Predicting the Finishing Order of the 2012-13 Big 10 Conference

The Big 10 has always been strong in basketball and usually has at least a couple of threats to win the National Championship.

This year, the conference has the No. 1 team in the nation—the Indiana Hoosiers—the team with the best odds to win the title in early April.

Some people might think the Big 10 will be a bit down this year, outside of Indiana, but I beg to differ.

I think eight or nine teams will have a shot at making the NCAA Tournament with at least 10 of the 12 schools finishing the season with winning records.

I believe the race for the regular season title in conference play will be between three schools. I think fourth through seventh will be close, with eighth through tenth close as well.

Here's my prediction for the finishing order of the Big 10 this season.

1. Indiana Hoosiers: 14-4

Indiana has finally returned to their rightful spot at the top of the Big 10.

They clearly have the most talented group out of the 12 schools, and what makes them scary is the depth of their bench.

Indiana returns all five starters and a total of eight players from their Sweet 16 team last season. They inherited a great recruiting class that may be the best in the nation with four incoming freshmen. They also get back junior Maurice Creek who's been prone to injuries during his career at Indiana.

This team is deep and will run other teams off the court with their talent. I think Indiana may slip up four times in Big 10 play, but that's the max.

They will hold court at home and go undefeated there. They will also go unblemished in the nonconference schedule, but Indiana won't repeat the magic of the 1976 team.

It will be a special season in Bloomington.

T1. Michigan State Spartans: 14-4

Michigan State has the talent to actually tie Indiana for the regular season crown.

The Spartans return four starters and six very good weapons from last year's team. They also inherit a solid core of three freshmen that will help tremendously.

Many people aren't talking about the Spartans this offseason as a threat for the Big 10 title, but I think they have the second most talent in the league.

Their guards are very talented with junior Keith Appling running the point. Sophomore Branden Dawson returns after having a great season last year before his injury. I think freshman Gary Harris will start at the 2-guard and be a big threat to take Freshman of the Year.

Mix in center Adreian Payne and 6'9" freshman Matt Costello and that's a very solid starting lineup.

The Spartans have sophomore guards Travis Trice and Brandan Kerney off the bench along with freshman guard Denzel Valentine, a solid core to come in for reserve efforts.

I like Tom Izzo and this Spartans team. Look for them to be very dangerous this season.

3. Michigan Wolverines: 13-5

The Michigan Wolverines won't be too far behind Indiana and Michigan State in the race for the regular season crown.

The Wolverines return four starters and five players from last year's squad, and like the Spartans have brought in three very good freshmen.

Look for Michigan to have a very solid starting lineup, even with the losses of Zack Novak and Stu Douglass.

Sophomore guard Trey Burke will once again lead this team and have plenty of weapons to help him out.

Junior Tim Hardaway Jr. should be improved, along with fellow juniors Jordan Morgan and Jon Horford. Look for freshman Glenn Robinson III to start at small forward and give the Wolverines more athleticism and pure scorer on the floor.

Guard Matt Vogrich will anchor the bench while freshmen Mitch McGary and Nik Stauskas will work for big time minutes.

The Wolverines will battle all season and be a tough team to beat.

4. Ohio State Buckeyes: 12-6

It's rare for the Buckeyes to be so far down in the standings at fourth, but this season will be a bit of a down year for Ohio State.

They lost Jared Sullinger and William Buford to the NBA and that could hurt them in clutch moments when they need a bucket.

The Buckeyes do return DeShaun Thomas and Aaron Craft, and these two alone will keep Ohio State in games and help beat the teams they overmatch.

Ohio State returns three total starters and nine players from last season's team. They are young and not very deep. They have some true talent, but not the go-to guy like they need.

Since 2006, OSU has had Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr., Evan Turner, Sullinger and Buford for big game moments. No one on this year's team is that type of player.

Craft is a great point guard and may be the best point guard in the league, but he's not a true scoring guard.

Thomas is a scorer, but he's too predictable. He's not fast or athletic. I don't think he can score as much this season with all the defensive attention coming his way.

It will still be a good season for Ohio State, but not the kind they've been used to in recent years.

T4. Iowa Hawkeyes: 12-6

Here's my shocker of the list.

The Iowa Hawkeyes will finally finish in the Top 5 of the Big 10 and make the NCAA Tournament.

Their rebuilding efforts will finally be recognized as the Hawkeyes return four starters and seven players from 2011-12. They brought in four very talented freshmen that can contribute right away, giving Iowa a solid core and deep bench.

I've been saying this for over a year now—Iowa is on the verge of being back.

Now, they are.

Devyn Marble will once again be the leading scorer on this team and will be joined by fellow upperclassmen Melsahn Basabe and Eric May in the starting lineup.

The Hawkeyes could go with freshman guard Mike Gesell to run the point and 7'1" freshman center Adam Woodbury to anchor the middle.

That leaves Aaron White, who scored 14 points per game last season, to come off the bench or even contend with May for the staring small forward position.

Junior Zach McCabe, sophomore Josh Oglesby, and sophomore Gabe Olaseni will battle for time off the pine.

Add 6'3" freshmen guard Pat Ingram and 6'11" center Kyle Meyer and you have an extremely deep, talented team.

I like Iowa—with their height, experience and talent—to surprise people.

6. Wisconsin Badgers: 11-7

This is rare territory for the Badgers to finish this low, but I don't like the team Bo Ryan has for the 2012-13 season.

He does return four starters, but only six total players return (two of which were redshirts last year).

Many Badger fans seemed down on Jordan Taylor last season, but I think they're going to miss him dearly.

The Badgers won't have a true point guard and must rely on junior Josh Gasser to bring the ball up. This will delay the offense. I think Gasser will struggle to get the ball deep enough into the frontcourt to start the offensive set.

The starting lineup will still be somewhat skilled with sophomore guard Ben Brust and seniors Ryan Evans, Mike Bruesewitz and Jared Berggren joining Gasser in the starting five.

None of the starters are pure scorers, and Wisconsin will have to rely on their defense to keep them in games.

My problem with this team is their lack of offense and no bench. The Badgers have five players to bring in off the bench, but none of them have experience or much talent.

Look for Wisconsin to still win 20 games this year, but not be a huge factor in conference play.

7. Minnesota Golden Gophers: 10-8

If Minnesota can stay healthy, this team may finish higher than seventh.

The Golden Gophers return a ton of talent and could play with anybody. All five starters and nine total players return from last year's squad.

I think Minnesota, like Iowa, will shock people this season.

They'll use a solid starting three guard set of Andre and Austin Hollins alongside senior Rodney Williams. Mix in forwards Trevor Mbakwe and Elliott Eliason and this is a very talented starting group.

And the bench may be as deep and as talented as Indiana.

Guards Maverick Ahanmisi, Julian Welch and Joe Coleman all return. All three have experience as starters, so they bring valuable experience and a big scoring threat off the bench.

Tie in two talented freshmen and Tubby Smith has himself a very deep and balanced team. Watch out for Minnesota this year.

8. Northwestern Wildcats: 9-9

The yearly question for past few seasons has seemed to remain unchanged: 

Will Northwestern finally receive an NCAA Tournament invite?

I think they will once again be good enough for a bubble spot, and with the amount of talent on the seven teams in front of them, the Wildcats may get in.

Northwestern returns three starters and six players. It will be difficult to replace John Shurna, but I think a couple of players can step in to fill his role.

The Wildcats should go with Dave Sobolewski and Alex Marcotullio in the backcourt.

I see Drew Crawford moving to the 3 and I can picture him leading the team in scoring.

Watch for freshman Alex Olah to start at center, as he's a big 7'0", 275-pound monster. Olah will be tough to defend.

The Wildcats received a gift in senior Jared Swopshire, who will step in and contribute big time.

Swopshire played on the Louisville Cardinals the past three seasons and was a major contributor on their 2012 Final Four team.

The bench for Northwestern will be solid. Reggie Hearn and JerShon Cobb will get the majority of the minutes off the bench as both are very good scorers. The Wildcats also have a 7'2" freshman, a 6'9" transfer from TCU, and another 6'7" freshman ready for reserve roles.

If all these guys play to their potential, I can see Northwestern making the tournament for the first time ever.

9. Purdue Boilermakers: 6-12

This is going to be a very difficult season for Matt Painter and the Purdue Boilermakers.

Purdue returns three starters and only six players from last year, as they enter rebuilding mode following the loss of Robbie Hummel and Ryne Smith.

The Boilers will be scrappy and tough out some wins, but their talent level and youth will be tough to overcome.

I look for Ronnie and Terone Johnson to run the backcourt duties and can see the majority of the points coming from these two.

The lone senior, D.J. Byrd, will have his hands full guiding this young team, but will give a constant effort every night.

Watch for sophomore Jacob Lawson to start in the power forward spot and 7'0" freshman A.J. Hammons to be the force in the middle. Anthony Johnson, Travis Carroll and Sandi Marcius will help with experience off the bench.

This season will be one of growing pains and the Boilers will be on the bubble all year. This is will be a good experience for Purdue, preparing them for a big 2013-14 campaign.

10. Illinois Fighting Illini: 5-13

Illinois is also in a transition period as they bring in new head coach John Groce. The Fighting Illini will struggle with depth this season, but should hang in games with their talent on the court.

The guard play will be extremely good and will be the main reason Illinois wins games this season.

D.J. Richardson, Brandon Paul, Joseph Bertrand and Tracy Abrams are all talented scorers. They have great offensive abilities and are skilled enough to get to the rim.

The frontcourt is going to struggle. They just don't have any height or experience.

Due to the lack of frontcourt, I don't expect much out of Illinois in league play.

11. Penn State Nittany Lions: 1-17

It's going to be a rough four months for Penn State.

With the talent that the other Big 10 teams possess, the Nittany Lions may only win one conference game.

Penn State returns Tim Frazier, the do-it-all point guard, but that's it.

I like Jermaine Marshall and Ross Travis to be key contributors, but they don't matchup well against any team in the Big 10.

The one win prediction may be low, but it's not far off. Penn State won't beat anyone on the road, and will be lucky to surprise teams in Happy Valley.

12. Nebraska Cornhuskers: 1-17

Similar to Penn State, the Cornhuskers don't have any playmakers or talent to contend in the Big 10 this year. Between the two schools, I think their only conference wins will be at home against each other.

Nebraska returns only one starter and doesn't have much talent in the freshmen class. Out of the eight total players returning, three of them were walk-ons.

The Cornhuskers lost all four of their playmakers from last year's team. With no talent, no bench, and no height, Nebraska is in for a long season.