NEW YORK CITY — The Big East released its preseason poll yesterday before men’s basketball Media Day at Madison Square Garden.

Still no word on why it even bothered.

Because during the past several years, at least one conference darkhorse — Pittsburgh last year, Boston College the previous season — has used a surprise regular season to render the coaches’ preseason poll meaningless.

Coaches voted Syracuse third in the West Division, behind the Panthers and Georgetown.

Guesses on this year’s surprise team vary, in large part because if a darkhorse was so easy to identify, then it would be a horse of much lighter complexion. Still, an informal poll of Big East coaches and players revealed some interesting answers.

“I’d pick West Virginia,” said Connecticut guard Ben Gordon, hand in front of his mouth to muffle the laughs. “They can’t be any worse than last year.”

Then again, similar jokes surrounded the Panthers last preseason. Once the games began, Pittsburgh wheeled off a 29-6 record — including a first-place, 13-3 conference mark — and a Sweet 16 appearance. All despite being picked to finish sixth in the seven-team West.

This year, the Panthers occupy the first spot, leaving a new class of projected underlings to compete for the out-of-nowhere role.

“Who is this year’s darkhorse? That’s a really tough question,” Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey said. “I don’t know where you’d have to be picked in the preseason to be considered a surprise. Fourth or fifth maybe.”

Brey’s qualifications would still include his Irish, a fourth-place pick in the West and the upset team of choice for Miami coach Perry Clark.

“We played them last year, and they have a lot of athleticism,” Clark said. “(Chris) Thomas is a quality guard, someone who really sees the court. And I like their chemistry.”

In a conference where the talent gap from top to bottom is exceptionally small, players and coaches insist team chemistry is the most important factor for a darkhorse.

All three Pittsburgh player representatives at Media Day, including star guard Brandin Knight, mentioned that the cohesion of last year’s team keyed the season.

Now, teams across the conference hope to follow the formula.

“If you don’t have chemistry, I really don’t think you can win a single close game,” Virginia Tech senior guard Brian Chase said. “You have to get good chemistry between the players and other players, the players and the coach and the players and the system.”

Though Virginia Tech’s system since joining the Big East two years ago has been characterized by malfunction, this year’s Hokies garnered a couple votes as the Big East darkhorse, including one from Providence coach Tim Welsh.

A year ago, Virginia Tech finished last in the East Division with a 4-12 conference record. However, Chase is optimistic because those four victories came in the team’s last seven games.

“We made some great progress last year,” Chase said. “Our first year in the Big East, we weren’t even coming close. Then last year, we were still losing, but the games were coming down to the last two minutes.”

Such an upward trajectory, modest as it may be, is the tell-tale sign for a darkhorse. In the preseason poll, the Hokies are slated for another last-place finish in the East Division. On the West side, West Virginia resides in the basemetn.

“The fact that Pitt did it last year kind of gives everyone a little more motivation,” said Rutgers guard Jerome Coleman, whose Scarlet Knights are pegged fifth in the West. “Everyone has a chance because this league has talent, but it’s not like back in the day when there were a couple great players like (Allen) Iverson and then everyone else. The talent now is so leveled.”

Published on October 23, 2002 at 12:00 pm