NCAA Basketball: Ranking the 10 Big East vs Big 12 matchups for 2021-22 season
10. Iowa State Cyclones at Creighton Bluejays
The Cyclones will certainly be better next season, as they can’t be much worst than the 2-22 campaign. They have a new head coach in TJ Otzelberger from UNLV and several new transfers, most notably Kansas forward Tristan Enaruna and Penn State guard Izaiah Brockington. If things click early on, Iowa State will be much more competitive next year.
Creighton will look much different as well, losing all five starters from last season’s Sweet 16 squad. The good news is that the staff did extremely well this offseason on the recruiting trail, landing a top-10 overall class and bringing in the three highest-rated commits in program history in Ryan Nembhard, Mason Jones, and Arthur Kaluma.
But the Bluejays are going to be very young next season and take a step back, while Iowa State needs to take a step forward just to be decent. It’s a good matchup for both sides in the non-conference and should be competitive, but don’t expect many fans outside of the respective fanbases to care.
Prediction: Creighton
9. TCU Horned Frogs at Georgetown Hoyas
After the recent departure of starting center Kevin Samuel, the only key returning player for TCU is point guard RJ Nembhard, unless he stays in the NBA Draft. The team did bring in nine transfers, most notably Texas A&M forward Emanuel Miller and UT-Arlington guard Shahada Wells. How they mesh will determine how viable the Horned Frogs will be in 2022 but it’ll take time.
The Hoyas also lose key players such as Jahvon Blair, Jamorko Pickett, Chudier Bile, and center Qudus Wahab. They bring back breakout point guard Dante Harris, along with five-star incoming shooting guard Aminu Mohammed. They’ll need four-star center recruit Ryan Mutombo to be an impact freshman next season in the frontcourt but should have a strong backcourt.
As of right now, neither team is projected NCAA Tournament teams in 2022 but there’s some talent that could make things interesting. But right now, it’s hard to see this game being on the national radar.