By Aidan Joly
The Big Ten was very top-heavy during the 2024-25 season.
In its first season with 18 teams it only sent eight to the NCAA tournament, but all of them were a No. 7 seed or better. It was a very successful season for the league, despite the fact that none of the teams made the Final Four.
There are also multiple new coaches in this league too.
As for 2025-26, you can count roughly a dozen teams that have NCAA tournament hopes. Either way, the league is as deep as it has ever been. Let’s get into it.
Michigan State Spartans
2024-25: 30-7 (17-3 Big Ten), lost in Elite Eight
Michigan State lost three of its five best players from last season but does return three of last year’s starters in Coen Carr, Jaxon Kohler and Jeremy Fears Jr., all of which will have a larger role than they did last season.
Coach Tom Izzo brought in Trey Fort, who had 14.6 PPG at Samford last season as well as Kaleb Glenn, who had 12.6 PPG at Florida Atlantic. Both of them are terrific shooters who will have a large role. He also brought in Divine Ugochukwu, who had 5.3 PPG at Miami.
Two top 100 prospects join the group in Cam Ward and Jordan Scott.
They might not be as good as they were last season, but like always, an Izzo team is tough to play against. Expect more of that.
Maryland Terrapins
2024-25: 27-9 (14-6 Big Ten), lost in Sweet 16
After Kevin Willard unceremoniously left College Park for Villanova, the Terps brought in former Texas A&M head coach Buzz Williams to take over.
Williams has a good track record – he brought the Aggies to the last three NCAA tournaments and won a game in the past two. He was also Virginia Tech’s coach the last time the Hokies were consistently relevant. He brought Marquette to the Elite Eight.
He brings in one of his key Texas A&M players in Pharrel Payne, and also brought in proven high-major talent in Myles Rice (10.1 PPG at Indiana), Elijah Saunders (10.4 PPG at Virginia), Isaiah Watts (11.0 PPG at Washington State) as well as Solomon Washington (Texas A&M) and David Coit (Kansas) who were role guys last season.
Darius Adams is a top-30 freshman, while Aleks Alston is a top-100 talent.
How will this roster come together? There is certainly room for optimism.
Michigan Wolverines
2024-25: 27-10 (14-6 Big Ten), lost in Sweet 16
Things went very, very well in Dusty May’s first year at the helm in Ann Arbor and the Wolverines will look to be in the national title conversation this season.
May grabbed Yaxel Lendeborg, the UAB transfer who was maybe the best player on the market this spring. He was first-team all-AAC twice and twice won the league’s defensive player of the year. He also provided 17.7 PPG last season. Elliott Cadeau also arrives after he averaged 9.4 PPG at North Carolina, but must play smarter basketball. Morez Johnson Jr. and Aday Mara, role guys at Illinois and UCLA, also enter the fold.
Roddy Gayle, Nimari Burnett, Will Tschetter and LJ Cason highlight the group that returns.
If things go well, Michigan will be the second-best team in the league at worst. At best, it can certainly win the league and contend for a title.
UCLA Bruins
2024-25: 23-11 (13-7 Big Ten), lost in NCAA second round
Things were… interesting in UCLA’s first season in the Big Ten. Still, it found a way to win 23 games and advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Some of the issues last year pertained to lack of a strong point guard. That changes this year as coach Mick Cronin brought in Donovan Dent from New Mexico, who was one of the best guards in the non-power conferences for multiple years over. He won the Mountain West player of the year last season.
Jamar Brown (17 PPG at Kansas City) and Steven Jemerson II (10 PPG at San Diego) also join the Bruins.
Some key players are back for another year, including Tyler Bilodeau and Eric Dailey Jr., who both averaged in double figures. Skyy Clark, who had 8.5 PPG, is also back as that experiment seemed to go better than expected.
UCLA is going to be good. How good depends.
Wisconsin Badgers
2024-25: 27-10 (13-7 Big Ten), lost in NCAA second round
There will be plenty of talent on the offensive side of the ball in Madison this season.
A lot of that will revolve around John Blackwell, who returns after putting up 15.8 PPG last season and will be a very real conference player of the year contender. Nolan Winter, a returner, as well as transfer portal adds Nick Boyd from San Diego State and Andrew Rohde from Virginia will be key cogs in that system.
Braeden Carrington, who had 7.4 PPG at Tulsa, and Elijah Gray, who had 9 PPG at Temple, will also be role guys.
This is a good job done by coach Greg Gard to put together this roster. It makes a lot of sense. NCAA tournament needs to be the goal here.
Purdue Boilermakers
2024-25: 24-12 (13-7 Big Ten), lost in Sweet 16
This could end up being the best team in the conference this season.
The Boilermakers return four starters and made a massive addition in the transfer portal.
Trey Kaufman-Renn (20.1 PPG), Braden Smith (15.8 PPG) – maybe the best point guard in the country – and Fletcher Loyer (13.8 PPG) represented a very large portion of the offense and all will be back in 2025-26. CJ Cox is also back and should end up in a starting role. Daniel Jacobson, a 7-foot-4 center, is a returner but feels more like an addition since he suffered a season-ending injury in the second game of the season. He will be a very good option off the bench.
Oscar Cluff, who had 17.6 PPG at South Dakota State, is a key addition who will have a big role from the jump. Liam Murphy, who scored in the double figures at North Florida, also joins.
This team has the fewest flaws compared to any in the league, and maybe in the country. We will see how it ends up playing out but it’s hard to not be high on the Boilermakers.
Illinois Fighting Illini
2024-25: 22-13 (12-8 Big Ten), lost in NCAA second round
Coach Brad Underwood is always right up there with the best of them when it comes to both retaining players as well as bringing in international talent. He does more of the same with this year’s roster.
Tomislav Ivisic (13 PPG), Kylan Boswell (12.3 PPG) and Ben Humrichous (7.6 PPG) are the big three that return to Champaign.
There is an international flavor to the new players for Illinois this season. Andrej Stojakovic comes to Illinois after he averaged 17.9 PPG at Cal last season, and Zvonimir Ivisic comes in after a good year at Arkansas.
As for freshmen, Mihailo Petrovic seems to be a starter right from the jump. David Mirkovic also comes in.
It’s hard to see this team not being one of the best offenses in the league. That should take them to a lot of wins and success.
Oregon Ducks
2024-25: 25-10 (12-8 Big Ten), lost in NCAA second round
Oregon had a good season in its first year in the Big Ten that resulted in making the NCAA tournament as well as winning a game.
The Ducks and coach Dana Altman look to do the same this year. The Ducks have a great two-way big man in Nate Bittle as one of the better go-get-one point guards in the country in Jackson Shelstad. Those two will make things go for this group. Kwame Evans Jr. returns as a role player who could have a larger share.
TK Simpkins, who had 16.4 PPG at Elon, should be a starter in Eugene. He is joined by Sean Stewart, who had 5.7 PPG at Ohio State, and Devon Pryor, who had a limited role at Texas.
It will be interesting to see how this team develops. It is one of the teams that will be tough to play each night and has a good shot at dancing.
Indiana Hoosiers
2024-25: 19-13 (10-10 Big Ten), no postseason
The new coach in Bloomington is Darien DeVries, who takes over the storied program after one year at West Virginia. Mike Woodson was fired after four mediocre seasons.
That being said, DeVries has an entirely new roster with no returning players.
Nearly all of them come from the mid-majors. The highlight of the group is DeVries’ son Tucker, a star in his own right who averaged 14.9 PPG before going down with a season-ending injury early in the season. The only other high-major transfer is Sam Alexis, who had a small role on the national championship Florida team.
The best of the mid-major talent is Reed Bailey, who had 18.8 PPG at Davidson, and Lamar Wilkerson, who was an all-Conference USA pick after averaging 20.5 PPG at Sam Houston State. Nick Dorn (15.2 PPG at Elon), North Florida teammates Jasai Miles (15.4 PPG) and Josh Harris (13.4 PPG), Tayton Conerway (14.2 PPG at Troy) and Jason Drake (11.1 PPG at Drexel) all should have roles.
This needs to be a good defensive team and Tucker DeVries needs to stay healthy. If both of those things happen, this sure looks like a tournament team.
Ohio State Buckeyes
2024-25: 17-15 (9-11 Big Ten), no postseason
Things went okay in coach Jake Diebler’s first full season at the helm in Columbus, but it did not result in a tournament appearance.
The Buckeyes will certainly have a better chance than they did last year, though. Three of their top four scorers in Bruce Thornton (who was the team’s leading scorer), Devin Royal and John Mobley Jr. return.
Diebler went and got a nice trio of players from the transfer portal. He got Brandon Noel, who led Wright State with 19.0 PPG, Cristoph Tilly, who had 12.5 PPG at Santa Clara and projects as a starter, and Josh Ojianwuna, who had 7.5 PPG at Baylor but has a knee injury and will miss most of the season, at least.
Forward A’mare Bynum is a top-70 prospect and is a top option off the bench.
It feels like this is a team that is a piece short or may be short on depth, but could very well end up being a tournament team. If it is not at least on the bubble, something has gone terribly wrong.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
2024-25: 15-17 (8-12 Big Ten), no postseason
Rutgers was the talk of the college basketball landscape entering the 2024-25 season with two five stars in Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper leading the way. However, the Scarlet Knights fell flat on their faces, finishing in the bottom half of the Big Ten and never being considered for the tournament.
This year’s team could be worse. Coach Steve Pikiell is going to have to really work on player development, because there isn’t a ton here on paper.
Dylan Grant, Jamichael Davis and Emmanuel Ogbole return and will have roles, maybe starting, but none of them averaged more than 5.9 PPG last season. Rutgers does bring in Tariq Francis, who averaged 19.2 PPG at NJIT, as well as Darren Buchanan Jr., who averaged in double figures at George Washington. Baye Fall played sparingly at Kansas State but is a good defender. Freshman Harun Zuno, an international signee, got a lot of high-major interest and could start as a freshman.
Rutgers teams are always known for a slow-paced, defense-first, physical mindset. It will have to be that again this year, because the offensive production might not be there.
Minnesota Golden Gophers
2024-25: 15-17 (7-13 Big Ten), no postseason
Niko Medved is the new coach in Minneapolis and it was maybe the best fit of all of the high-major coaching changes this spring. He is an alum of the school and a Minneapolis native, and not to mention a rising star. He got Colorado State to being one of the premier mid-major teams in the country.
There isn’t a proven high-major player on this nearly entirely new roster, but there is a ton of talent that can be developed. The top options here are Langston Reynolds (Northern Colorado), Chansey Willis Jr. (Western Michigan), Bobby Durkin (Davidson) and BJ Omot (California), who were all in the double figures in their last stops.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson follows Medved after he averaged 9 PPG at Colorado State, and Robert Vaihola is a solid player who had 7.5 PPG at San Jose State. Cade Tyson had a small role at North Carolina.
Isaac Asuma is the only returner, but he averaged 5.6 PPG as a freshman and seems ready to step into a larger role.
Minnesota is a school where winning is possible, but there has not been a lot of it. It has not been to the tournament since 2019. It may not happen this year, but Medved should end that drought soon.
Northwestern Wildcats
2024-25: 17-16 (7-13 Big Ten), no postseason
Nick Martinelli, who led the Big Ten in scoring last season with 20.5 PPG, is back, but there is plenty to replace on this roster with the losses of Brooks Barnhizer, Jalen Leach and Ty Berry.
As for other returners, KJ Windham is a candidate to take a step up after he averaged 5.6 PPG as a freshman.
Coach Chris Collins will look to Jayden Reid as a candidate to provide instant offense after he was in double figures at South Florida and is a solid three-point shooter. Max Green averaged 14.9 PPG at Holy Cross.
Collins teams play tough and are never an easy out. Still, it feels like a lot has to go right in order for Northwestern to see itself playing in March.
USC Trojans
2024-25: 17-18 (7-13 Big Ten), lost in Crown quarterfinals
The first season with coach Eric Musselman at the helm in Los Angeles was a little bit disappointing as the Trojans finished well below .500 in league play.
However, there are some shiny new additions to this year’s roster. That includes Rodney Rice, who had 13.8 PPG at Maryland, Chad Baker-Mazara, who had 12.3 PPG at Auburn and was one of the best glue guys in the country, and Ezra Ausar, who had 12.5 PPG at Utah. Jacob Cofie is a solid add from Virginia.
Jordan Marsh (UNC Ashveille) and Amarion Dickerson (Robert Morris) were both good players at the mid-major level and are the bench options. EJ Neal (Sacramento State) and Jaden Brownell (Samford) will also be depth pieces. Terrance Williams II scored in double figures last year and returns.
Jerry Easter will be the freshman to look out for. Alijah Arenas was slated to have a big role as a top prospect, but a car accident followed by a torn meniscus has made it so he is unlikely to play all season. You feel for the kid.
This is a very big team and will shoot more from behind the arc. Even without Arenas, the Trojans will have a shot at dancing.
Iowa Hawkeyes
2024-25: 17-16 (7-13 Big Ten), no postseason
What a rise it has been for new coach Ben McCollum, who was coaching Division II ball just two seasons ago and is now in the Big Ten following a 31-4 season at Drake that ended in the second round of the tournament. He replaces Fran McCaffery, who was the coach there since 2010.
Coming with McCollum is Bennett Stirtz, who led Drake with 19.2 PPG last season and will be one of the premier point guards in not just the Big Ten, but the entire country. Tavion Banks and Cam Manaywu, who were also key parts of that Drake team, also follow McCollum. Depth pieces Isaia Howard and Kael Combs do too.
Alvaro Folgueiras also comes in after averaging 13.8 PPG on a Robert Morris team that went to the tournament and was the Horizon League player of the year. Brendan Hausen also comes in after he was in double figures at Kansas State.
Wing Cooper Koch is the only returner after he averaged 4.6 PPG as a freshman.
There are some holes on this roster. Not a ton of guard depth is the glaring one. Iowa shouldn’t be expected to contend for a league title, but has a shot to finish in the top half of the league and be in the tournament conversation.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
2024-25: 21-14 (7-13 Big Ten), won Crown
Nebraska won a title last year, how about that? The Cornhuskers won the inaugural College Basketball Crown tournament, a nice way to cap off a year where it struggled to get any momentum in the regular season.
This year Nebraska will feature the return of Rienk Mast, its most important player from a team that won 23 games two seasons ago and went to the NCAA tournament. He missed all of last season with a knee injury. Connor Essegian (10.7 PPG) and Berke Buyuktuncel (6.0 PPG) are the only other notable returners from last season.
As for the new guys, Central Michigan transfer Ugnius Jarusevicius will probably be relied on the most after averaging over 16 PPG last season in the MAC. Rhode Island transfer Jamarques Lawrence averaged 9.9 PPG last year, and Pryce Sandford had 8.8 PPG at Iowa. Kendall Blue had 12.3 PPG at St. Thomas and could be the first guy off the bench each night.
The Cornhuskers have a nice group of guys who will be able to play Big Ten-caliber basketball, but whether the depth is there is the real question mark here.
Penn State Nittany Lions
2024-25: 16-15 (6-14 Big Ten), no postseason
Things didn’t go so great in Mike Rhoades’ second season at the helm in Happy Valley, and things shouldn’t be expected to get much better in year three.
It looks like the Nittany Lions will start three freshmen in Kayden Mingo, Melih Tunca and Ivan Juric. Mingo especially will be expected to take on a large role from the get-go.
Otherwise, the only real returner is Freddie Dilione V, who averaged 9.4 PPG last season. Transfers Josh Reed had 4.8 PPG at Cincinnati and Sasa Ciani had 9.9 PPG at UIC.
Rhoades has a good reputation as a player development type of coach. He will certainly have his work cut out for him with this year’s roster if they want to be competitive.
Washington Huskies
2024-25: 13-18 (4-16 Big Ten), no postseason
The Huskies finished in the basement of the league in Danny Sprinkle’s first season at the helm in Seattle. Thankfully for them, the roster is much more talented for his second go-round.
The team is headlined by USC teammates Desmond Claude and Wesley Yates III, who had 15.8 and 14.1 PPG for the Trojans last season, respectively. Quimari Peterson (East Tennessee State) and Jacob Ognacevic (Lipscomb) each averaged up around 20 PPG at their previous stops and will have roles. Lathan Summerville (Rutgers) and Bryson Tucker (Indiana) both have proven high-major experience.
Zoom Diallo had 11.1 PPG last year for the Huskies and returns. So does Franck Kepnang, who had 6.9 PPG. A decent freshman class comes in, highlighted by top-50 prospect JJ Mandaquit.
This roster is so much more talented than last year. Expect one of the biggest improvements in the league for the Huskies this season.
AJ Hoops 