{
  "id": 11209316,
  "title": "UConn picked to win Big East led by preseason conference Player of the Year Silas Demary Jr.",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/uconn-picked-to-win-big-east-led-by-preseason-conference-player-of",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-01T14:16:40.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/uconn-picked-win-big-east-141640666.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Big East coaches, meeting in New York, have selected the University of Connecticut to be the conference's champion for the upcoming season, with St. John's trailing as the second choice. UConn, who have reached the national championship game a remarkable three times over the past four years, are guided by their preseason Big East Player of the Year, Silas Demary Jr. Last season, Demary Jr. contributed significantly to his team's performance, averaging 10.1 points, 5.9 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, St. John's, who have claimed two consecutive Big East titles, were favored with two first-place votes. Led by their own preseason first-team selections, Tounde Yessoufou and Ian Jackson, the Red Sea team advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999. Other top-ranked teams include Villanova, Marquette, and Providence, with Xavier ranked sixth. Creighton, under their new head coach Alan Huss, was seventh, followed by DePaul, eighth, and Seton Hall and Georgetown, ninth and tenth, respectively. The Big East's annual media day took place at a New York hotel this year, marking a shift from the long-standing tradition of Madison Square Garden, which has hosted the event every year since 2014. In his first year as conference commissioner, Tim Brosnan took over from Val Ackerman, who retired at the end of August.",
  "summary": "UConn was picked to win the Big East by the league's coaches on Thursday with defending champion St. John's the second choice. The Huskies, who made their third national championship game appearance in the last four seasons, are led by preseason Big East Player of the Year selection Silas Demary Jr. Demary averaged 10.1 points, 5.9 assists and 4.5 rebounds for the Huskies last season. St. John's…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yahoo Sports",
        "title": "UConn men's basketball picked to win Big East, Silas Demary Jr. tabbed as Player of the Year",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/uconn-mens-basketball-picked-to-win-big-east-silas-demary-jr-tabbed",
        "published": "2026-10-01T13:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Winnipeg Free Press",
        "title": "UConn picked to win Big East led by preseason conference Player of the Year Silas Demary Jr.",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/uconn-picked-to-win-big-east-led-by-preseason-conference-player-of-11213115",
        "published": "2026-10-01T14:18:22.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}