As part of its 2022–23 men’s basketball preseason coverage, Sports Illustrated is rolling out previews for each of the top 10 conferences. Next up is the Big Ten.
The 2021–22 season followed an all-too-familiar script for the Big Ten, sending nine teams to the NCAA tournament but failing to get a single one to the Final Four. The league’s national title drought continues for another year. Jim Boeheim’s comments about the Big Ten having “sucked” in the Big Dance may be a bit inflammatory, but at some point the league needs to make moves in March to back up its regular season successes.
Is this the year for that March breakthrough? There’s certainly plenty of star power (especially up front), but on paper the league’s strength appears to be more in its depth rather than its top-tier teams. Still, this should again be perhaps the most competitive top-to-bottom conference in men’s college hoops.
