Chicago Tribune has us at 8
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/sns-tsn-aen-bigeast-outlook-20121031,0,4573877.story?page=11. Louisville, 2. Syracuse, 3. Cincinnati, 4. Notre Dame, 5. Pittsburgh, 6. Marquette, 7. Georgetown, 8. St. John's, 9. Seton Hall, 10. South Florida, 11. Rutgers, 12. Villanova, 13. Connecticut, 14. DePaul, 15. Providence
ST. JOHN'S: The best news for St. John's this season has nothing to do with a player returning but instead a coach. Steve Lavin was not able to patrol the bench last season as he recovered from prostate cancer surgery but in 2012-2013, he will be back where he belongs. Whether the Red Storm can get back to the same type of result it had in Lavin's first season when the Red Storm went 21-12 and got an NCAA Tournament invite, will rely on the young squad turning experience into production. St. John's didn't score well last season (66.5 ppg, 13th in Big East) and had just as much trouble stopping opposing squads from scoring, ranking second to last in points allowed (70.9) in the Big East. Getting back leading scorer D'Angelo Harrison (17.0 ppg) will help in that area. Harrison scored 544 points as a freshman which is a school record. Not helping the cause was the departure of Moe Harkless (15.5 ppg, 8.6 rpg) who bolted for the NBA after just one season. Phil Greene (7.6 ppg, 3.0 apg) won't be able to replace Harkless' production while also running the point but needs to step up in scoring. Texas A&M-transfer Jamal Branch (4.4 ppg) can't play until December but will be called on to contribute. Addressing the squad's three point woes (.282) is the addition of junior college transfer Marco Bourgault, who is an effective deep shooter. God'sgift Achiuwa (9.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg) had modest results in his first season after transferring from junior college. He has the skills to be a top player in the conference but needs to play with more consistency to realize that potential. He will be pushed for touches by highly-touted recruits JaKarr Sampson and Chris Obekpa.