By no means does it guarantee his departure from Ohio State, but D'Angelo Russell is the hottest NBA prospect on many 2015 draft boards.
Duke's Jahlil Okafor has been the consensus No. 1 player since leaving high school and Russell probably won't change that. Still, the Buckeye freshman might be the top option for any team considering a point guard. Emmanuel Mudiay, once rated the best at his position in his class, has been denied admission to SMU and hasn't received consistent playing time with his Chinese team.
ESPN NBA Draft Insider Chad Ford recently said Russell might surpass Mudiay on many draft boards. His response comes from a SportsNation chat which took place this week, so he can't be accused of changing his answer years after the fact.
"Overall, I think scouts believe Mudiay is a superior prospect because of his elite athletic abilities. That typically wins out," Ford wrote. "Mudiay should go 1-3. I think Russell will go somewhere between 4-7. At least if the draft were held today. We still have a lot of basketball, combine, workouts, etc. Things can change."
1. Wisconsin (18-2, 6-1)
Last Week: 82-50 win vs Iowa, 69-64 OT win at Michigan
This Week: at Iowa
Without Frank Kamnisky, Wisconsin loses to Rutgers. With him, they destroyed Iowa and won a tough overtime game against an ESPN College Gameday-invigorated Michigan team.
Obviously, we know what Kaminsky gives them. The past two weeks were an interesting case study for the Badgers for different reasons. They're still without starting point guard Traevon Jackson and Bronson Koenig entered the starting lineup. In his three starts, Koenig is averaging 12.3 points per game and shooting 52 percent from beyond the arc.
2. Maryland (18-3, 6-2)
Last Week: 89-70 loss at Indiana, 68-67 win vs Northwestern
This Week: at Ohio State
This past week was almost a disaster for the Terps.
Losing to a ranked Indiana team at Assembly Hall isn't any cause for embarrassment. The Hoosiers hit 15-22 from three, it's tough to compete with that. Following that up with a loss to Northwestern would've sent them plummeting down these rankings.
Maryland trailed by 11 with fewer than four minutes left in the game before mounting an incredible comeback. The Terps hounded the Wildcats with full-court pressure, forcing several turnovers and a backcourt violation to ignite a big run. It culminated in a sequence which would've put Gus Johnson in a coma – a Tre Demps jumper followed by a Dez Wells go-ahead put back:
3. Indiana (15-5, 5-2)
Last Week: 89-70 win vs Maryland, 82-70 loss at Ohio State
This Week: at Purdue, vs Rutgers
Their best big man remains sidelined, but the Hoosiers have found an incredibly effective offensive lineup without Hanner Mosquera-Perea.
Head coach Tom Crean is playing a bit more zone with no real rim protection and constantly switching screens in a man-to-man due to his smaller lineup. They're still awful on defense and it didn't help them contain D'Angelo Russell or Jae'Sean Tate but, on the other end, IU is among the nation's best.
Yogi Ferrell and Collin Hartman have been particularly deadly over the last two weeks, and no one is comfortable leaving James Blackmon Jr. or Robert Johnson open either. Indiana is currently the country's seventh most efficient offensive squad, a mere 201 spots higher than their defensive rating.
4. Ohio State (16-5, 5-3)
Last Week: 69-67 win at Northwestern, 82-70 win vs Indiana
This Week: vs Maryland
We're still two months away from finding out their final fate, but Ohio State is starting to make their annual ascension up the Big Ten standings.
Any remaining Buckeye fans would be hoping for an NIT berth if not for a pair of massive in-season adjustments. First, Thad Matta completely scrapped the zone defense. This week, he overhauled the starting lineup.
Amir Williams is out of the rotation completely, with his role reduced to that of a matchup big man. He played only three minutes at Northwestern and registered a DNP against Indiana. Marc Loving was also removed from the starting lineup, but the Buckeyes need his scoring punch. Kam Williams also returned to the rotation and played stellar defense in the second half versus the Hoosiers
With D'Angelo Russell running much of the OSU offense and Jae'Sean Tate's increased role, Matta conceded significant control to his underclassmen. Russell and Tate played well off each other, with Tate particularly effective in the high post against Indiana's zone. Shannon Scott is seemingly more comfortable with his reduced offensive role, although he is needed when Russell moves off ball – for example, Ohio State creatively found a way to get him the ball in the low post in the IU game and Russell drilled a fadeaway jumper.
Thanks to tinkering like that, expectations have shifted in Columbus.
5. Iowa (13-7, 4-3)
Last Week: 82-50 loss at Wisconsin, 67-63 loss at Purdue
This Week: vs Wisconsin
The Hawkeyes found themselves near the top of the Big Ten standings about a week ago but failed in two early-season road tests this week.
Arguably, they wouldn't have lost to Purdue if Aaron White played more than seven minutes – he left the game early due to a shoulder injury. Jarrod Uthoff's 2-14 performance did not embody the ideal "next man up" attitude needed when your best player goes down. Purposefully poking opponents in the eyes and holding them down on jump balls is also not the ideal attitude.
White has time to recover before the Hawkeyes have a chance to avenge one of their losses, however:
Fran McCaffery told @CBSSports that Iowa's Aaron White (sore shoulder) will be re-evaluated in a few days. Next game is 1/31 vs. Wisconsin.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) January 25, 2015
6. Michigan State (13-7, 4-3)
Last Week: 66-60 win vs Penn State, 79-77 loss at Nebraska
This Week: at Rutgers, vs Michigan
Sparty remains inconsistent, particualrly due to the lack of scoring options beyond Travis Trice and Denzel Valentine.
Branden Dawson has been disappointing with his increased role on offense. His two-point shooting percentage is down 11 percent and his free throw percentage is down twenty-three points since last season. So, overall, he is a less efficient player with more opportunities in the Michigan State offense. He had eight offensive rebounds against Nebraska, so there's one way to get easier shots at the rim.
7. Nebraska (12-7, 4-3)
Last Week: 52-49 win vs Minnesota, 79-77 win vs Michigan State
This Week: at Michigan, at Minnesota
It's a cliche, but Nebraska truly reached a crossroads heading into this past week's games.
They were such a dominant home team last season but already lost to Creighton, Incarnate Word and Indiana in Lincoln in 2014-15. With two winnable home games, Tim Miles told his team they needed to start their run to the NCAA Tournament this week.
With 15 turnovers against Minnesota and allowing 24 offensive rebounds and a Walter Pitchford ejection against Michigan State, Miles' team was far from flawless. Yet, like last season, they're starting to win some close games again.
8. Purdue (12-8, 4-3)
Last Week: 66-57 loss at Illinois, 67-63 win vs Iowa
This Week: vs Indiana, at Northwestern
The middle portion of the Big Ten is one giant, mediocre mess and Purdue is at the forefront of it all.
A.J. Hammons had an effective week, with four blocks against Illinois and 13 points versus Iowa. The lack of outside shooting was noticeable in both games, particularly because Kendall Stephens re-aggravated a finger injury. They, somehow, beat Iowa hitting only four of 20 three-point attempts.
9. Michigan (12-8, 5-3)
Last Week: 54-50 win at Rutgers, 69-64 OT loss vs Wisconsin
This Week: vs Nebraska, at Michigan State
Yes, the Wolverines are currently tied with the Buckeyes for fourth place in the conference standings. No, they will not stay there.
The next for games will prove to be incredibly challenging for Michigan and they might not win a single one. In order, they'll play Nebraska, at Michigan State, Iowa and at Indiana.
Derrick Walton Jr. is taking Caris LeVert's offensive load but led the team in turnovers against Rutgers and Nebraska. Michigan needs to value their possessions more than most teams with such a large part of their offense gone.
10. Minnesota (13-8, 2-6)
Last Week: 52-49 loss at Nebraska, 79-71 win vs Illinois
This Week: at Penn State, vs Nebraska
Last year's NIT Cinderellas are off to a poor start in Big Ten play.
The optimistic outlook is that they've won two of their past three games. Unfortunately, both single-digit wins required an outburst by Andre Hollins. He scored 28 points against Illinois, hitting five of seven from long range. If junior transfer Carlos Morris can find some consistency, the Gophers will have a formidable backcourt.
11. Illinois (13-8, 3-5)
Last Week: 66-57 win vs Purdue, 79-71 loss at Minnesota
This Week: vs Penn State
It's tough to expect much more out of Illinois, considering the injuries they've suffered.
Tracy Abrams is done for the season, Rayvonte Rice is still out with a fractured hand and, this week, the Illini learned they'll be without guard Aaron Cosby due to a retinal tear. In response to their depleted backcourt, coach John Groce added team manager Ryan Schmidt to the roster. There's hope for the OSU hoops managers after all.
12. Penn State (13-7, 1-6)
Last Week: 66-60 loss at Michigan State, 79-51 win vs Rutgers
This Week: vs Minnesota, at Illinois
Unfortunately, there are no more games against Rutgers so Penn State might struggle to find another conference win.
The Nittany Lions have a lot of close losses in conference, however – four points to Rutgers, three points to Indiana, a seven-point OT loss to Purdue, and this past week's six point loss to Michigan State.
13. Northwestern (10-10, 1-6)
Last Week: 69-67 loss vs Ohio State, 68-67 loss at Maryland
This Week: vs Purdue
Northwestern also has their share of painful losses, a six-game losing streak is filled with several one-possession games.
Their recent string of bad luck was about to come to an end in Maryland, with the Wildcats on the verge of the B1G season's biggest upset. They led almost all game, temporarily losing it with 21 seconds left and going back ahead after a clutch Tre Demps jumper. This was after blowing a 14-point lead.
As shown in the Maryland entry above, Dez Wells' response to Demps was a put-back layup to put the Terps up for good.
At least their ability to lose close games is overshadowed by the school's late-night television domination:
14. Rutgers (10-11, 2-6)
Last Week: 54-50 loss vs Michigan, 79-51 loss at Penn State
This Week: vs Michigan State, at Indiana
Rutgers' upset over Wisconsin could've ignited their season. They could've been this year's version of last year's Nebraska.
Nope, they've lost four straight games, including a 28-point blowout loss to Penn State. Perhaps they'll re-discover the magic with two difficult games upcoming.
