Toyminator's 2001-2002 Big Ten Conference Preview

The Big Ten will continue to be one of the premier conferences in the nation, even with powerhouse Michigan St. in a "rebuilding" mode! The Spartans lost so much talent last season that they'll heavily rely on freshman to provide the needed boost to get them into the Tournament. Unfortunately, State's run of Final Four appearances will come to an end this season, but look out next season! The elite team this season is Illinois, who is coming off an Elite Eight appearance and is ready to make the next step! Frank Williams can be unstoppable at times and look for a healthy Cory Bradford to step up in his final season. Brian Cook will be counted on more and he has the talent to come through. They'll be Top 5 most of the season! Iowa isn't too far behind! They return the inside/outside combo of Reggie Evans & Luke Recker, which alone makes them tough. Add a deep bench to Coach Alford's winning style and they should be battling Illinois for the conference crown!

The rest of the conference is pretty tough too! Indiana is starting to adjust to life without Bobby Knight and they're finding out it's not too bad! Jared Jeffries is silky smooth and will cause many problems for opponents on the wing. Ohio St. should continue to be tough, with just the loss of Ken Johnson to contend with. Minnesota could be a sleeper team, thanks to a great recruiting class and the return of Michael Bauer. Purdue and Michigan just need some steady backcourt play to compliment their good frontcourts to make a run at preseason play. One other good thing this season is the demise of the Wisconsin Badgers program. Coach Bo Ryan may be over his head here with the loss of their stellar senior class. Fortunately for us fans, we won't have to watch these guys in March for quite awhile!

ON THE RISE: Indiana
Coach Mike Davis is quickly building a solid team in Bloomington for years to come. Obviously, losing Kirk Haston killed any shot of a Big Ten championship, but they still have a number of solid players and a group of newcomers that should provide a stable foundation for the future. Watch out for PG Donald Perry, who could take reins of this team and not give it up until he leaves. Also, coach Davis has already assembled a solid bunch of recruits for next season, so it looks like they won't be missing Bobby Knight in Bloomington anymore!

IN DECLINE: Wisconsin
No brainer here! The loss of their 5 key seniors would doom most teams. Add in a few transfers and ineligibles and you don't have much of a team left. With only Kirk Penney as the lone returning starter, there's not much to build around. New coach Bo Ryan didn't have much luck on the recruiting trail, so it could take awhile before the Badgers see the NCAA Tournament again!

1. ILLINOIS

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Well balanced offense. Aggressive team defense. Excellent teamwork & experience.
Weakness: Too many turnovers. Not as deep as last season.
Outlook: Bill Self proved he belongs in the Big Ten by quickly making the Illini one of the top teams in the land. They lost a few key players, but last year's reserves will play a big role this season. They've got Final Four written all over them!

2. IOWA

Strengths: Excellent rebounding team. Good 3-pt & FT shooting team. Tons of depth off the bench!
Weakness: Loss of Oliver at PG. Poor team defense. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: If Luke Recker returns to form and a PG is found, then the Hawkeyes will be a Top 10 all season long.

3. INDIANA

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Good ball handling & distribution. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Little inside scoring. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: Indiana continues rebuilding into a strong program and should easily make a return to the NCAA Tournament.

4. MICHIGAN ST.

Strengths: Good rebounding team. Solid team defense. Good ball handling & distribution. Excellent team discipline.
Weakness: Questionable inside game. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Very inexperienced and little off the bench.
Outlook: Most programs would be decimated by their losses, but not the Spartans (or Arizona)! Anyhow, they've got a lot of players ready to prove themselves ar this level, so the team's success will be based on theirs!

5. OHIO ST.

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Solid backcourt, led by Brown. Good ball handling & distribution. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Waek frontcourt - little inside scoring or rebounding.
Outlook: The Buckeyes surprised some last season with their success, but not me. Jim O'Brien's got a good program here and will continue to produce tough teams. This season shouldn't be much different with another postseason appearance.

6. MINNESOTA

Strengths: Good team defense. Big frontcourt. Good 3-pt shooting team. Limit their turnovers.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. Suspect backcourt, with no true PG.
Outlook: Without a true PG, the versatile Kevin Burleson might have to lead this team and get the ball to all the big guys in order to reach the NCAA Tournament. Either way, they'll be in the middle of the pack.

7. PURDUE

Strengths: Good shooting team. Solid team defense. Good ball handling & distribution. Very experienced. Excellent coaching.
Weakness: Question mark at PG. Poor rebounding team. Lack of height.
Outlook: Coach Keady proved again last season that he's a genius! No way they should have been that good. Well, they'll probably be better this season, especially if they can stay healthy (Kenny Lowe is already out for the season).

8. MICHIGAN

Strengths: Excellent pair of wings! Good rebounding team. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor ball-handling & distribution. Weak team defense. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Little depth.
Outlook: Michigan will most likely continue to wallow in mediocrity this season, but new Coach Tommy Amaker could make some noise in a few years!

9. WISCONSIN

Strengths: Still play great defense! Good 3-pt shooting team. Limit their turnovers.
Weakness: Totally inept on offense. Very inexperienced, with little off the bench. Weak frontcourt.
Outlook: Not much more to say here that hasn't already been said. Posteseason play would be a stretch!

10. PENN ST.

Strengths: Decent backcourt - handles the ball well. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. Little inside scoring. Poor team defense. Very inexperienced with little off the bench.
Outlook: After last season Cinderalla story, the Nittany Lions turn back into a pumpkin! Will win some games, but not more than they lose!

11. NORTHWESTERN

Strengths: Good ball handling & distribution. Good team discipline.
Weakness: Terrible shooting & rebounding team. Poor team defense. Little depth.
Outlook: Bill Carmody is a hell of a coach, but he just can't attract any talent to Northwestern. Thus, another long season in the basement!

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Last updated on 10/9/01 by toyminator@prodigy.net