Big Ten Basketball: Illinois, Purdue, and Indiana on top of latest power rankings

We're mostly through the non-conference portion of the 2023-24 season and Big Ten Basketball has certainly had some ups and downs. Purdue, who entered the season as the team to beat in the league, has largely handled business. Some others that had optimistic preseason outlooks have played well, while others have not at all.

Here's a current snapshot of the conference, power ranking teams from the bottom to the top.

14. Penn State Nittany Lions - 5-6 (1-1)

After losing head coach Micah Shrewsberry and essentially its entire roster of seniors, Penn State went through a complete rebuild. But the hope that former VCU HC Mike Rhoades and him bringing in A-10 Player of the Year guard Ace Baldwin would help keep them competitive in the league.

After a 4-0 start to the season, the Nittany Lions suffered five straight losses, including one to a bad Bucknell team. They've faced some injury issues but largely, some of these transfers just hasn't played well. Baldwin is averaging 14.4 ppg and 3.9 apg but has recently been moved to the bench to change up hte offense.

While most of the other transfers have struggled, the best player for the team has been the one who came back, Kayne Clary. The sophomore guard leads Penn State with 17.1 ppg and 2.5 apg, shooting 48% from the field. At least Qudus Wahab is averaging nearly a double-double in his latest college stop.

Thanks to an 18-point comeback win over Ohio State, the Nittany Lions have a league win to give them hope for the rest of Big Ten play. But they have a lot of room to grow to have any level of hope of competing.