Big Ten Men’s College Hoops Preview: Can Purdue Finally End League’s 25-Year Title Drought?

This October, Sports Illustrated is rolling out conference previews for the five high-major leagues in college basketball, as well as an overarching preview of mid-majors across the country. The series began with the ACC and Big East and continues today with the Big Ten.

State of the League

The Big Ten’s national title drought has reached a quarter-century. Traditional answers to why the league hasn’t gone the distance in March (guard play, physicality, even coaching) don’t really hold up in the modern version of the conference, but the unfortunate streak continues.

Is this the season? Expectations are essentially title or bust for Purdue, which returns two superstars in Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn. A handful of challengers aren’t far behind. And as always, the depth of the league is outstanding.

All-Conference First Team

Braden Smith, Purdue
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa
Donovan Dent, UCLA
Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue
Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan

All-Conference Second Team

John Blackwell, Wisconsin
Bruce Thornton, Ohio State
Nick Martinelli, Northwestern
Tomislav Ivisic, Illinois
Nate Bittle, Oregon

Player of the Year: Braden Smith, Purdue
Freshman of the Year: Hannes Steinbach, Washington
Transfer of the Year: Bennett Stirtz, Iowa

Projected NCAA tournament teams: 13 (Purdue, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, UCLA, Michigan State, Ohio State, Iowa, Oregon, Washington, Indiana, USC, Maryland)

Projected Order of Finish

1. Purdue

The Boilermakers are the easy preseason choice and have a national-title-or-bust energy about them with a pair of superstars returning in point guard Braden Smith and big man Trey Kaufman-Renn. Their biggest flaw a year ago (a lack of rim presence on both ends) has been addressed with the addition of physical post player Oscar Cluff from the portal and the return of a healthy Daniel Jacobsen. This group has the top-end talent, depth and coaching to go all the way.

2. Michigan

After a strong first season on the job in Ann Arbor, Mich., Dusty May crushed it in the transfer portal this spring. The Wolverines added star power (UAB transfer Yaxel Lendeborg, a potential first-round pick), size (Illinois’s Morez Johnson Jr. and UCLA’s Aday Mara are proven Big Ten contributors and playmaking (Elliot Cadeau averaged six assists per game at North Carolina). May seems intrigued by lineups that could see all three of Lendeborg, Johnson and Mara on the floor together, which could overwhelm teams at the rim but might be a bit underskilled especially with a point guard in Cadeau who has struggled from three in his career.

3. Illinois

After relying heavily on two one-and-done freshmen in 2024–25, Illinois has an older group this season. Big man Tomislav Ivisic and guard Kylan Boswell are high-level returners, with Ivisic having the potential to emerge as one of the best bigs in the country in his second season of college hoops. Cal transfer Andrej Stojakovic adds proven scoring on the wing, while 22-year-old point guard Mihailo Petrovic was one of the best players in the Adriatic League a year ago. The x-factor: freshman Keaton Wagler, who Brad Underwood has been effusive in his praise of this summer and fall.

4. Wisconsin

Wisconsin seems perennially ignored in preseason polls, but once the ball tips off few Big Ten programs are more consistent than the Badgers. They have a star in the backcourt in John Blackwell and solidified ballhandling duties around him with the additions of Nick Boyd (San Diego State) and Andrew Rohde (Virginia) in the portal. And up front, expect a big junior year jump from big man Nolan Winter.

5. UCLA

Perhaps no team in the country upgraded its point guard spot more this offseason than UCLA with the addition of Donovan Dent. He’s one of the most dynamic players in the country, a jet in the open court capable of putting constant pressure on the rim and getting others involved. His presence should allow the Bruins to make a significant jump on the offensive end and buoy the Bruins into Big Ten contenders.

6. Michigan State

Tom Izzo says he still feels plenty energized, and leading the Spartans to 30 wins and the Big Ten regular-season crown a year ago proves he has plenty left in the tank. This year’s group has the type of continuity he’ll appreciate, with stability at point guard with Jeremy Fears Jr. and in the frontcourt with a trio of veteran talents. Putting the ball in the basket in the half court may be a challenge though, especially if reported offseason shooting improvement from uber-athletic wing Coen Carr doesn’t translate to game action.

7. Ohio State

Ohio State has impressive continuity, with three double-figure scorers in Bruce Thornton, Devin Royal and John Mobley Jr. all back from a year ago. That trio gives Jake Diebler’s team elite upside on the offensive end, especially after adding a highly skilled big in Santa Clara transfer Christoph Tilly through the portal. This group has some defensive questions and Diebler is unproven, but talent-wise this is a group that could easily climb into the upper echelon of the Big Ten.

8. Iowa

Coaches around the country rave about new Iowa head man Ben McCollum as perhaps the sport’s best pure Xs and Os tactician, and his 31-win campaign at Drake in his first year in Division I did little to quiet that notion. He’ll wed those elite schematics with one of the best point guards in the country in Bennett Stirtz, who has plenty of experience at the helm of the McCollum offense. Key portal adds Brendan Hausen (Kansas State) and Alvaro Folgueiras (Robert Morris) are also great system fits given their shooting ability and willingness to move without the ball.

9. Oregon

The Ducks have one of the nation’s top centers (Nate Bittle) and point guards (Jackson Shelstad). That alone gives Oregon an incredibly high floor in 2025–26, even with the challenges of regularly traveling across the country. Who else emerges around that dynamic duo is an open question, though Texas transfer Devon Pryor and KJ Evans could form a formidable defensive duo and Chinese guard Wei Lin has plenty of scoring pedigree playing in his home country.

10. Washington

Year 1 didn’t go according to plan for Danny Sprinkle at Washington, but the Huskies had a big spring to boost this roster to one that can contend in March. The backcourt talent is much improved, with USC transfers Wesley Yates and Desmond Claude providing a major boost scoring the ball and Quimari Peterson and JJ Mandaquit solidifying the point. Up front, keep an eye on German big Hannes Steinbach, a double-double machine who NBA teams will be monitoring closely this season.

11. Indiana

Darian DeVries takes over in Bloomington, Ind., bringing a much-needed modern approach on the offensive end. He’s a proven winner at both Drake and West Virginia, but we’ll see how much he can do with a roster in transition. His son Tucker is a legitimate star to lead the way, and Sam Houston State transfer Lamar Wilkerson is an electric shooter to pair with him. Playing Davidson transfer Reed Bailey at center should create some mismatches on the offensive end but might expose the Hoosiers on D.

12. USC

This is a USC roster that looks a lot more like the ones Eric Musselman had success with at Arkansas, with impressive size, versatility and individual shotmaking. Rodney Rice (Maryland) and Chad Baker-Mazara (Auburn) were highly efficient scorers on top-10 KenPom teams a year ago and should lead the way for the Trojans, while Virginia transfer Jacob Cofie is an incredibly high upside add if he puts it all together.

13. Maryland

Buzz Williams never stays in one place too long, and made the move from Texas A&M to College Park, Md., this spring for a fresh start with the Terps. With him, he brings a starting-caliber frontcourt in Solomon Washington and Pharrel Payne, outstanding building blocks for Williams’s defensive infrastructure. Guard play could be shaky, though Indiana transfer Myles Rice is a good buy-low option if he can return to his 2023–24 Washington State form.

14. Nebraska

Nebraska really missed forward Rienk Mast last season as he recovered from knee surgery; missing the Big Ten tournament in a pretty significant step back from making the NCAA tournament in 2024. This group doesn’t have the elite scoring punch that it has had the last two seasons with Brice Williams in ’25 and Keisei Tominaga in ’24, but the Huskers have big-time size, shooting and versatility up and down the lineup. Don’t be shocked if they’re right back in tournament contention.

15. Minnesota

New head coach Niko Medved has proven to be one of the best program-builders in the nation, doing remarkable work rebuilding Furman, Drake and Colorado State. He took Colorado State to the NCAA tournament in three of the last four years and produced a pair of first-round picks in the process. This year’s group is a roster in transition, but the Gophers have elite shooting with Bobby Durkin and Cade Tyson, and excitement is high about sophomore guard Isaac Asuma.

16. Northwestern

Northwestern grinding its way to seven Big Ten wins last season given the absolutely brutal injury luck it dealt with was impressive. Nick Martinelli returns as one of the best players in the Big Ten, and the Cats went into the portal more aggressively than they have in recent years. And keep an eye on freshman forward Tre Singleton, who has earned rave reviews early on in Evanston, Ill. The center spot is shaky though, which could hold Northwestern back.

17. Penn State

Penn State was already staring down an uphill battle to climb the Big Ten ranks before Yanic Konan Niederhauser’s NBA stock blew up during draft combine week. Talented guards Melih Tunca and Kayden Mingo give the Nittany Lions hope for the future, but the rest of the roster looks rough.

18. Rutgers

Rutgers’s much-anticipated season in 2024–25 with two top-five picks in Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey never got off the ground. Things could get ugly this year, with what looks like the least talented roster in the Big Ten. Finding some long-term building blocks (and keeping them) in the likes of Dylan Grant, Chris Nwuli, Denis Badalau and Harun Zrno is priority No. 1 this year.