NCAA Men's Basketball: 10 Bold Predictions for Ohio State and the Big Ten

The 2011-12 college basketball season has arrived, and Ohio State and the Big Ten conference look to put on a show for us this year.

The Big Ten is leaving its mark on the college basketball world, and as one of the power conferences they are living up to expectations.

Despite heavy losses of talent, the Big Ten contains one of the best centers and one of the best shooting guards in the country, combined with their typical hard-nosed defensive games.

The Big Ten is full of storylines, and these are a few to follow.

Most Surprising Team: Purdue

With their win yesterday, the Purdue Boilermakers are now 3-0. Starting the season unranked, the Boilermakers are ready to take the college basketball world by storm.

Purdue gets Robbie Hummel back, who missed all of last season and the end of the 2009-10 season. We weren't sure what to expect from Hummel, because two separate, major injuries could have rattled him. However, Hummel is averaging 21 points and five rebounds per game. Hummel is doing well, and with teammates Ryne Smith and Anthony Johnson stepping up as well, this team could be deadly.

The Boilermakers still have a few issues, though. After winning their first game 96-34, the team has won their last two games by a combined three points.

They aren't perfect yet, but they can certainly come from behind to leave their mark this season.

Most Disappointing Team: Michigan State

After missing out on the AP Top 25 rankings to begin the season, the Michigan State Spartans have had a rough start. They scheduled games against No. 1 North Carolina and No. 6 Duke on neutral courts in hopes that they may have slow starts and they could steal an easy marquee victory.

Unfortunately, this backfired—they lost both games.

The team looked good in the first half of both games, but they faded in the second half, which worries me. Michigan State lost to UNC by 12, and they were losing to Duke by 20 points before hitting a few shots at the end to cut the deficit.

If Tom Izzo's crew can't figure out their second-half problems, they're in for a long season.

Game of the Year: Wisconsin at Michigan

No one can touch Ohio State in the Big Ten, so the fight is for second place. The Wisconsin Badgers play the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor on January 8, and it could very well decide who is the No. 2 team in the Big Ten.

Both of these teams can play tough defense, especially Wisconsin. But Michigan has Tim Hardaway, Jr., who is a great shooting guard. Wisconsin can match that with Jordan Taylor, and they will both surely be huge factors in this game.

This game will decide second place, because if Michigan can't win at home, they can't win in Wisconsin, giving the Badgers second place in the conference.

Freshman of the Year: Cody Zeller, Indiana

Cody Zeller is a power forward for the Indiana Hoosiers. He is the only Top 20 recruit going to the Big Ten—No. 14 in the 2011 class.

Zeller is third on the team in points per game (12.3), and he leads the team with eight rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 3.3 steals per game.

Zeller has been doing well, and his role is only going to increase as he develops. This kid is the real deal, and the Hoosiers will be lucky to couple him with their incredible 2012 recruiting class next year.

Defensive Player of the Year: Cody Zeller, Indiana

Freshman of the Year is one honor, but Cody Zeller will also win Defensive Player of the Year.

Not only does he use his height and long arms to snag eight rebounds per game, but he also has good timing, which will help increase his number of blocks per game from 1.7 right now.

Zeller is also quick and can intercept passes well, and that leads to his 3.3 steals per game.

Zeller is versatile as a big man, and this 6-foot-10 frosh will be Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year over some stiff competition.

Player of the Year: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

Jared Sullinger is just amazing. He is my pick for National Player of the Year, and he is a man among boys in college.

Sullinger could have easily been a top-five pick in the NBA draft, but he returned to college for another year, and he is set to dominate.

He is averaging 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. He will certainly do well this season, and he will certainly win Big Ten Player of the Year.

Winner of Conference: Ohio State

Ohio State lost David Lighty from range, but they still have Jared Sullinger, who led this team to a 32-2 record last season.

They also have William Buford from behind the arc, who is averaging 17 points per game, and DeShaun Thomas and Aaron Craft kicking in over 10 points each.

The Buckeyes are ranked No. 3 in the nation, and there's no team that can stop them.

Winner of Conference Tournament: Ohio State

The Buckeyes lost in the Sweet Sixteen last season, but they are not going to struggle in tournament this season. They are more experienced and will surely win the conference tournament.

There is no one who can stop the Buckeyes, as their biggest competitors are the Wisconsin Badgers and Michigan Wolverines, who cannot contend with them.

Thad Matta's crew is going to breeze through this tournament.

Number of Teams Who Make the NCAA Tournament: Five

The Big Ten will be sending five teams to the NCAA Tournament: Ohio State, Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue.

While Michigan State will disappoint, they will not miss out on the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State and Wisconsin are locks, and Michigan and Purdue will have no trouble making it into the field of 68.

While they don't have as many teams as other conferences, they have about the same chance of winning it all.

Team with the Best Chance of Winning It All: Ohio State

The Ohio State Buckeyes are a great team. With one of the best inside-outside combos in the nation, with Jared Sullinger and William Buford, this team could win it all.

Thad Matta's crew can do big things come March and April, and they certainly have a good chance of winning it all.

More Predictions

This is part five of a six-part series. I'm bringing you 10 bold predictions for the six major conferences over the next week. This is the schedule:

ACC

Big 12

Pac-12

Big East

SEC

Josh Schoch is an aspiring sportswriter dedicated to bringing you everything related to college basketball, the NFL, MLB, NBA, college football and much more. Follow him on Twitter.