The DePaul Blue Demons are currently navigating one of the worst seasons ever seen by a power conference team, holding a disappointing 3-20 overall record and an 0-12 mark in the Big East. The recent firing of head coach Tony Stubblefield and the appointment of Matt Brady as interim head coach signal potential for significant change in the future. But as for the current season, all we can do is hope for one win.
Following Tuesday’s loss at St. John’s, DePaul now sits 301st overall in KenPom. That’s well over 100 spots worse than even Georgetown, who sits at 1-9 in this year’s Big East with their only win coming against DePaul. That’s also over 100 spots worse than the Georgetown team that went 6-25 and 0-19 in conference play in 2021-22.
The below graph shows scores from each Big East game DePaul’s had this season.
We see Georgetown is the only game that was within single digits (68-65). That was also the only game DePaul gave up less than 70 points. DePaul’s only scored 70 once and it was in a 86-73 loss to Marquette where Jalen Terry went 6-8 from deep.
Remaining Schedule Analysis
Below we look at the Blue Demons remaining schedule. There’s one glaring opportunity on February 24th. DePaul hosts Georgetown in what is surely their best opportunity for a Big East win. The win probabilities shown are from KenPom.
Mathematically, the chances DePaul gets at least one win the remainder of the regular season is 57.2%. but the three home games against Georgetown, Butler and St. John’s make up almost all of that.
The Big Matchup – Georgetown
The best opportunity for a win is against Georgetown on February 24th at Wintrust Arena. The Hoyas have only the win against DePaul earlier in the season to show for conference play. But they’ve been close, with four losses coming by 10 points or less.
In the previous meeting back on January 6th, DePaul was able to limit their turnovers to just nine. One of the biggest keys will be to keep the Hoyas off the offensive boards. The Blue Demons have been crushed on the boards this year (ranking 300+ in both offensive and defensive rebounding) and Georgetown ranks 44th in offensive rebound rate. It’s not just the bigs, 6’6 guard Dontrez Styles recorded 13 rebounds in that previous meeting.
As the DePaul Blue Demons navigate through likely their most challenging season, marked by a coaching change and plenty of losses, the upcoming matchup against Georgetown along with the remaining schedule emerges as a beacon of hope. With an uncertain future beyond the end of this season, why not be optimistic every time DePaul takes the floor and root for the guys to bring home that elusive W!