara Gapare (Maryland) would miss much more time. But none of them played in Sunday’s exhibition victory over VCU, and their absence has limited the Wildcats’ cohesion and ability to test out different looks.
“If we don’t get healthy, we won’t be nearly as good as we can be,” Willard said. “We need Devin Askew, we need Zion Stanford, we need Tafara Gapare. We need those three guys. I had three freshmen on the floor for nine minutes the other night. That hasn’t happened in a long time.”
Providence boasts strength in numbers.
After enduring a 12-20 season that went sideways in large part because of Hopkins’ absence, Providence coach Kim English probably won’t have to worry about his team’s fate hinging on one player.
“I don’t want to sound like a cliché, but we have 10 starters, legitimately,” English said. “There’s not much of a drop off. I think that’s a strength. I want that to be a strength. I really want to get the pace up. We’ll play 10. Maybe 11. Whoever’s 11th is a really good player.”
Tre Carroll could be a major piece of Richard Pitino’s first Xavier team.
Just about everything is new with the Musketeers, so Saturday’s 75-70 exhibition loss to Murray State offered the Xavier staff a chance to discover plenty. Carroll, a 6-foot-8 grad-transfer forward from Florida Atlantic, had 21 points and 13 rebounds.
“You kind of see a different side of the players and who can handle the nerves,” Pitino said. “The exhibition games don’t count, obviously, but it is cool to have a little game pressure and Tre rose to the occasion. He’s skilled, he’s confident. He can play three different positions on the court, so we’re going to need him to have a big role.”
