No. 8 Illinois (12-1, 2-0)
The Illini are counting on forward Brian Cook to lead the team again in this his final season. The Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year leads the conference in scoring with 21.7 points per game and ranks fourth with 8.4 rebounds per game. Illinois men's basketball coach Bill Self has seen a change this off-season with Cook.
"He has to be more of a low-post presence this year than in years past," Self said at Big Ten media day.
"He hasn't gained weight, but his body looks a lot better."
Illinois' start of 12-1 matches the school's best since 1989-1990, a team that starred Kendall Gill.
The freshman duo of Dee Brown and Deron Williams have stepped up to fill the holes in the Illini's backcourt.
Brown, who has started every game for Illinois, is averaging 12.8 points and 4.8 assists per game. Williams has registered 6.5 points and 4.5 assists per game.
No. 18 Indiana (12-3, 2-1)
With the departure of Jared Jefferies, who left for the NBA Draft, the Hoosiers needed someone to step up and fill his shoes. The combination of Jeff Newton and George Leach has replaced Jefferies' production from a year ago for Indiana men's basketball coach Mike Davis. Newton and Leach have combined to average nearly 20 points and 18 rebounds per game thus far.
In addition to the loss of Jefferies, the Hoosiers lost the heart and soul of the team that went to the NCAA Championship game, Dane Fife. Davis is still looking for someone to step up and take the role of a leader.
"[Tom Coverdale is] not getting it. If you watch his play since the Maryland game, you can't tell me you've seen any leadership from him," Davis said. "I'm disappointed in that because last year we had Fife and he was contagious and guys caught on to that."
Iowa (10-3, 2-0)
The Hawkeyes are coming off their biggest win of the season, a 68-64 victory of then-No. 25 Michigan State.
Iowa may have found its leader in Glen Worley, who scored a career-high 29 points in the victory.
"We really challenged Glen at halftime because he has been battling inconsistency," said Iowa men's basketball coach Steve Alford.
"If you want to be a premier player in this league, it is not about playing 20 minutes, it's about busting your tail for 40."
With the losses of Luke Recker and Reggie Evans to the NBA, the Hawkeyes have received big contributions from Chauncy Leslie, the team's leading scorer, and Jared Reiner, the team's leading rebounder, in addition to Worley.
Michigan (9-6, 2-0)
The Wolverines trailed Wisconsin by 15 points with a little over five minutes remaining before finishing the game on a 22-6 run to win. Michigan freshman point guard Daniel Horton hit a runner in the lane with seven seconds remaining to give the Wolverines the win.
"We wanted the ball in his hands," said Michigan men's basketball coach Tommy Amaker. "Certainly we wanted him to spread the floor and keep the ball."
Senior Lavell Blanchard scored 17 points against the Badgers, and he is looking to become the first player in Michigan history to lead the team for four straight seasons in points and rebounds.
Michigan State (9-6, 1-2)
It wouldn't be basketball in the Big Ten if the Spartans didn't lead the conference in the rebounding margin.
Michigan State once again leads the conference with a 6.9 rebounds per game advantage on its opponents.
The Spartans this season have been inconsistent. They dropped a pair of games at the Great Alaskan Shootout to Villanova and Oklahoma State before rebounding to beat both Virginia and Kentucky.
The Spartans then dropped a two-point game to Oklahoma and then handled Ohio State before losing to Purdue.
Minnesota (8-4, 0-1)
After a breakout freshman season for Rick Rickert, defenses across the country have game planned to slow him down and they have done exactly that. With so much attention paid to Rickert, fellow sophomore Maurice Hargrow has stepped up his play.
Hargrow leads the team in scoring with 14.3 points per game, slightly ahead of Rickert, who is scoring 14.2. Rickert has remained valuable to Minnesota as he leads the team in rebounding.
The addition of Northwestern transfer Ben Johnson has added another scoring punch for the Golden Gophers, as he has shot 45 percent from three-point range and averages seven points per game.
Northwestern (8-6, 0-3)
As March rolls around every year, the Wildcats usually find themselves at or near the bottom of the conference's standings. This year doesn't look to be any different, as Northwestern lost its first two Big Ten games.
Despite that, Northwestern has improved each of the first two seasons under third-year coach Bill Carmody. Last season, the Wildcats defended their home court well, posting a mark of 10-3.
Ohio State (8-5, 1-1)
After earning a share of the Big Ten regular-season title last season, Ohio State is suffering from the same syndrome that is plaguing Michigan State -- good one game, bad the next.
The lack of consistency is partially due to the Buckeyes' tough early-season schedule. Ohio State has dropped games to No. 1 Duke, No. 3 Pittsburgh, No. 9 Alabama and No. 15 Louisville.
The Buckeyes bounced back after a conference-opening loss to Michigan State with a win over Indiana. Ohio State has counted on the play of senior guard Brent Darby and he has responded. Darby is third in the conference in scoring with 22.0 points per game.
Penn State (5-8, 0-2)
The Nittany Lions count heavily on scoring from the experienced backcourt of Brandon Watkins and Sharif Chambliss. Watkins, the team's leader, is leading the team in scoring with 14.6 points per game.
"He's one of the best defensive players we've ever had at Penn State at the guard position. Brandon's a capable scorer, but we don't need him to score a lot of points to be successful," said Penn State men's basketball coach Jerry Dunn at Big Ten media day.
Chambliss has struggled from three-point land, down from 42 percent a year ago to 35 percent this season.
Freshman DeForrest Riley has stepped up and been a key contributor for the Lions, averaging 8.3 points and shooting 49 percent from downtown.
Purdue (10-3, 2-0)
The Boilermakers have been the biggest surprise in the Big Ten conference early this season. An upset win on Tuesday night over Michigan State has propelled Purdue to near the top of the conference standings. As good as the Boilermakers have been they still finished 13-18 a year ago. Purdue relies heavily on scoring from its backcourt. Senior Willlie Deane and junior Kenneth Lowe have combined to score 28.6 points per game.
Wisconsin (10-4, 0-2)
Wisconsin shared the Big Ten regular-season championship last season, but will need to improve to get back to the form of a year ago.
"We really have never discussed the championship from last year," said Wisconsin men's basketball coach Bo Ryan prior to the start of the Big Ten season. "Everything is about taking care of the moment, preparing for, as I said so many other times, for what's next."
The first two games have been difficult for the Badgers, who lost both by a combined seven points.
Kirk Penny and Devin Harris, Wisconsin's talented backcourt duo, are the Badgers' two leading scorers at 16.3 and 14.7 points per game, respectively.
- By Robert Spruck
