So far we’ve taken a look at Gonzaga and the best teams from the mid-major conferences , followed by Memphis, Houston and the AAC, the Villanova-dominated Big East, UCLA and the resurgent Pac-12 Conference, a Big 12 with a second straight national title in its sights, an SEC led by intriguing Kentucky and Duke and the always fascinating ACC.
Those setbacks helped prevent the Big Ten from being represented on the Final Four stage, and extended a drought of national championships for the conference that extends back to the Michigan State Spartans’ win in 2000.
Medcalf: I think this Michigan team is better — or at least, more talented — than the one that had a chance to beat UCLA at the buzzer in a 51-49 Elite Eight loss last season with Isaiah Livers on the bench due to injury.
If Howard can find a way to pair Dickinson with five-star recruit Moussa Diabate in the paint, then Michigan will have a frontcourt that can battle Gonzaga, Kansas and the other elite teams it might face if the Wolverines reach New Orleans.
Last year they struck gold with Mike Smith as their graduate transfer point guard; players that transfer up from a mid- or low-major program to an elite program don’t always work out, especially if they need to dramatically change roles.
The other mild concern is defensive continuity, since Michigan lost three starters from a top-five defense — but Howard added two high-level defenders in Jones and Diabate and the likes of Dickinson, Brooks and Brandon Johns Jr., are still around as anchors.
This was the best defense in Big Ten play by a fair margin last year, and the Wolverines operate a bit like golden-era UConn did back in the day under Jim Calhoun.
Dickinson’s a force of nature who may win Big Ten POY, Eli Brooks has hit 38% of his 3s over the past two seasons, and you may have heard about the No.
The league is loaded at the top, deep and dangerous in the middle and the Wolverines are one of at least three Big Ten members with a chance to cut down the nets in April.
Howard can do the same — or better — with this group, but must first navigate a conference gauntlet that seems to wear on the league’s best teams. I like Michigan’s chances.
Ivey is everyone’s favorite blow-up name going into the season after averaging 14.8 points in his 12 starts last season, while Edey has been dominant in preseason practices and put up huge numbers with Canada at the FIBA U19 World Cup.
The Buckeyes’ defense last year was near the bottom of the Big Ten, and they also lost two of their primary producers on the offensive end with the departures of Duane Washington Jr.
Gasaway: This is where I get to circle back to the first question and note that, as strong as Michigan appears, I’m not sure Purdue isn’t right there with the Wolverines.
The coaching staff rather surprisingly put a bright red light into effect on offensive rebounding efforts in 2020-21, and, in combination with an average turnover rate, it resulted in a really low volume of shot attempts.
They were a popular — and legitimate — pick to win it all a year ago and, even with Ayo Dosunmu in the NBA, Illinois has more than enough to complete some unfinished business.
At the other end of things, Maryland for me falls into the category of “I’ll believe it when I see it.” Sure, the Terps have some excellent pieces.
But he was also a 24% 3-point shooter a year ago, and the Terps, now without Wiggins and Jairus Hamilton, could use another shooter to stretch the floor.
Illinois has a lot left with Cockburn and Trent Frazier returning, but I think you could make the case that they should be closer to top 15 than top 10.
Recruiting is up, the roster is extremely promising and the overall feeling around the program is creating smiles for the first time in forever.
He recruited Trayce Jackson-Davis back to Indiana and convinced him that another year with the Hoosiers could boost his draft stock.
That’s how deep the conference is, and that’s how hopeful things appear at the dawn of the Woodson era in Bloomington.
Having an All-American-level star like Jackson-Davis helps, naturally, but he’s a star on a team that even last year was better than what you typically see in a season that ends with firing the coach.
The actual on-court basketball coaching was never really the question for him, it was whether he could recruit at a high enough level to bring Indiana back into the national conversation.
Jackson-Davis is one of the most dominant players in college basketball, two other starters are back and we’ve mentioned all the complementary pieces Woodson added last spring.
17? This offense was better than those of the oh-so-talked-about likes of Michigan and Illinois in Big Ten play last season and in fact better than every team’s except Iowa.
Yes, this team lost Jacob Young and other contributors from last year’s team that reached the second round and squandered a double-digit lead in a loss to Houston in the second round.
Northwestern looked like it was going to be an NCAA tournament team for about two months last season, beating Michigan State, Indiana and Ohio State in consecutive games before losing its next 13 games.
That might not sound like a lot, but the Cornhuskers have finished 13th, 14th and 14th in the Big Ten the last three seasons.
Then big man Isaac Copeland got hurt and the whole thing fell apart, leading to a change in leadership and the arrival of Hoiberg.