Dan Hurley kicked off the 2024-25 college basketball season by boldly claiming the Big East is the top conference in the nation. His reasoning? Between Villanova and UConn, the Big East has snagged four national championships in the last eight years—a feat no other conference has matched.

Despite recent projections showing the Big East with only three teams likely to make the NCAA Tournament—compared to the SEC’s 13 and the Big Ten’s 11—Hurley remains confident. He argues that what truly defines the best conference isn’t the number of good teams but whether it produces the best team, specifically the one that wins it all. “It’s about winning championships,” he emphasized.

Hurley’s confidence in his league was clear back in October when he called out other conferences for claiming superiority without having the championship hardware to back it up. Though he didn’t name names, his comments seemed aimed at the Big Ten, which hasn’t won a national title since 2000.

This year, the SEC has emerged as a powerhouse, with five teams projected as top-8 seeds by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and seven teams ranked in the AP Top 25. The SEC even dominated the ACC in their annual head-to-head challenge, winning 14-2. Some experts believe the SEC could set a record for most teams sent to the NCAA Tournament, breaking the Big East’s 2011 record of 11.

Meanwhile, the Big East has faced some challenges. Only Marquette is currently projected as a top-8 seed, while UConn sits in the 3/4 range and St. John’s in the 9/10 bracket. Creighton, another strong program, is currently on the bubble. Hurley admits that to get more teams into the tournament, Big East squads need to perform better in non-conference play and improve their NET rankings early in the season.

Still, Hurley sees potential within his conference. He believes Villanova can bounce back despite some tough early losses and considers Georgetown to be a strong contender under new coach Ed Cooley. Ultimately, Hurley says we’ll know which conference reigns supreme when a champion is crowned in San Antonio this April.

On another note, Hurley had high praise for Villanova star Eric Dixon, who is averaging an impressive 25.9 points per game. He called Dixon one of the hardest players to defend in college basketball and compared his dominance to former Purdue star Zach Edey. Hurley also acknowledged Miami transfer Wooga Poplar, highlighting his scoring ability, rebounding, and NBA potential. Together, Dixon and Poplar form one of the most dangerous duos in college hoops.

As the season heats up, Hurley’s belief in his team and conference remains unshaken. The battle for supremacy in college basketball continues, but Hurley’s eyes are fixed on bringing another championship home to the Big East.