Big Ten is College Basketball's Elite

If anybody watched college football this year, it wasn't hard at all to pick up on the fact that the Big Ten was less than impressive. It was a rough year for every fan of a Big Ten team, even if you were an Ohio State fan you had to sit back and realize their undefeated season meant nothing due to bowl ineligibility (Shout out to Terrelle Pryor and Jim Tressel). All in all, life as a Big Ten fan was pretty rough in the fall.

But the fall is over and winter is in full swing which means one of the worst conferences is now the best. The Big Ten has taken the world of college basketball by storm and it looks like it's here to stay. With six teams in the top 25 (no team being ranked lower than 18), it's plain to see that the Big Ten has talent that other conferences can only dream of. Take the Naismith Player of the Year award for instance, four players from the Big Ten have been mentioned in the discussion. DeShaun Thomas of Ohio State, Brandon Paul of Illinois, Cody Zeller of Indiana, and Trey Burke of Michigan have all been named possible winners or contenders. These players also come from teams that, right now, look as if they could contend for a trip to the Final Four.

Yet it's easy to base a conference off of the elite teams, but here's a look at the teams people may be overlooking in the midst of the talk about the six ranked teams:

Wisconsin: The Badgers are off to an 11-4 start with very few eye-opening wins. They lost by double-digits to Florida, Creighton, and Marquette. Yet they started the conference season with two wins. Granted, those wins came against Nebraska and Penn State, but if you think the Badgers won't give teams trouble, then you don't know Bo...Ryan that is. In my mind, Bo Ryan is a very underrated coach. He's not on the level of Tom Izzo but he does have five Big Ten titles and a record of 268-101 in his eleven years at Wisconsin. Not to mention that the Badgers are one of the toughest teams to beat at home, boasting an astounding 116-15 record at home under Ryan. They may not be ranked, but you'd be stupid to overlook the Badgers.

Purdue: A team with six freshman and only two seniors? What's to fear about a team so inexperienced? Well, if you were able to catch the Purdue/Illinois game, there's alot to fear. This squad of Matt Painter's is going to be an impressive one. They won't contend this year or maybe next year, but freshmen Ronnie Johnson and A.J. Hammons are showing great promise. Johnson is a quick guard who's averaging almost nine points, four rebounds, and three assists. Not bad for a freshman guard. As for Hammons, the kid looks like the second coming of JaJuan Johnson; very long and raw at a young age. Yet he presents a presence in the paint that will even make All-Americans change their shot. That's exactly what Hammons needs to understand. He doesn't necessarily need to be a shot-blocker. He can work wonders just by putting his hands up and standing there. Throw that in with the fact he's grabbing almost seven boards a game and you've got a player with some real potential. The Boilermakers already upset Illinois and gave Ohio State a great game. The old saying goes "Age is but a number", and this Purdue team is out to prove that no matter how young they are they're here to compete.

Iowa: The Hawkeyes currently have an 11-4 record and, if you look closely, they have only beaten cupcake teams. They don't have any impressive wins thus far and are 0-2 in conference play. With that being said, Roy Devyn Marble and Aaron White can still lead the Hawkeyes to a handful of conference wins. Marble averages just over fifteen points a game and White averages thirteen. Together, they led the Hawkeyes in a four-point loss to the nationally-respected Indiana Hoosiers. The final score was 69-65 and there were numerous times that Iowa had Tom Crean's squad on the ropes. Iowa is presented with another test tonight as they try to topple Michigan State at home. Again, the Hawkeyes are not likely to contend for the Big Ten crown, but there's no doubt they will be the spoilers when it comes down to the end.

I've heard plenty of people try to say that the Big Ten is not the best conference. I can respect opinions, but I can't see how someone could go against the talent, coaching, and flat out domination the Big Ten is showing this year. The ACC is Duke's for the taking. The Big East will, most likely, be Syracuse's once again, the SEC will come down to either Florida or Missouri, the Big 12 will no doubt be won by Kansas, and the Pac 12 will come down to UCLA and Arizona. Of the Power Six conferences, only the Big Ten has more than two teams that can contend for the title. Between Michigan, Indiana, Ohio State, Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan State there is no clear-cut winner, not to mention the depth this conference has. Don't be surprised if the Sweet Sixteen has five or six Big Ten teams in it.