Big Ten Basketball: Why conference is better than the ACC in 2018-19

3. Big Ten’s top players are better

Zion Williamson of Duke might be the best player in the country this year and RJ Barrett might be right behind him. But if you take those two guys out the Big Ten might own the next few spots if not more. Carsen Edwards was a preseason All-American and Cassius Winston has looked like one with his play this season also. Throw in Ethan Happ from Wisconsin and you have three guys that are playing just as well if not better than anyone in the ACC.

Yes, Tyus Battle from Syracuse is playing well and Jordan Nwora is proving his worth at Louisville, but I would argue that they are still a step behind the big guns from the Big Ten. They are great players and have all made their teams better, but they haven’t shown that they can take over games like the top guys in the Big Ten.

Edwards is a very good shooter and can get to the rim. Winston has shown he can score from everywhere and he is averaging over seven assists per game. Happ may not be a top pro prospect but he can score on anyone inside and is a matchup nightmare for any college team.

The Big Ten can even boast some great freshman also as Michigan has Ignas Brazdeikis leading the Wolverines in scoring and Romeo Langford at Indiana could be a lottery pick. They have shown flashes of being first team all-conference players and again are matchup problems for most teams.

Yes the ACC has great players and they may even be more flashy (see Williamson’s dunk highlights) but the Big Ten boasts a lot of team players who can also take over a game. They have shown that what makes the Big Ten great this year.

These conferences are so close to each other there could be an argument either way, but these three reasons show why the Big Ten is the best conference in the country.