Big 12 enters season with 5 teams in top 10 after expanding by 4 teams
The Big 12 has arguably been the best conference in college basketball, winning two of the past four national championships while getting at least seven teams into the NCAA Tournament seven times in the last 10 years.
The addition of four new schools, three of which have recent NCAA Tournament appearances, may end the argument.
“The league is a monster and it’s been a monster for a long time,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “Everybody is good.”
It's been that way for a while.
The conference tied for the most NCAA Tournament berths with eight last spring and won consecutive championships — by Baylor and Kansas — before UConn went back to back the last two years.
Kansas has been a perennial favorite and is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll. No. 4 Houston, No. 5 Iowa State, No. 8 Baylor and No. 20 Cincinnati also were ranked.
No. 10 Arizona gives the Big 12 five of the top 10 teams in the preseason poll. Fellow new arrivals Arizona State, Colorado and Utah also make the conference stronger, potentially putting the Big 12 in position for a massive haul when NCAA Tournament teams are announced on Selection Sunday.
“Every single night you’re playing against old players, talented players, smart players and elite coaching, and as difficult and challenging as that is, that’s awesome," Cincinnati coach Wes Miller said. "It helps you elevate your coaching, helps you elevate your program and what you’re doing and how you do them. I think that experience is awesome.”
Top-ranked Jayhawks
Kansas was the preseason No. 1 a year ago and fell short of expectations, knocked out in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Self retooled his roster, adding shooters and athleticism to play around All-American Hunter Dickinson. Self hit the transfer portal hard, adding several key players, including A.J. Storr, who averaged 16.8 points at Wisconsin, and Zeke Mayo, who averaged nearly 19 per game for South Dakota State.
Mixed with a stellar recruiting class and a veteran backcourt, the Jayhawks again should be a favorite to win the Big 12 title and make a March Madness run.
Upper tier
Kansas will have plenty of competition from the deep, talented Big 12.
Houston has reached at least the Sweet 16 four straight seasons, including a trip to the 2021 Final Four. The Cougars have four starters back from last year's Sweet 16 team, led by dynamic guard L.J. Cryer.
Iowa State has its highest preseason ranking ever and three starters back from last year's team, which had the second-most wins in program history. Tamin Lipsey is one of the nation's most versatile point guards, able to do a little of everything.
Baylor lost four starters, but coach Scott Drew filled the holes with a strong transfer class. The group includes two players with Final Four experience, Jeremy Roach from Duke and former Miami forward Norchad Omier.
Arizona got a huge boost when high-scoring guard Caleb Love opted to return instead of leaving for the NBA. The Wildcats have a solid returning core and coach Tommy Lloyd filled holes via the transfer portal, including Oakland forward Trey Townsend.
Cincinnati returns its top three scorers as the Bearcats attempt to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.
Keep an eye on
Texas Tech lost its top two scorers, but coach Grant McCasland has a rosters full of shooters who can keep the Red Raiders in almost any game.
Kansas State missed the NCAA Tournament last season after making an Elite Eight run the year before, but coach Jerome Tang has the Wildcats poised to make another run by beefing up the roster through the portal, including former Illinois big man Coleman Hawkins.
Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley has one of his best recruiting classes, headlined by five-star big man Jayden Quaintance. The additions of Alston Mason (Missouri State) and BJ Freeman (Milwaukee) give the Sun Devils two proven scorers.
BYU always has shooters and this season, the first under coach Kevin Young, will be no different.
Games to watch
The Big 12's expansion helped create some marquee matchups in a conference already filled with them, capped by Arizona at Kansas in the regular-season finale on March 8.
The Jayhawks also have consecutive games against No. 9 North Carolina and Michigan State in early November, and a showdown with No. 7 Duke in Las Vegas.
Arizona hosts Duke on Nov. 22 and continues its rivalry with former Pac-12 member UCLA in Phoenix.
Houston will host No. 11 Auburn on Nov. 9 and faces No. 2 Alabama on Nov. 26 in Las Vegas in what could be two of the best nonconference games of the season. Baylor at two-time reigning national champion UConn on Dec. 4 is another can't-miss game.
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