This is the first installment of our weekly Big Ten Power Rankings, which will go out each Friday. This week’s voters were Deepak Jayanti, Joey Nowak and Kevin Trahan of the Big Ten microsite.
1. Indiana Hoosiers: The top-ranked team in the country gets the top spot in our power rankings. The Hoosiers are stacked, returning a majority of last year’s starters, including national player-of-the-year candidate Cody Zeller. Christian Watford, Victor Oladipo, Will Sheehey and Jordan Hulls also return, making this one of the deepest, most talented team in the country. Zeller will get most of the hype, but the guards will be just as important to the Hoosiers’ success. The pieces are finally in place for Tom Crean’s squad to make a National Championship run.
2. Michigan Wolverines: The Wolverines have talent across the board and will come at your from every single position on the floor. Trey Burke is one of the top point guards in the country and will lead a talented group of freshmen that is being hyped by some as the next “Fab Five.” That group is overshadowing star guard Tim Hardaway Jr., who should have another solid year. If Burke can assert himself as a leader and facilitator in the halfcourt sets, expect Michigan to produce a 30-win season.
3. Ohio State Buckeyes: The Buckeyes return one of the Big Ten’s best defenders and floor generals in Aaron Craft, and a lethal post presence in Deshaun Thomas. Outside of Craft, Thomas and Lenzelle Smith Jr., there isn’t a lot of experience, but this is one of the most talented teams in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes are counting on Sam Thompson and Amir Williams to step up in their first year of significant playing time, with Thompson taking on the role of scorer. Williams should be helpful on defense. With great athletes and a deeper-than-normal bench, Thad Matta has plenty of weapons.
4. Michigan State Spartans: The Spartans didn’t impress in exhibition play, but Branden Dawson looks fantastic in his return from ACL surgery and Tom Izzo’s group has the athleticism to run on both ends of the floor. Michigan State doesn’t have a true leader at this point like it had last year with Draymond Green. However, Keith Appling, Derrick Nix and Dawson all are in position to take on that role. Add in talented freshman Gary Harris, and MSU, while flying under the radar, could climb back to the top of the Big Ten. However, scoring may be an issue.
5. Wisconsin Badgers: Been there done that, right? Ryan is used to losing stars to graduation but the injury bug might be a new challenge for him this season with Gasser’s loss. Nonetheless, he will call upon George Marshall to contribute and he will deliver along with newcomer Sam Dekker. The Badgers will be tough at Kohl Center and will consistently improve with every week of games, so expect them to be contend during conference play again.
5. Minnesota Golden Gophers: This is probably Tubby Smith’s most talented team since getting to Minneapolis. Trevor Mbakwe is back to join Rodney Williams in a frontcourt of future NBA players. Andre Hollins is also a candidate to be a breakout player in the backcourt. There are some questions about depth, but the top five players — Joe Coleman and Julian Welch, in addition to Mbakwe, Williams and Hollins — can compete with any starting five in the conference. Don’t sleep on the Gophers this year.
7. Iowa Hawkeyes: The Hawkeyes will be an exciting group to watch this season. McCaffery’s intensity will be matched on the court by potential breakout players like Roy Devyn Marble and Aaron White. This Iowa team is extremely deep after adding talented freshmen Mike Gesell and Adam Woodbury, who join Marble, White, Melsahn Basabe and Zach McCabe as the faces of this Iowa team. Freshman point guard Anthony Clemmons and sophomore center Gabe Olaseni could turn some heads, as well. Except the Hawkeyes to make the NCAA Tournament and play spoiler late in the conference season.
8. Purdue Boilermakers: This will be Matt Painter’s most inexperienced group in years, and the question remains where the leadership will come from. However, this year’s team could be just as talented as last year’s. Size was an issue for the Boilermakers last year, but the addition of 7-foot freshman center A.J. Hammons will improve Purdue’s frontcourt and help the Boilers compete against the bigger front courts in the conference. We know where the scoring will come from, though — the Johnsons (Ronnie, Terone and Anthony).
8. Northwestern Wildcats: Northwestern has a lot of new faces in the frontcourt, but that’s a good thing for the Wildcats considering how things went last year. NU adds 7-foot freshman center Alex Olah and Louisville transfer Jared Swopshire, in addition to returning the Big Ten’s leading returning scorer, Drew Crawford. This team could potentially go 10-deep or more, which is a stark contrast from last year’s team, which sometimes played just six players all game. Bill Carmody’s team enters the season already on the NCAA Tournament bubble once again and the play of the new-look frontcourt could decide the Wildcats’ fate.
10. Illinois Fighting Illini: Illini fans are just happy to see a new regime in Champaign. Even though Groce will implement a significantly more exciting brand of basketball than Bruce Weber, he may not have the talent suited for that type of a game, yet. However, there is still plenty of talent in Champaign that is left over from the Weber era. D.J. Richardson and Brandon Paul will both star again for the Illini, but must be more consistent in order for this team to make noise in the Big Ten. Illinois will compete at home and play spoiler if Groce’s system clicks.
11. Penn State Nittany Lions: As we’ve grown accustomed to, the Nittany Lions figure to be pretty much a one-man wrecking crew, this time behind Tim Frazier. How much transfer D.J. Newbill can help out will determine how high this team can reach. Newbill is an unknown after transferring from Southern Mississippi, but he and Frazier have the ability to form an impressive guard duo. However, there is very little talent in the frontcourt, which will rely on Sasa Borovnjak, Jon Graham and Ross Travis. If everyone steps up and the Frazier-Newbill combination works well, Penn State could pull off some upsets, but don’t expect an NCAA Tournament contender in State College.
12. Nebraska Cornhuskers: It could be a rough first year for Tim Miles in Lincoln. Nebraska loses its best player in Bo Spencer, and the Huskers return very little talent and experience. In order for them to compete, forward Brandon Ubel will need to step up. The frontcourt is very weak, as Ubel has yet to prove he can be a consistent player in the Big Ten. He will be joined by Andre Almeida, who sat out last year due to injury. Freshman Benny Parker may give Huskers fans something to be excited about and could become the face of the program in the next couple years in the beginning of Miles’ tenure.