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Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings: Does Illinois Belong in the Top 5?

The Illini no doubt would be higher on the list had they held on to upset national No. 1 Tennessee

Steven Greenberg

Illinois Fighting Illini guard Tre White (22) blocks the drive of Wisconsin Badgers guard John Tonje (9) as Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) defends during the second half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
Illinois Fighting Illini guard Tre White (22) blocks the drive of Wisconsin Badgers guard John Tonje (9) as Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) defends during the second half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images / Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
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UCLA's Dylan Andrews banked in a three at the buzzer to steal a win at Oregon back on Dec. 8. That pretty much has to be considered the No. 1 highlight of the Big Ten basketball season to this point, as strange as it still feels to point to West Coast interlopers for any sort of Big Ten "most." But it was one hell of a big shot.

Illinois might've owned the keys to the Big Ten highlight machine, though, had it held on to a late lead and toppled No. 1 Tennessee over the weekend. The Illini were so close but lost on a buzzer beater themselves. In the end, though, too many freshman mistakes created doubt about the Illini – and cost them dearly in these first-of-the-season power rankings.

The Big Ten is down this season on the whole, we all should be able to admit. The list of teams that could win the league is ridiculously long – fun in and of itself – but there aren't any Big Ten teams bumping elbows with the top teams in the national polls, at least not yet.

The Illini have as good a chance to win the Big Ten as any team. But the same can be said for Oregon and UCLA as well as Michigan State, Michigan, Purdue and others. Again: Long list.

How to rank these teams now? Here's a stab at it. Let’s take it from the bottom (all times Central):

18. MINNESOTA (6-5, 0-2)

Dawson Garcia is terrific. Losing at home to North Texas still is not.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 170

Next up: Dec. 21 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson.

17. WASHINGTON (7-3, 0-2)

Any team in the conference would be happy to have Great Osobor on its roster. As for the rest of the Huskies, well, maybe not so great.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 10 p.m. Wednesday vs. Washington State (FS1).

Next up: 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Penn State (BTN).

16. USC (7-4, 1-1)

The Trojans don't rebound and they shoot a poor percentage from three. It's a wickedly unhelpful combo.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 114.

Next up: 9 p.m. Wednesday vs. Cal State-Northridge (BTN).

15. IOWA (8-3, 1-1)

Look, it's not a bad Iowa team. It's more like a not-that-bad Iowa team. So the Hawkeyes have that going for them.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 51.

Next up: Dec. 21 vs. Utah.

14. OHIO STATE (6-4, 1-1)

Auburn 91, Buckeyes 53 – ouch, that's going to sting for a while.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 35.

Next up: 7 p.m. Tuesday vs. Valparaiso (Peacock).

13. RUTGERS (7-4, 1-1)

As great as Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey are, things just haven't come together as Steve Pikiell envisioned. Still lots of time, though.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 83.

Next up: 11 a.m. Saturday vs. Princeton (FS1) in Newark, New Jersey.

12. INDIANA (8-3, 1-1)

Has this been the conference's most disappointing team to date? The Hoosiers certainly are in that conversation. Mike Woodson is struggling.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 65.

Next up: 11 a.m. Saturday vs. Chattanooga (BTN).

11. NEBRASKA (7-2, 1-1)

The wins against Creighton and Indiana were eye-openers, but losing by 37 at Michigan State wasn't a cold slap of reality.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 57.

Next up: Dec. 22 vs. Murray State.

10. NORTHWESTERN (8-3, 1-1)

Can beat anybody. Can lose to anybody. The margin of error for these tough-minded Wildcats never changes.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 59.

Next up: 3 p.m. Saturday vs. DePaul (BTN).

9. PENN STATE (9-2, 1-1)

Mike Rhoades has the Nittany Lions punching impressively hard so far. This team might have a case for being higher, but we're going to have to see more to believe it.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 25.

Next up: 11 a.m. Saturday vs. Drexel in Philadelphia.

8. MARYLAND (8-2, 1-1)

There aren't many better freshmen out there than big fella Derik Queen, who gives this dangerous squad life. The arrow is pointing up for the Terps.

Polls: N/A.

Net ranking: 15.

Next up: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday vs. Saint Francis (Pa.) (BTN).

7. WISCONSIN (9-3, 0-2)

Seven-footer Steven Crowl has been around too long and done too much good stuff to look this lost. Greg Gard hasn't quite figured out the pieces yet, though he has a lot to work with.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 38.

Next up: 1 p.m. Sunday vs. Detroit Mercy (BTN).

6. ILLINOIS (7-3, 1-1)

There might not be a more skilled player in the league than freshman Kasparas Jakucionis. The problem? He's also the most likely Illini to be loose with the ball when it matters. With great gifts comes great responsibility.

Polls: N/A.

NET ranking: 14.

Next up: Noon Sunday vs. Missouri (ESPN) in St. Louis.

5. MICHIGAN (8-2, 2-0)

Is this the best frontcourt in the league? Vlad Goldin and Danny Wolf are tough. Still, the Wolverines have too many defensive breakdowns.

Polls: No. 24, No. 21 coaches.

NET ranking: 27.

Next up: 8 p.m. Wednesday vs. Oklahoma (ESPN) in Charlotte, North Carolina.

4. PURDUE (8-3, 1-1)

Guess who isn't around to be 7-foot-4 and utterly dominant anymore? The Boilermakers are slogging through life without Zach Edey and close to tumbling in these rankings because of it.

Polls: No. 16 AP, No. 17 coaches.

NET ranking: 34.

Next up: 3:30 p.m. Saturday vs. Auburn (ESPN) in Birmingham, Alabama.

3. MICHIGAN STATE (8-2, 2-0)

There's still no great scorer on the Spartans – it's been a while since they've had one of those – but this seems to be a team that wants to play the Tom Izzo way as much as any of his teams has in a long time.

Polls: No. 20 AP, No. 19 coaches.

NET ranking: 21.

Next up: 6 p.m. Tuesday vs. Oakland (ESPN2) in Detroit.

2. UCLA (9-1, 2-0)

That loss to New Mexico, even though it was early, sticks in the craw. Is three-point shooting eventually going to stop a very strong group from asserting itself in the Big Ten race?

Polls: No. 18 AP, No. 18 coaches.

NET ranking: 13.

Next up: 8:30 p.m. Tuesday vs. Prairie View A&M (BTN).

1. OREGON (10-1, 1-1)

Beating Texas A&M, Alabama and San Diego State back-to-back-to-back still stands as the most impressive thing any Big Ten team has done this season. Getting bonked by a bank-in buzzer shot against UCLA was rough, but the Ducks have the best body of work so far.

Polls: No. 10 AP, No. 10 coaches.

NET ranking: 17.

Next up: 7 p.m. Saturday vs. Stanford (BTN) in San Jose, California.

More From Illinois on Sports Illustrated:

Illinois vs. Tennessee Game-Winner: Anatomy of an Upset Denied

3 Big Takeaways in Illinois Basketball's Loss to No. 1 Tennessee

Illinois Basketball Muscles Up But Falls Short in Loss to No. Tennessee

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Steven Greenberg
STEVEN GREENBERG

Steve Greenberg, a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, has written about college sports since the early 1990s.

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