A little while after WVU was picked to finish ninth in the Big East, I finally got around to taking a really close look at the predicted order of finish. I didn’t have a single problem either the order or anyone picked ahead of the Mountaineers.

Notre Dame, for example, isn’t a powerhouse, but has a ridiculous home-court advantage. That’s eight wins there and the Irish are good enough to win five or six more on the road. I wondered about Syracuse, but the Orange are loaded — and they get Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins back. Maquette has a new coach and seems to have been stuck in place for a few years, but the Eagles are so good defensively and good enough at home with a favorable schedule it, too, made sense.

That said, it’s difficult to doubt a Huggins-coached WVU team that’s going to see great improvement by returning players and gradual to great progress by the newcomers. Maybe it’s the ninth-best team in the Big East, but a season spent in that league trying to prove otherwise sets the Mountaineers — and everyone else in the conference — up for something bigger.

Danny Sheridan gives WVU 25-to-1 odds to win the national championship, which is the fourth-best in the conference (lower-left, bottom of the page).