The Big Ten conference hasn't quite lived up to the lofty expectations held by many coming into the season. And while the league has lost some of its bigger players since last season, there is still a solid corps of underclassmen to take their place.
Nowhere is this more apparent than when looking at the Big Ten stats leaders and seeing many younger players' names at the tops of the lists.
Here is a look at some of the top names in the conference heading into the bulk of Big Ten play — and it's probably much different than many would have predicted before the season started.
Kris Humphries
freshman forward, Minnesota
The freshman phenom has already taken the Big Ten by storm, leading the conference in scoring (23.2 per game) and rebounding at both ends of the court (10.6). A 2003 McDonald's All-American, Humphries initially signed with Duke, but transferred to his home state to play for the Gophers.
At 6-foot-9, Humphries possesses both a strong inside game, as well as an above-average jumper. In just 13 games, he has already established himself as a dominant force in the conference.
Humphries has already become infamous at Penn State after Lions' forward Aaron Johnson commented that the Gopher big man hummed the theme to SportsCenter after making shots in the game against Penn State last week.
Jan Jagla
junior forward, PSU
Jagla is perhaps the biggest reason for the Lions' early season surge that has them tied for the conference lead after two games.
The 7-foot junior has made a remarkable turnaround after falling short of his potential in his first two seasons in Happy Valley.
Jagla ranks fourth in the Big Ten in scoring (17.4) and third in rebounding (8.7). He scored a career-high 28 points in the conference opener against Minnesota, including 20 in the first half to lead the Lions to victory.
He has also shown an ability to perform from multiple positions, something he has been forced to do following two recent transfers at Penn State.
Devin Harris
junior guard, Wisconsin
As dependable as they come. Badgers coach Bo Ryan relies heavily on Harris to produce for his team on a nightly basis. And for the first 77 games of his career, that's exactly what he's done, starting in every one of them. Harris is just the third Badger in history to have accomplished that feat at this point in his career.
Harris has already reached the 1,000-point plateau and dishes out the ball as well as he shoots it. His 72 assists give him the highest total in the conference thus far.
Apart from that, Harris is also a smart player who helps run an effective Wisconsin attack with very few mistakes. The Milwaukee native ranks third in the conference in steals and rarely turns the ball over.
Dee Brown
sophomore guard, Illinois
Providing an immediate impact when he arrived in Champaign, Brown has been one of the most electric players in the Big Ten in his short career. Brown is the owner of a slew of awards since his high school days, and was one of the top freshmen in the nation last season, finishing second in scoring on a high-powered Illini squad.
Though his numbers have trailed off in the non-conference, some of that can be attributed to new coach Bruce Weber not relying on him as much with the emergence of fellow sophomore Deron Williams.
Brown matches up well at both ends of the court and proved his worth last season by outplaying peers Daniel Horton of Michigan and Raymond Felton of North Carolina.
Bracey Wright
sophomore guard, Indiana
In what is considered a below-average start to a season for the Hoosiers at 7-6, Wright remains the brightest spot now and for the future in Bloomington. Ranking second in the Big Ten in scoring (20.2), Wright is a shooting threat from both sides of the arc who is not afraid to shoot the three-ball. He finished his rookie campaign with an Indiana freshman record 66 treys.
Wright is also one of the best rebounding perimeter men in the Big Ten, and helped the Hoosiers to a win over Michigan on Sunday with 11 points and nine rebounds.
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