Twitter. Nebraska played at a breakneck pace but was a dreadful offensive team last season, and Hoiberg has to hope his new pieces can at least pick up some of the shooting slack (including at the free throw line, where the Huskers ranked 351st nationally). Picking Michigan State as a dark horse feels like cheating, so let’s turn to a different team in the Mitten State. Each week, 247Sports will release an updated version of the Big Ten's power rankings. Aaron Wiggins scored 22 points in the loss. Marcus Fuller's rankings. The Hawkeyes have given up over 75 points in six of their seven games this year, and their Big Ten opponents have averaged just under 83. Some call the divisional round the NFL’s best weekend of the year, and this year’s four games are full of superstar QBs and intriguing matchups. College basketball rankings: Alabama, Ohio State and UCLA rise in this week's Power 36 No. The two combined for 31.8 ppg, with Cowan—a four-year starter—running the offense, and Smith powering the team’s rebounding effort and interior presence. The Spartans represent the end of the conference’s preseason “top tier,” because despite the loss of talents as big as Winston and Xavier Tillman, this is a promising roster. Irving has not played since Jan. 5 after sitting out five games due to personal matters. Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan State lead the way in SI's preview of the 2020-21 Big Ten hoops season. 3. The 6’ 9” Hauser will also bring some stability to the Spartans’ frontcourt, and the fact that he sat out for a season means he’s had a year to get up to speed on Tom Izzo’s system. "I'm sure it was visible from where you guys are, where you watch the game. 14) Northwestern Wildcats. Washington Jr. continues to lead the team in scoring with 14.9 per game. Rutgers (5-1, 1-1 B1G) The stacked Big Ten took another ranked victim this week when Maryland upset Wisconsin, 70-64, in Madison on Monday. The addition of Hauser combined with the natural progressions of Aaron Henry, Rocket Watts, Gabe Brown and Marcus Bingham should keep Michigan State in the thick of the Big Ten race, though it remains to be seen how this team will adapt to life without a program legend like Winston. 1. It’s that sophomore CJ Fredrick was a dead-eye shooter (46.1% from three) as a freshman. Incoming three-star guard Ty Berry and center Matt Nicholson will add depth to a group that only lost one starter: lacrosse star turned college basketball player Pat Spencer. Michigan State has a big test on Tuesday night when they play host to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Email. Per T-Rank, they return only 21% of possession minutes, which ranks 338th nationally and last in the Big Ten. It’s that guards Connor McCaffery and Joe Toussaint now have a wealth of starting experience under their belt. The 2020-21 Big Ten basketball season continues to roll along as the calendar flipped to January. It’s likely to be another long year–but with more of a light at the end of the tunnel this time. Expectations were raised for the Golden Gophers when transfers Liam Robbins (Drake) and Both Gach (Utah) were both granted immediate eligibility, and together, the duo might be one of the most underrated additions nationwide. Top–25 College Basketball Rankings Gonzaga (4-0, 0-0) Baylor (5-0, 1-0) Kansas (7-1, 1-0) Iowa (6-1, […] Defense has repeatedly been an issue for Iowa teams in recent years, but its offense stands to be so good in 2020–21 that in many games, it will simply be able to overwhelm its opponent. (Photo: © Nikos Frazier / Journal & Courier via Imagn Content Services, LLC), (Photo: Paul Rutherford, USA TODAY Sports), (Photo: Joseph Maiorana, USA TODAY Sports), (Photo: Kirthmon F. Dozier, USA TODAY Sports), The Spartans stopped the bleeding Saturday with an 84-77 loss at Nebraska, but take another hard fall in the AP poll, now ranked No. The Terrapins go 0-2 in the Big Ten over the last week. The graduation of the ball-screen dominant Zavier Simpson and transfer of David DeJulius left the roster thin at point guard, and while Smith, the Columbia transfer, impressed in the Ivy League, mid-major grad transfers can be a bit of a wild card. Point guard CJ Walker, wing Duane Washington and forward E.J. We discussed Michigan’s main strengths above when calling the Wolverines a dark horse, but there are a couple reasons to temper expectations. College basketball rankings: Maryland moves closer to Big Ten title after rallying to beat Minnesota The Terrapins, No. 8. 21 Minnesota. Every Monday, we will be releasing our updated college basketball rankings, with major headlines from the college basketball world. LeMahieu will remain in pinstripes for the long haul. Big Ten Basketball: Power Rankings | January 8, 2021 Another grueling week in the Big Ten as teams within the conference continue to try and sort themselves out. Weekly reminder: these are power rankings, so they aren't projections of where the teams will be, but looks at where they are right now, the teams they've beaten and lost to at this point. Expect point guard duties to be split between a combo of Watts, Foster Loyer and freshman AJ Hoggard. 5 Iowa, both on the road. “I was pleased to see some balanced scoring on our part," Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. After undergoing massive roster turnover when Fred Hoiberg took over in 2019, the Cornhuskers are essentially starting clean again for 2020–21. 12 GAMES tomorrow. This is a deeper group than the one that sputtered down the stretch in 2019–20, and that should make a difference. The Nets have a new Big 3 with Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving, but do they have enough to dethrone the Lakers? 1 … Are the Wolverines the best team in the Big Ten? Izaiah Brockington leads the team with 15.1 points per game. A season ago, Michigan made a huge splash early in Juwan Howard’s first season, but the wheels fell off a bit when Isaiah Livers—who was enjoying a breakout and was key to the team’s lineup flexibility—was sidelined by injury. The range of expectations for the Buckeyes seems to be higher than most teams. The Buckeyes absolutely dominated Nebraska last Wednesday, winning by a score of 90-54. The other main question is up front, where Jon Teske’s graduation puts a lot of pressure on the likes of 7' 2" freshman center Hunter Dickinson and fifth-year senior Austin Davis. Mike Goodpaster - January 28, 2020. SOS Rank: 1 Overall Recard: 108-55 Non-Conf Record: 67-14 Only games against Division I opponents are counted. NCAA BASKETBALL. Underestimating Izzo-coached teams is always a risky endeavor, and to be fair, that might be happening here. Sometimes, after a season like that, the bottom drops out the next year as stars move on to the NBA or graduate. In the coming week, the Golden Gophers will face off against No. It was not long ago that a two-point win at Rutgers meant very little to Big Ten teams. Three other starters scored in double digits while Damonte Williams also logged a double-double. Northwestern came crashing back down to earth after three straight Big Ten wins over Michigan State, Indiana, and Ohio State. The transfer of the uber-efficient Alan Griffin was significant to a team that too often struggled to shoot the rock last season, but Brad Underwood is hoping incoming top-40 recruit Adam Miller will soften that blow. The Illini have three-straight wins in Big Ten play. Big Ten men’s basketball power rankings, Edition VI The Wolverines and Hawkeyes look to be a dominant duo as both are rolling in conference play. The Nittany Lions return on Wednesday night on the road at Ohio State. Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings (1/28/20) Another week, more changes. The interior defense will take a hit from not having Watkins manning the paint anymore (instead, 6’ 9” senior John Harrar will get his chance), but the likes of Jones, Jamari Wheeler, Myles Dread, Izaiah Brockington and Seth Lundy can still cause opposing offenses fits. 1 seed in the canceled Big Ten tournament. Rutgers plays a physical, crash-the-boards style of defense that gives opponents fits (one that should suit 6’ 10” freshman center Cliff Omoruyi), but to become more than just a solid team in the middle of a stacked Big Ten, it needs more consistency on the other end. As part of SI.com's preview of the 2020–21 men's college basketball season, we're breaking down each of the six major conferences. At point, some combination of junior Eric Ayala, senior Darryl Morsell and freshman Aquan Smart will have to get the job done, and in the frontcourt, a lot depends on the health and ability of 7’ 2” Chol Marial. Big Ten Men’s Basketball Power Rankings - Week 8 New, 6 comments Where do the Hawkeyes fall in the latest snapshot of America’s toughest conference? Half a game ahead of Illinois in the standings, Michigan picked up its first ranked victory of the season Sunday in an 85-66 rout of the Northwestern Wildcats. The Wildcats are going to be mighty young—again—but you can definitely see the outline of a group that will continue to gel and gain invaluable experience before likely making a move away from the conference basement in a year. It feels a bit unfair to have the Gophers this low, but in a stacked conference, there’s not a ton of separation. The hesitation to put the Hawkeyes first is this: it’s hard to see exactly how their defense—which earlier this year finished 97th nationally and 12th in the Big Ten in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency—is going to suddenly and significantly improve with largely the same cast. . As of January 5, an astonishing seven Big Ten teams rank inside the AP Top 25 Poll. Izaiah Brockington leads the team with 15.1 points per game. The Big Ten group of Penn State, Illinois and Rutgers is knocking at the door, however, as is SEC leader LSU. Perhaps the biggest question is what exactly to expect out of Joshua Langford, a former 15.0 ppg scorer before foot issues kept him off the court for the last season-and-a-half. There are reasons to believe in the Wolverines, but one big nagging question has them at seventh in our preview: depth. Visit ESPN to view the 2020-21 Women's College Basketball Standings Fellow juniors Sasha Stefanovic, Eric Hunter and Aaron Wheeler will be key to the Boilermakers’ hopes, and the group will need to stabilize what was a wildly up-and-down team a season ago. The Badgers were third in SI’s Big Ten summer power rankings, but after (repeatedly) sleeping on it, we’ve bumped them up to No. The Big Ten will play 20 conference games for the first time, offering up better matchups for teams on the bubble. Pete Pistone and the rest of the SiriusXM Big Ten Radio team will unveil Power Rankings each week of the college basketball season. Pitt transfer Trey McGowens leads the bunch (and in a year, he’ll be joined in Lincoln by his brother, 2021 five-star Bryce McGowens), while Teddy Allen (West Virginia/JUCO) and Kobe Webster (Western Illinois) bring promise as well. Linkedin. A shorthanded Rutgers team beat Purdue 81-76, but the Scarlet Knights dropped a hard-fought two-point home loss Saturday against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Regardless, either will have big shoes to fill in replacing a player who was fifth nationally in assist rate. Wisconsin feels like it has the highest floor in the conference, and in a season that could be as unpredictable as one taking place during a global pandemic, that doesn’t count for nothing. The Cavaliers forward is helping Cleveland businesses hurt by the pandemic by wearing apparel to every game. The Big Ten Conference has firmly established itself as the best conference in college basketball in 2020. Opens in a new window Opens an external site Opens an external site in a new window Opens an external site Opens an … The Cornhuskers continue to get beat up in the Big Ten, losing over the last week badly to Ohio State and Michigan State. All will be complete with our analyst's breakdown of each team and a projected order of finish. Garza is coming off a monster breakout season for the Hawkeyes and is set to once again be the fulcrum of one of the nation’s best offenses, so it’s hard to picture him taking too much of a step back. Michigan State has a big test on Tuesday night when they play host to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Trailing for much of the second half, the Hawkeyes win it after forcing a turnover with five seconds left. The Spartans stopped the bleeding Saturday with an 84-77 loss at Nebraska, but take another hard fall in the AP poll, now ranked No. While a solid core, it’s hard to see this team making a climb for the Big Ten’s top half unless at least two of those four make a notable leap on offense. In the loss, Rutgers got 13 points each from four different starters and 17 points from Jacob Young. 8 Wisconsin. By. Check out this year’s first edition of basketball Power Rankings below, and start listening to SiriusXM Big Ten Radio (Ch. 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