Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings (Vol. 1): Can Purdue Pull Off 3-Peat? Where Do New Teams Fall?

Can Purdue win a third straight Big Ten title? How will the four new teams fit in? Is Indiana back? A look at the first 2024-25 basketball power rankings.

Purdue Boilermakers head coach Matt Painter holds up the NCAA midwest regionals trophy / Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

Another year of college basketball is finally upon us. Monday, the 2024-25 Big Ten basketball season gets underway, this time with 18 teams in the league. It should make the season even more entertaining.

Heading into the year, there still remain plenty of question marks. Can Purdue win a third consecutive Big Ten title? How do Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington fit into the league? With a rebuilt roster, is Indiana finally back?

Some of these questions will start to get answered this week. But before the opening tipoff, here's a look at the preseason Big Ten basketball power rankings.

1. Purdue Boilermakers

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP Poll: No. 14; Coaches Poll: No. 13; KenPom: No. 10
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Monday at 6 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network); Northern Kentucky on Friday at 7 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: Yes, Purdue lost the two-time National Player of the Year in Zach Edey, but Matt Painter returns three starters from last year's 34-5 team, which reached the National Championship Game — including preseason Big Ten Player of the Year Braden Smith. The Boilermakers may look different, but there's still a lot of talent in West Lafayette.

2. Indiana Hoosiers

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: No. 17; Coaches: No. 18; KenPom: No. 39
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network); Eastern Illinois on Sunday at noon ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: This feels like a critical year for Mike Woodson and his staff. The Hoosiers have assembled an incredibly talented roster through the transfer portal. There are high expectations for center Oumar Ballo, guards Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle. Indiana also brings back Mackenzie Mgbako, Malik Reneau, Gabe Cupps, Anthony Leal and Trey Galloway. Is this the year IU competes for a Big Ten title again?

3. UCLA Bruins

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: No. 22; Coaches: No. 22; KenPom: No. 28
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Rider on Monday at 10:30 p.m. ET (TV: Fox Sports 1); New Mexico on Friday at 11 p.m. ET (TV: CBS Sports Network).
• The skinny: UCLA is another team that was dependent on the transfer portal during the offseason, bringing in six players, including guarrd Skyy Clark. There's also plenty of hype around William Kyle III, who averaged 13.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per game last season at South Dakota State. Mick Cronin is looking to prove that the Bruins can come into the Big Ten and immediately compete at the top of the league.

4. Illinois Fighting Illini

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 92 votes; Coaches: No. 24; KenPom: No. 23
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Eastern Illinois on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Friday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Peacock).
• The skinny: The departures of Coleman Hawkins, Terrence Shannon Jr., Luke Goode and Marcus Domask are certainly significant. But Brad Underwood has built a perennial contender in Champaign. The addition of guard Kylan Boswell and 7-foot center Tomislav Ivisic should help offset the losses from last year's Elite Eight squad.

5. Michigan State Spartans

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 29 votes; Coaches: Received 25 votes; KenPom: No. 35
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Monmouth on Monday at 7 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Niagara on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network).
• The skinny: Last season didn't go quite as planned for Michigan State, finishing with a 20-15 record and a 10-10 mark in Big Ten play. The Spartans have young talent with Coen Carr and Malik Booker to go along with transfer Frankie Fidler. Tom Izzo's team has skill, but experience is a bit of a question mark entering the year.

6. Rutgers Scarlet Knights

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: No. 25; Coaches: Received 57 votes; KenPom: No. 63
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Wagner on Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network).
• The skinny: The combination of five-star freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey has created a lot of hype surrounding Rutgers basketball entering the 2024-25 season. Does Steve Pikiell's bunch have the depth to be one of the top teams in the Big Ten?

7. Ohio State Buckeyes

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 29 votes; Coaches: Received 7 votes; KenPom: No. 30
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Texas on Monday at 10 p.m. ET, neutral site in Las Vegas (TV: TruTV/TNT).
• The skinny: Jake Diebler enters his first year as the permanent coach at Ohio State after taking over for Chris Holtmann late in the 2023-24 campaign. Will the Buckeyes carry some of that late-season momentum into this season? Diebler's life is made slightly easier with the return of Bruce Thronton and Meechie Johnson Jr.

8. Oregon Ducks

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 12 votes; Coaches: Received 16 votes; KenPom: No. 29
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: UC-Riverside on Monday at 10:30 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Montana on Friday at 10 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network).
• The skinny: Oregon is losing its top two players from last season in Jermaine Cousinard and N’Faly Dante, but the Ducks still have seven players on the 2024-25 roster who averaged 10 points or more last season — whether in Eugene or at a previous school. How will this group jell together in a new conference?

9. Wisconsin Badgers

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 5 votes; Coaches: Received 1 vote; KenPom: No. 47
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Holy Cross on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Montana State on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Appalachian State on Sunday at 12 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: There are plenty of "wild card" teams in the Big Ten this season, but Wisconsin might be the biggest unknown. This is a team that lost AJ Storr, Tyler Wahl and Connor Essegian. It's also a team that returns Steven Crowl, Nolan Winter, John Blackwell and Max Klesmit. On paper, this looks like an NCAA Tournament team.

10. Nebraska Cornhuskers

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 7 votes; Coaches: Received 8 votes; KenPom: No. 57
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: UT-Rio Grande on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Bethune-Cookman on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: Nebraska was able to add two Big Ten names from the transfer portal — bringing in Connor Essegian from Wisconsin and Rutgers' Gavin Griffiths. The Huskers also return Juwan Gary, a top defensive player in the conference. Last year, Nebraska was a darling in the league. Can Fred Hoiberg's team follow that up with another solid season?

11. Michigan Wolverines

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 19 votes; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 36
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Cleveland State on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network); At Wake Forest on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, neutral site in Greensboro, N.C. (TV: ESPN 2).
• The skinny: Will Dusty May's success at Florida Atlantic translate to the Big Ten? Michigan was the worst team in the conference a year ago, but in the transfer portal era, things can change pretty quickly. This is another Big Ten team with a lot of questions entering the season.

12. Iowa Hawkeyes

• Records: 0-0 overall,0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: NR; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 31
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Texas A&M Commerce on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Southern on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: Owen Freeman and Payton Sandfort give Iowa a really strong foundation entering the 2024-25 season. Plus, you never really question the Hawkeyes' ability to score points. Can this team defend? Who will provide support to Freeman and Sandfort?

13. Northwestern Wildcats

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 1 vote; Coaches: Received 3 votes; KenPom: No. 51
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Lehigh on Monday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Peacock); At Dayton on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET (TV: ESPN-Plus).
• The skinny: We've reached the end of the Boo Buie era in Evanston. Chris Collins still has some strong pieces in Ty Berry, Matthew Nicholson, Nick Martinelli and Brooks Barnhizer. This group probably isn't a Big Ten contender without Buie, but it can still cause problems in the conference.

14. Maryland Terrapins

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: Received 1 vote; Coaches: Received 4 votes; KenPom: No. 38
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Manhattan on Monday at 7 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Mount St. Mary's on Friday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network).
• The skinny: Maryland was probably the most disappointing team in the Big Ten one year ago, predicted to finish near the top of the standings but ending with a 16-17 record. Is No. 14 a little low for the Terrapins? Maybe. But they'll need to show us something on the court after an awful year in 2023-24.

15. USC Trojans

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: NR; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 56
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Chattanooga on Monday at 10 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network); Idaho State on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus).
• The skinny: Eric Musselman brings a track record of success with him to USC. How much success will he have immediately? The Trojans have 16 new players on the roster, so it'll be interesting to see how quickly the chemistry forms.

16. Penn State Nittany Lions

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: NR; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 61
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Binghamton on Monday, 7:30 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); UMBC on Friday at 6 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network).
• The skinny: Despite finishing with a losing record, Penn State showed progress in Year 1 under Mike Rhoades. Having Ace Baldwin and Puff Johnson back for another season is really big for the Nittany Lions.

17. Washington Huskies

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: NR; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 76
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: UC-Davis on Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network); At Nevada on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET (TV: Mountain West Network).
• The skinny: Danny Sprinkle inherits a program that hasn't reached the NCAA Tournament since 2019. There aren't many expectations in Year 1, but we'll see if the Huskies make any strides in Year 1 under a new regime.

18. Minnesota Golden Gophers

• Records: 0-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten
• Rankings: AP: NR; Coaches: NR; KenPom: No. 59
• Last Week's Power Ranking: N/A
• Best wins/worst losses: N/A
• Last week: N/A
• This week: Oral Roberts on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten-Plus); Omaha on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET (TV: Peacock).
• The skinny: Last season, Minnesota took major steps forward under coach Ben Johnson. Unfortunately, Dawson Garcia is the only player returning of note, with several moving on via transfer portal. It has put the Gophers behind the 8-ball to start the year.