Ponds named Big East Preseason POY, St. John's picked 4th, Seton Hall 8th

Shamorie Ponds' junior season begins with Big East Preseason Player of the Year honors, the latest accolade for St. John's superstar. (Photo by Newsday)

NEW YORK -- As expected, Shamorie Ponds is the headline story as the Big East Conference officially commences its 2018-19 season.

Ponds, the junior guard who captivated the conference last season en route to first-team all-conference honors and a Haggerty Award at St. John's, was announced Thursday morning as the Big East Preseason Player of the Year as the league gathered for its annual media day at Madison Square Garden. His backcourt partner, fellow junior Justin Simon, was also recognized with a spot on the conference's preseason second team.

Last season, Ponds averaged 21.6 points per game for the Red Storm, highlighted by tour-de-force performances in St. John's upset victories over nationally-ranked Duke and eventual national champion Villanova, as well as a record-tying 44-point explosion against Marquette on February 10. The Brooklyn native also averaged 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game, and his 70 steals ranked second on the team behind Simon. This time around, he will be counted on to help the Red Storm live up to its fourth-place ranking in the Big East preseason coaches' poll, the highest standing it has earned in head coach Chris Mullin's tenure. Across the Hudson River, Seton Hall was picked eighth among the ten teams as the Pirates begin life without the senior quartet of Khadeen Carrington, Angel Delgado, Desi Rodriguez and Ismael Sanogo. On the bright side for the Pirates, junior guard Myles Powell earned a spot on the preseason second team as he transitions into Kevin Willard's newest team leader.

As expected, Villanova was revealed as the consensus choice to win the conference, with Marquette second and Providence third. Following St. John's, Butler rounded out the top five, with Georgetown, Xavier, Seton Hall, Creighton and DePaul completing the poll.

2018-19 Big East Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll

1) Villanova

2) Marquette

3) Providence

4) St. John's

5) Butler

6) Georgetown

7) Xavier

8) Seton Hall

9) Creighton

10) DePaul

2018-19 Big East Conference Preseason All-Conference Teams

Player of the Year: Shamorie Ponds, St. John's

Freshman of the Year (tie): David Duke, Providence; Jahvon Quinerly, Villanova

First Team

Kamar Baldwin, Butler (unanimous selection)

Jessie Govan, Georgetown (unanimous selection)

Markus Howard, Marquette (unanimous selection)

Eric Paschall, Villanova (unanimous selection)
Alpha Diallo, Providence

Second Team (in alphabetical order)

Phil Booth, Villanova

Sam Hauser, Marquette

Myles Powell, Seton Hall

Justin Simon. St. John's

Max Strus, DePaul

Honorable Mentions

Martin Krampelj, Creighton

Naji Marshall, Xavier