In the Big East, even in its current form, DePaul has been the butt of jokes for some time. The program’s best days have looked to be long behind it since coming to the Big East in 2005, and when the school hired Dave Leitao for a second tenure, there was probably a collective yawn – not because of Leitao per se, but that the school hired someone who was previously in that position instead of some new blood, although it was Leitao who led them to their last run of success right before they joined the Big East.
Don’t look now, but DePaul may be on a path toward relevance once again, while no one has been looking.
The Blue Demons were runners-up in the CBI last year after posting the second-best Big East record in their history – a 7-11 mark. On Monday night, the Blue Demons improved to 4-0 on the young season with easily their most impressive win to date, a 93-78 win at Iowa that wasn’t even that close. It came after home wins against Alcorn State, Division III Chicago and Fairleigh Dickinson, none of which will make many people stand up and take notice (although FDU should contend in the Northeast Conference). It’s the first time in 11 years that the Blue Demons have started a season 4-0
DePaul was 8-14 from long range in the first half to build up a 53-30 lead, and the game was never in doubt. They also forced 12 turnovers in the opening frame, never allowing Iowa to get going in front of their home crowd. Paul Reed had himself a night with 25 points on 10-14 shooting and 12 rebounds, which now has him averaging a double-double on the young season. Add in Charlie Moore, who is their leading scorer, and the Blue Demons have a solid duo leading the way. It’s easy to forget that Moore, who is at his third school and was a bit player at Kansas last year with their deep backcourt, averaged over 12 points a game at Cal as a freshman before the Pac-12 took its nosedive of the past two years. Junior Jaylen Butz looks like a breakout player thus far as well.
DePaul shot 61.4 percent from the field on the night. Considering they gave the ball away 21 times, it’s a good thing they were on fire when they put it up. The jury is out on Iowa this season, but Carver-Hawkeye Arena isn’t an easy place for visiting teams to win, so this is a good win for the Blue Demons any way you slice it.
All the same, it’s debatable how high on the Blue Demons one can get at the moment. Recent history has not shown them to be anything like the powerhouse they used to be. Since joining the Big East, only once has DePaul finished above .500, when they went 9-7 in 2006-07, their second season in the conference. They went winless in 2008-09 and won just one Big East game each of the next two seasons. Since the Big East realigned, they have had a stranglehold on the No. 10 seed in the conference tournament, being seeded there four times in six seasons, including the last three.
The Blue Demons don’t have to remain down forever, though, and if they have a resurgence, it may not be a quick one that seems to happen all of a sudden. It may be gradual and begin with baby steps. Whether or not that is happening now remains to be seen, but for perhaps the first time since they joined the Big East, there are encouraging signs for that to happen.
Side Dishes
The only result that might have been bigger on the night was out west, where Winthrop knocked off Saint Mary’s 61-59. Winthrop is now 2-1 and showed a great resolve after they lost on a three-pointer with one second left at Fresno State a day earlier.
The NCAA denied the appeal of Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly as he sought to be eligible this season after transferring from Villanova. He will instead have to sit out until next season, but his mother is not taking this quietly, as she took to Twitter in response:
It’s time to start talking about this circumstance and this organization & yes why Villanova was not his FIRST choice & why his parents made his decision 4 him! Why? Well stick around and you’ll find out. I’m done being quiet. I’ve stayed under the radar FTS
— CareninaQ (@CareninaQ) November 11, 2019
Notable results on the night: Cincinnati handled Drake 81-59 for John Brannen’s first win there; Kent State went on the road and pulled out an 84-80 win at Towson; North Florida held off Georgia Southern 80-77; Omaha hammered Bethune-Cookman 90-61; and San Francisco pulled out an 84-79 overtime win over Yale.
Tonight’s Menu
The slate is perhaps the best since opening night on the whole, with a good number of games to watch on a busy night of action.
- The Gavitt Tipoff Games continue with Creighton visiting Michigan (6:30 p.m.) and Minnesota traveling to Butler (8:30 p.m.)
- Missouri travels to Xavier for an early test, while Northeastern heads west with the nation’s leading scorer to visit UMass (7 p.m.)
- Missouri isn’t the only SEC team with tough test on the evening, as Ole Miss hosts Norfolk State (7:30 p.m.) and Auburn travels to Sun Belt contender South Alabama (8 p.m.), and later on Tennessee hosts Murray State (9 p.m.)
- Also getting tests are a few American Athletic Conference teams as SMU hosts Southland favorite New Orleans and Oral Roberts heads across town to visit Tulsa (8 p.m.), then UCF hosts Miami (9 p.m.)
- The Phil Knight Invitational is on tap, and the first one is the big one as Memphis takes on Oregon (9 p.m.), then Oklahoma takes on Oregon State (11 p.m.) in Portland.
- The sleeper game of the night is in Reno as UT Arlington visits Nevada (10 p.m.)
