Big 12 Basketball: Preseason power rankings entering 2024-25 season

14. Utah Utes

The Utah Utes have yet to break through under incoming fourth-year HC Craig Smith. They have been painstakingly close but now it looks like another uphill climb with many veterans departing from last year’s team.

Gone are last year’s leading scorer Branden Carlson, the do-it-all machine Deivon Smith, Cole Bajema and Rollie Worster (Nebraska). Retaining Gabe Madsen is a vital plus and welcoming his twin brother, Mason -- who shot 40% from three at Boston College last season --  is another big plus for the Utes.

But will it be enough to subdue its high volume of veteran pieces lost? The Utes will need a few individual breakout surprises to break through the bottom half of the grueling Big 12.

13. West Virginia Mountaineers

In a 2023-24 campaign filled with uncontrollable circumstances, the West Virginia Mountaineers decided to chart away from the Bob Huggins coaching tree, landing on the former Drake HC Darian DeVries this spring.

Thankfully for the Mountaineers, Darian DeVries happens to have a son who is among the top players in college basketball: Tucker DeVries. Tucker, who led the MVC in scoring last season at 21.6 PPG Drake, expects to be the focal point on his father’s squad.

Pair Tucker DeVries with Oklahoma State transfer Javon Small -- the Cowboys’ leading scorer last season -- and suddenly, there is a formidable product on the floor in year one of the Darian DeVries era. But with a roster with practically zero returnees, it’s hard to imagine the Mountaineers breaking through the top half of the Big 12 conference.