Last season saw the Big Ten only get four nods (Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Purdue) to the big dance. The conference is much stronger in the middle than they were last year, which will result in more teams in the tournament, but it also means the top won't be as dominant as it was last year. The conference brings back a lot of quality players, yet it is still young, so time will tell how great the league could be.
This is first of several Big Ten Power Rankings that will come out this year. The tentative plan is to have the next one come out before the December Big Ten play, one before Big Ten season, and multiple between then and the end of the season.
1. Michigan State
Spartans?
2017-18 Season: 30-5 (16-2) - Fist Place Conference - Second Round NCAA Tournament
Upward Movement: League Champs (+- 0)
Downward Movement: Fifth Place (-4)
Rationale: The Spartans currently occupy the top spot somewhat by default. Last season's squad finished atop the Big Ten standings before being bounced early in the Big Dance by Syracuse (more on Cuse in the minute). They lost two of their top players to the NBA lottery, but maintain forwards Nick Ward and Cassius Winston. Last year's team had the most talent in the league, but this year they are definitely closer in that department to the rest of the league.
2. Michigan
I have many questions, Mr. Wolverine.
Upward Movement: League Champs (+1)
Downward Movement: Fifth Place (-3)
Rationale: The Wolverines made a surprise run all the way to the national championship game on the back of, even more surprisingly, their defense. Michigan loses three of their top four scorers yet returns Charles Matthews, Zavier Simpson, and Jordan Poole. The team also adds a highly rated recruiting class featuring Ignas Brazdeikis, a 6-8 wing who can make an immediate impact.
3. Nebraska
Standard Midwest cookout.
Corn and hot dogs.
Upward Movement: Second Place (+1)
Downward Movement: Seventh Place (-4)
Rationale: Remember when I said we would talk about Syracuse again? Well, this is the time. That spot in the tournament should've belonged to the Cornhuskers, since the Orange (dumb name by the way) had a worse record and a similar amount of no quality wins. Sorry, I'm just very anti-Syracuse making the 2018 tournament. This year's Nebraska team brings back almost all of the team that should've made the tournament. The reason I have their downward movement so low is that last time they were ranked this high preseason, things went south quick, and last year's team had such a good record thanks to a very generous conference slate.
4. Indiana
No joke here, just thought I'd remind
you that Indiana is a beautiful state.
Upward Movement: League Champs (+3)
Downward Movement: Eighth Place (-4)
Rationale: The Hoosiers have a deep, yet young roster to work with. Juwan Morgan will most likely be featured on, at minimum, second team all-Big Ten at season's end and is part of the nation's best one-two punch with McDonald's All-American Romeo Langford. The biggest questions for the Hoosiers is who can step up to fill the point spot and who will be the third option behind Morgan and Langford.
5. Wisconsin
Whoa, take it easy man.
Upward Movement: Second Place (+3)
Downward Movement: Eight Place (-3)
Rationale: Last year's Badger squad ended the school's long-running streak of NCAA tournament appearances. The team brings back the majority of the roster, including Ethan Happ, and as long as they are healthy the team could be competitive at the top of the league.
6. Purdue
Oh trains, so scary.
Upward Movement: Second Place (+4)
Downward Movement: Ninth Place (-3)
Rationale: Purdue loses all of their starters except Big Ten player of the year Carson Edwards. If the team is competing for the championship, it's because someone other than Edwards can make a serious impact. The team may have a hard time if the only one who makes noise is Edwards.
7. Iowa
Iowa's defensive scheme last year.
Upward Movement: Fourth Place (+3)
Downward Movement: Tenth Place (-3)
Rationale: The Hawkeyes bring back their top nine scorers and add top 60 recruit Joe Wieskamp. Tyler Cook is one of the more underappreciated players in the league and is my sleeper pick for the all-conference team. It's no question that Iowa can score as well as anyone in the nation, but the only way they can finish in the top half of the league, and make the tournament, is if they start to understand how to stop other people from scoring.
8. Ohio State
My preferred buckeyes.
Upward Movement: Fifth Place (+3)
Downward Movement: Twelfth Place (-4)
Rationale: Ohio State finished way above expectations last season in Chris Holtmann's first year on the job. The Buckeye lose their do-everything star Keita Bates-Diop, as well as other key pieces from last year's squad. I don't expect the team to be close to as good as they were last year, but they are still in contention to make the tournament.
9. Minnesota
This is apparently in Minnesota.
Upward Movement: Fourth Place (+5)
Downward Movement: Thirteenth Place (-4)
Rationale: There is no seat hotter than Richard Pitino's. He has only made the tournament once in his previous five years with the Golden Gophers. Couple that with his last name being maybe the worst you can currently have in basketball, and Pitino needs a very strong year if he wants to stay in the Twin Cities. Last year's team had a lot of injuries to put up with, but this year they do get all those guys back in the rotation.
10. Maryland
Oh turtles, so scary.
Upward Movement: Fourth Place (+6)
Downward Movement: Twelfth Place (-2)
Rationale: Maryland is a very hard team to figure out. Last year's team struggled in conference play and they lost star guard Kevin Huerter to the draft. They retain point guard Anthony Cowan and center Bruno Fernando and add five-star freshman Jalen Smith. I'm not sure what will happen with the Terrapins, but if they click, they'll click, and if they don't, they'll struggle mightily.
11. Penn State
I cannot sleep after seeing this one,
so I thought I'd share the misery!
His eyes are glaring into my soul.
Upward Movement: Seventh Place (+4)
Downward Movement: Twelfth Place (-1)
Rationale: Penn State lost star and go-to guy Tony Carr from the team that won the NIT. Carr is a huge loss for the team, and it will be really hard to replace him if that's even possible. I doubt the team can reach the heights of last season, but they could give teams headaches.
12. Northwestern
Sorry, this is North West, not Northwestern
Upward Movement: Eighth Place (+4)
Downward Movement: Fourteenth Place (-2)
Rationale: Northwestern was the most disappointing team from last season. Add on to that the fact that Bryant McIntosh and Scottie Lindsey are gone, and the team is in for trouble. There's always a chance that they can be competitive with their newly renovated home, but it seems unlikely.
13. Illinois
No joke here, just thought I'd remind
you that Illinois is a trashy state.
Upward Movement: Tenth Place (+3)
Downward Movement: Fourteenth Place (-1)
Rationale: Illinois is in the category of few teams that both have very little talent and very little experience. The Fighting Illini will be the team that most of the rest of the conference is happy to see on their schedules. I still believe Brad Underwood can build a good program at the school, but this year won't be indicative of things to come.
14. Rutgers
Live look at the great "Midwestern"
state of New Jersey.
Upward Movement: Tenth Place (+4)
Downward Movement: Fourteenth Place (-0)
Rationale: Since joining the league in 2014, the Scarlett Knights are yet to finish higher than 14th, and this year won't change things. Rutgers looked a lot better last season than in years past, but Corey Sanders and Deshawn Freeman have moved on. The team isn't going to shock many people in a good way, but they still have the dream that one day they can reach the heights that is the thirteen seed in the Big Ten tournament.
To stay up to date on the newest Head in the Game articles (and general sports commentary), follow @headingameblog on Twitter. You can also find me on Twitter @T_RoyStory (Troy).
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