Villanova picked 12th in Big East preseason poll

The scale of the task ahead this season for Jay Wright was made even more stark Wednesday morning, when Villanova was picked to finish 12th in the Big East men's basketball preseason coaches' poll.

In addition, no Wildcats were named to any of the preseason all-conference teams.

Here are the poll results:

1. Louisville, 196 points (14 first-place votes)
2. Syracuse, 175 points
3. Notre Dame, 166 points (1 first-place vote)
4. Cincinnati, 152 points
5. Georgetown, 136 points
6. Pittsburgh, 132 points
7. Marquette, 121 points
8. South Florida, 96 points
9. Connecticut, 83 points
10. St. John's, 73 points
11. Rutgers, 63 points
12. Villanova, 61 points
13. DePaul, 48 points
14. Seton Hall, 42 points
15. Providence, 31 points

Here are the preseason player honors:

Player of the Year: Peyton Siva, Louisville 
Rookie of the Year: Steven Adams, Pittsburgh

First Team

F Otto Porter, Georgetown
F Jack Cooley, Notre Dame
C Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
G Sean Kilpatrick, Cincinnati
G Vincent Council, Providence

Second Team

F Cleveland Melvin, DePaul
G D'Angelo Harrison, St. John's
G Anthony Collins, South Florida
G Brandon Triche, Syracuse
G Shabazz Napier, Connecticut

Honorable Mention

F Chane Behanan, Louisville
F C.J. Fair, Syracuse
G Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
G Tray Woodall, Pittsburgh