The Big Ten will look very different in the 2024-25 college basketball season Oregon, UCLA, USC And Washington Join the League. The addition of four West Coast-based programs will increase the league’s membership to 18, tying it with the ACC for the nation’s largest power conference.
Due to conference realignment and expansion, the Big Ten Tournament will also look different, with the bottom three seeded outside the 15-team bracket from the regular-season standings.
Purdue Reached the NCAA Tournament title game this spring but fell short of the juggernaut UConn In the final game of the 2023-24 season. The Boilermakers’ loss in the national title game boosted the Big Ten 24-year national title drought. Michigan State (2000) is the last program from the Big Ten to win a national championship.
The Big Ten is wide open, which is reflected in our CBS Sports Expert picks. Although Purdue remains the favorite to win the regular season title for the third year in a row, IndianaUCLA and Illinois Popular picks to finish at the top of the standings.
The Big Ten received six bids to the 2024 NCAA Tournament, and there’s a strong possibility that number could be double-digits this season because of the parity expected in the new-look conference. The conference sent nine teams to the NCAA Tournament in 2021 and 2022.
Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year
Braden Smith | Purdue G | Jr
Jack Eddy may be gone, but Purdue has the luxury of returning one of the best guards in the country. Smith averaged 12.0 points, 7.5 assists, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals last season and served as a perfect second option to Eddie in the Boilermakers’ run to the national title game.
Smith ranked second in the nation (tied with ex Minnesota the guard Eliza Hawkins) with assistance. With Eddy gone, look for Smith to take on a more prominent role in scoring the basketball. Smith shot 43.1% from distance on 3.3 attempts per game, and his overall volume should increase with AD. NBA. Smith is now the star of the show for the Boilermakers and his play will be the determining factor in Purdue’s success.
Big Ten Preseason Freshman of the Year
Dylan Harper | Rutgers | G
The hype surrounding the Rutgers program is real thanks to the addition of Harper and Ace Bailey, two star freshmen. Rutgers is one of 10 recruiting classes in the 247Sports era with two top-five signees, but subsequent success isn’t guaranteed. Five of the eight teams that signed two top-five players from the same class failed to reach the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.
Harper, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 recruiting cycle, is a skilled southpaw capable of taking over a game. He was a strong rebounder for his size on the AAU circuit and will be one of the best guards in the sport from Day 1. Harper underwent a voluntary procedure on his right knee earlier this summer, but all signs point to him being 100%. Rutgers may have the biggest “boom” or “bust” potential as a team in the conference this season, and its success will be determined by its star freshman. That lives up to high expectations.
Four more players to watch
Great Osobor | f | Washington: Washington’s “$2 Million Man” Biggest win of first-year coach Danny Sprinkle’s offseason. Played for Sprinkle at Osobor State of Montana And State of Utah And he followed his coach to his next destination for the second straight offseason after transferring to Washington. Osobor is coming off a season in which he averaged 17.7 points. 9.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks. His style of play is perfect for the Big Ten.
Miles Rice | G | Indiana: Indiana coach Mike Woodson had a busy offseason recruiting transfer portal and the biggest addition was from Rice. Washington State. Rice was one of the best feel-good stories in sports last season. Rice did not play during the 2022–23 season, as he was undergoing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He averaged 14.8 points, 3.8 assists and 3.1 rebounds. He immediately became one of the best point guards in the Big Ten.
S. Bailey f | Rutgers: Rutgers’ two highly-handicapped first-year players enter the program giving Steve Pikiell a solid base of talent to reach the NCAA Tournament for the third time in five seasons. Bailey is a skilled forward who projects as an early 2025 lottery pick The NBA Draft. If he gets it together early, Rutgers could be in store for its best season in decades.
Kobe Johnson | f | UCLA: Johnson didn’t have to go far to find his next destination. Johnson transferred from USC to crosstown rival UCLA to give coach Mick Cronin a defensive anchor. Johnson should be one of the early favorites to win conference (and potentially even national) Defensive Player of the Year. Johnson has averaged 2.2 steals per game over the past two seasons, and his presence on the defensive end is one of the many reasons UCLA is poised for success in Year 1 of the Big Ten.
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