2013-2014 Big Ten Basketball Preview: #10 Minnesota Golden Gophers

Last Season: A 15-1 start saw the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers peak at 8 in the national rankings, and a 6-13 finish saw them miss the NCAA tournament. This collapse lead to the end of the Tubby Smith era in Minnesota (neutral observer: I feel bad for Tubby. He's 511-226 and he's been fired from his last two jobs) and the beginning of the Pitino era. Minnesota ended up playing in the NIT tournament, and winning one game before falling to Florida. I suppose Tubby's teams did have a tendency to underachieve and/or fall apart late, but he had 5 20-win seasons and 3 NCAA tournament berths (not exactly chump change). Pitino will hope to build on that success.

Departures: Trevor Mbakwe, Rodney Williams, Julian Welch, Andre Igram

Returning Players: Andre Hollins, Austin Hollins, Joe Coleman, Maverick Ahanmisi, Elliott Eliason

Newcomers: Daquein Mcneil, Malik Smith, Deandre Mathieu

What to Expect: Well, Tubby didn't exactly leave Pitino the easiest job. Minnesota will have one of the best backcourts in league (and one of the most confusing to keep straight) with twin brothers Andre and Austin Hollins starting. The brothers were the team's leading scorers last year, and figure to be this year as well. Guard Malik smith followed Pitino to Minny from FIU and will add depth, while JUCO guard Deandre Mathieu will help as well. The frontcourt saw Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams depart and leave a lot of inexperience in the frontcourt. The trio of Maurice Walker, Elliott Eliason, and Oto Osenieks will attempt to fill the gaping hole there.

Trevor Mbakwe

Storyline to watch: This one is obvious... the coaching change. Pitino brings a name that has pedigree and a boatload of fresh energy, but there's more than that winning. Pitino is intriguing because he has the aforementioned qualities, but is still a relative unknown in the minds of many, as he has only been coaching for one year. His first season won't be easy, but if the team shows improvement throughout the schedule, the excitement will likely remain high in Minneapolis.

Final Prediction: 15-14 (6-12)
I think Richard Pitino will be a very good coach, and for now I have no reason to dislike him as much as his Dad.

Richard Pitino

2013-2014 Big Ten Basketball Preview: #11. Northwestern Wildcats

Last Season: Just like Penn State, Northwestern had its best player get hurt last year, and it got uglier from there. When Drew Crawford went down, players like Jer'shon Cobb and Dave Sobolewski were forced to step up their games, and they both did in fact show substantial improvement (side note: I'm putting Crawford on Peyton Siva watch: I swear he's been at NW for 9 years). Last year again ended without a postseason berth, and NW is still searching for their first ever invitation to the Big Dance. As a result, Bill Carmody and his gimmicky system are gone. Duke assistant Chris Collins is in.

Departures: Alex Marcotullio (I swear this guy never missed a 3... but actually), Jared Swopshire, Reggie Hearn

Returning Players: Drew Crawford, Jer'shon Cobb, Dave Sobolewski, Alex Olah, Tre Demps, Kale Abrahamson, Mike Turner

Newcomers: Nate Taphorn

What to expect: The fact that Bill Carmody is the one coach who Ed DeChellis consistently beat tells me that this change is a good thing. Collins has some momentum rolling in Evanston, but the wins are not going to come just yet. While Crawford, Cobb, and Sobolewski will be an effective, high IQ trio, there's not a lot of help. Sophomore Alex Olah is a seven-footer who has shown some promise, so he will be a staple in the front court (I wish Luka Mirkovic was still roaming the paint for Northwestern), and a variety of other sophomores, such as Kale Abrahamson, Mike Turner, and Tre Demps could round out the Wildcats's rotation.

Drew Crawford

Storyline to watch: Maybe the most important part of this season for NW is maintaining their established recruiting momentum. Northwestern currently has a commitment from top 75 recruit Vic Law, and he has openly stated that he would not have chosen NW if Carmody was still there. So, clearly Collins has things moving in the right direction, and if he can recruit at a high level, the Kevin Coble injury that may have cost NW a tourney bid will stop haunting the team's fans.

Final Prediction: 14-17 (5-13)  
New Coach! Things will get better in Evanston soon. Chris Collins makes me believe that. Carmody, ehh.. not so much.

2013-2014 Big Ten Basketball Preview: #12. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Last Season: Nebraska's second season in the Big Ten was an improvement over the first, but it wasn't exactly a rousing success. The Cornhuskers finished at 15-18 (5-13), with two of those wins coming against the cellar-dwelling Penn State Nittany Lions. Senior Dylan Talley lead the team in scoring, Ray Gallegos put together some good games, and Brandon Ubel was a solid frountcourt option. The Cornhuskers were able to beat Purdue in the first round of the Big Ten tournament, but a loss to Ohio State brought their season to an end.

Departures: Dylan Talley, Brandon Ubel, Andre Almeida

Returning: David Rivers, Benny Parker, Terran Pettaway (transfer), Trevor Menke, Jordan Tyrance, Mike Petlz, Sergej Vucetic, Leslee Smith, Shavon Shields, Walter Pitchford (transfer)

Newcomers: Deverell Biggs (Juco), Nathan Hawkins, Nick Fuller, Tai Webster

Leading Returning scorer Ray Gallegos

What to expect: I'd be remiss to start this section off without mentioning Nebraska's new home, Pinnacle Bank Arena. If you haven't seen a tour of this arena and their new practice facility, go check it out, it's insane. Yet, with the opening of their new arena, Nebraska has a lot of youth. Their leading returning scorer is Ray Gallegos (12 ppg), who found a way to lead the conference in 3 pt. attempts last year... all the while only shooting them at a 30% clip. Two new guys to keep an eye on are Tai Webster and David Pettaway. Pettaway is a transfer who started 11 games as a freshman at Texas Tech, and Webster is about as hyped a freshman as we have seen at Nebraska in recent years (meaning he's top 150). And even better... he's from New Zealand! (that can't be too common in college basketball). Guys like Walter Pitchford (transfer from Florida) and Leslee Smith will man the post, but the backcort is undoubtedly the strength of the team.

Pinnacle Bank Arena

Storyline to watch: Penn State fans thought the building of the Bryce Jordan Center would solve a lot of the problems within the program (raise your hand if you think that proved to be true... *crickets). While the first year of its existence brought tons of excitement and droves of fans, as the aura wore off the fans stopped coming. Pinnacle Bank Arena is going to be one of the nicest home venues in college basketball, and it will be interesting to watch how it affects Nebraska's recruiting and their success in the future.

Bryce Jordan Center

Final Record: 11-17 (4-14)
A lot of young talent, but the key word is young. Fans will have to appreciate the brand new arena and embrace the opportunity to watch some of these guys develop their talent this season. The potential is there for Nebraska to make some big leaps in the coming years. I mean, how cool is this facility...

Nebraska Basketball Team Room