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NCAA Basketball: 5 takeaways from AP Preseason Top-25 for 2020-21

By Tristan Freeman

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - MARCH 12: The arena sits unused after the announcement of the cancellation of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 12, 2020 in Nashville, Tennessee. The tournament has been cancelled due to the growing concern about the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - MARCH 12: The arena sits unused after the announcement of the cancellation of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 12, 2020 in Nashville, Tennessee. The tournament has been cancelled due to the growing concern about the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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NCAA Basketball (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Big Ten has more than the “top 4”

When it comes to an overall look at the rankings in terms of conference affiliation, here are some quick stats;

  • ACC has four teams (Duke, UNC, UVA, and Florida State), with there being a clear drop-off afterwards.
  • Pac-12 has three teams (Arizona State, Oregon, UCLA), with the Sun Devils at the top at 18. That suggests a lack of potential opportunities for those on the bubble in the conference when it comes to big games
  • Big 12 has five (Kansas, Baylor, Texas, Texas Tech, and WVU), with four in the top-15. This is beneficial for projected bubble teams such as Oklahoma and TCU when it comes to opportunities.
  • SEC has only two teams ranked (Kentucky and Tennessee). However, there are three more ranked in the top-30 overall (Florida, Alabama, LSU). Depth may be a question in this league, making how they all perform in the non-conference more important this year.
  • Big East (Villanova and Creighton), Gonzaga, Houston (as well as Memphis) are also ranked in the top-25 and represent the best, and maybe only chances for bubble teams in those conferences to get resume builders.

That leaves seven teams left to talk about, all in the Big Ten. That conference has by far the most compared to the others. Four of them were obvious candidates to get ranked, with three of them (Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin) ranked in the top-8 overall. Michigan State is 13, which is low for them. However, given the questions at point guard, is understandable from a voter perspective.

What also was a question was who else would get ranked in the top-25. Turns out, three other Big Ten programs made the cut, with Ohio State (23), Rutgers (24), and Michigan (25), rounding out the rankings. The most notable has to be Rutgers, the traditional doormat of the conference for the past couple of decades, before last season’s big breakout campaign. They didn’t get to play in the NCAA Tournament but may have an even better roster to work with this time around.

The ladder three programs making the rankings proves that the Big Ten will be far more than those top-4 preseason teams. There’s no question that this conference will be the best, not only at the top but also in the middle. Even among those who haven’t been mentioned such as Indiana, Maryland, Purdue, and Penn State, they also have a shot to make the Big Dance and based on the preseason rankings, will have plenty of opportunities to pad their respective resumes.

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