2024-25 Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings: Week 11

2. Illinois Fighting Illini

Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)

Record: (12-4, 4-2)

Last Week: W vs. Penn State (91-52), L vs. USC (72-82)

Next Week: at Indiana (Jan. 14 – 7 p.m.), at #16 Michigan State (Jan. 19 – Noon)

Quality Wins: vs. Arkansas, vs. Wisconsin, at Oregon

Bad Losses: vs. USC

Yes, Illinois’ loss at home against USC was shocking, if not a little bit embarrassing. Illinois failed to contain Desmond Claude, USC’s main scoring threat. Claude had 31 points. However, I cannot move Illinois down. They have beaten Oregon (ranked just below) by over 30 points on the road. They have one of the best collections of quality wins in the Big Ten. Illinois will be fine.

3. Oregon Ducks

Last week’s ranking: 3 (-)

Record: (15-2, 4-2)

Last week: W at Ohio State (73-71), W at Penn State (82-81)

Next Week: vs. #20 Purdue (Jan. 18 – 3 p.m.)

Quality wins: vs. Alabama, vs. Texas A&M, vs. San Diego State

Bad Losses: N/A

Jackson Shelstad made two free throws with seven seconds to go at Ohio State to give the Ducks a one-point lead. Against Penn State, a 6-0 run over the final two minutes allowed the Ducks to go ahead by 4, before a meaningless last second three made it a one-point game. Jackson Shelstad has seemingly broken out, as he had 24 points against Ohio State and 17 against Penn State. Consistent play from Shelstad could lead the Ducks back into the top 10 in the AP Top 25 Rankings.

4. Michigan Wolverines

Last week’s ranking: 5 (+1)

Record: (13-3, 5-0)

Last Week: W at #22 UCLA (94-75), W vs. Washington (91-75)

Next Week: at Minnesota (Jan. 16 – 7 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Wisconsin, at UCLA

Bad losses: N/A

Michigan picked up a decisive victory over 22nd ranked UCLA. Vladislav Goldin had a career high 36 points and Tre Donaldson had a career high 20 points as the Wolverines put up 94 points in an offensive masterpiece on the road. Michigan then took care of business against a much less talented Washington team.

5. Wisconsin Badgers

Last week’s ranking: 6 (-)

Record: (13-3, 3-2)

Last Week: W vs. Minnesota (80-59)

Next Week: vs. Ohio State (Jan. 14 – 9 p.m.), at USC (Jan. 18 – 3 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: N/A

Wisconsin has quietly put together a five-game winning streak. On Friday, a second half burst allowed the Badgers to drive past Minnesota, who managed to hang around in the first half. Steven Crowl has finally found his form, as he has scored 18 points in back-to-back games (Rutgers and Minnesota). Kamari McGee entered the starting five in place of Max Klesmit, and put up 15 points. Head coach Greg Gard is pushing all the right buttons right now.

6. Purdue Boilermakers

Last week’s ranking: 9 (+3)

Record: (13-4, 5-1)

Last Week: W at Rutgers (68-50), W vs. Nebraska (104-68)

Next Week: at Washington (Jan. 15 – 9:30 p.m.), at #15 Oregon (Jan. 18 – 3 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Alabama, at Ole Miss

Bad losses: N/A

Purdue has also put together a five-game winning streak. Trey Kauffman-Renn, Fletcher Loyer, and Braden Smith have played well of late. Scoring 104 points in a conference matchup is a very good sign for Purdue. This is a team that initially struggled to replace freshman center Daniel Jacobsen following his injury early in the season, but head coach Matt Painter and the Boilermakers have slowly but surely been making progress.

7. Maryland Terrapins

Last week’s ranking: 12 (+5)

Record: (12-4, 2-3)

Last Week: W vs. #22 UCLA (79-61)

Next week: vs. Minnesota (Jan. 13 – 6:30 p.m.), at Northwestern (Jan. 16 – 9 p.m.), vs. Nebraska (Jan. 19 – Noon)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: N/A

After losing two games on the west coast, I was thoroughly surprised to see Maryland’s win at home against UCLA. The Terps have the pieces to not only make the NCAA Tournament, but possibly to make a run too. Julian Reese, the 6’9 senior, had 16 points and 10 rebounds to help overcome Maryland. Ja’Kobi Gillespie had a season high 27 points. Those two men paired with one of the best freshmen in the country in Derik Queen could spell postseason success.

8. UCLA Bruins

Last week’s ranking: 4 (-4)

Record: (11-5, 2-3)

Last week: L vs. #24 Michigan (75-94), L at Maryland (61-79)

Next week: at Rutgers (Jan. 13 – 6:30 p.m.), vs. Iowa (Jan. 17 – 9 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Oregon, vs. Gonzaga

Bad losses: N/A

It is safe to say that UCLA has not kept any of their New Year’s resolutions. They have lost all three games and will now fall out of the AP Rankings. Tyler Bilodeau needs some help. UCLA’s junior forward has led the team in scoring in each of their three games in 2025, but only one other player was in double digits in both their losses to Nebraska and Maryland. UCLA needs to turn things around, or else they might fall to the wrong side of the bubble (if they have not already).

9. Iowa Hawkeyes

Last week’s ranking: 10 (+1)

Record: (12-4, 3-2)

Last Week: W vs. Nebraska (97-87 OT), W vs. Indiana (85-60)

Next Week: at USC (Jan. 14 – 10:30 p.m.), at #22 UCLA (Jan. 17 – 9 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: N/A

Iowa had a fantastic week as they followed up a clutch OT win against Nebraska with an absolute whooping of Indiana. Payton Sandfort had 23 points in the win over Indiana and 30 in the win over Nebraska. The Hawkeyes held the Hoosiers to just 24-for-59 shooting and defended the perimeter well too. Teams like Maryland have had trouble on their trips to the west coast. We will see how the Hawkeyes fair against USC and UCLA.

10. Indiana Hoosiers

Last week’s ranking: 7 (-3)

Record: (13-4, 4-2)

Last Week: W vs. USC (82-69), L at Iowa (60-85)

Next Week: vs. #13 Illinois (Jan. 14 – 7 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: None

Indiana had a lot of momentum after their win against USC. Oumar Ballo looked like he had found his groove, scoring 23 and snatching eight rebounds against the Trojans. However, the big man was held to just ten points against the Hawkeyes as Indiana’s offense completely sputtered. The road does not get any easier, as they face an Illinois team that will be looking to avenge their loss to USC.

11. Penn State Nittany Lions

Last week’s ranking: 8 (-3)

Record: (12-5, 2-4)

Last Week: L at #13 Illinois (52-91), L vs. #15 Oregon (81-82)

Next Week: at #16 Michigan State (Jan. 15 – 7:30 p.m.)

Quality wins: vs. Purdue

Bad losses: N/A

You have to feel bad for Penn State, as they go through the toughest stretch of Big Ten conference play that any team has this season. They started off that stretch poorly, though, getting walloped in a 39-point loss to Illinois. They almost came back against Oregon but fell short. Penn State’s biggest weakness this season is lack of depth. With Ace Baldwin Jr. out against Oregon, their bench scored just four points.

12. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Last week’s ranking: 11 (-1)

Record: (12-4, 2-3)

Last Week: L at Iowa (87-97 OT), L at #20 Purdue (68-104)

Next Week: vs. Rutgers (Jan. 16 – 9 p.m.), at Maryland (Jan. 19 – Noon)

Quality wins: at Creighton, vs. UCLA

Bad losses: None

It had felt like Nebraska had been playing out of their shoes all season long, and now it may be starting to show. The Cornhuskers were completely outclassed against Purdue. Even Brice Williams, who is averaging over 19 points per game, mustered just nine against the Boilermakers. Nebraska needs to win both their games this week to get back on track.

13. Ohio State Buckeyes

Last week’s ranking: 6 (-6)

Record: (10-6, 2-3)

Last Week: L vs. #15 Oregon (71-73)

Next week: at Wisconsin (Jan. 14 – 9 p.m.), vs. Indiana (Jan. 17 – 8 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Kentucky

Bad losses: N/A

Ohio State has already played six ranked opponents this season, and they have won two of those games. However, they have also lost to two unranked opponents, and six losses this early in the season can be difficult to overcome. They had a lead over Oregon with just 12 seconds remaining but could not hold on. That may move them to the wrong side of the bubble.

14. USC Trojans

Last week’s ranking: 17 (+3)

Record: (10-6, 2-3)

Last Week: L at Indiana (69-82), W at #13 Illinois (82-72)

Next Week: vs. Iowa (Jan. 14 – 10:30 p.m.), vs. Wisconsin (Jan. 18 – 3 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Illinois

Bad losses: None

USC lost to Indiana, and then beat Illinois, a team that is much better than Indiana. So how did the Trojans take down one of the best teams in the Big Ten? For starters, they got a huge 31-point performance from Desmond Claude. Will Yates had 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field. They played great defense, forcing 15 turnovers, and held Illinois to just 7-for-32 shooting on their three pointers,

15. Northwestern Wildcats

Last week’s ranking: 15 (-)

Record: (10-6, 1-4)

Last week: L vs. #16 Michigan State (68-78)

Next week: vs. Maryland (Jan. 16 – 9 p.m.), at #24 Michigan (Jan. 19 – 2 p.m.)

Quality wins: vs. Illinois

Bad losses: N/A

Northwestern was unable to take advantage of a week off before going up against Michigan State. Nick Martinelli had 27 points and Jalen Leach had 17, but the resto of the team combined for a measly 24 points. This season, Martinelli and Brooks Barnhizer are both averaging over 19 points per game. Leach is averaging over 13. From there, the drop-off is significant, with Ty Berry next at 7.3 points per game followed by Matthew Nicholson at five points per game. That was the long-winded version of saying that this team has no depth.

16. Washington Huskies

Last week’s ranking: 14 (-2)

Record: (10-7, 1-5)

Last Week: L at #16 Michigan State (54-88), L at #24 Michigan (75-91)

Next Week: vs. #20 Purdue (Jan. 15 – 9:30 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: vs. USC, vs. Seattle

Great Osabor is fun to watch, but that is the only thing that the Huskies have going in their favor right now. The Huskies are in the midst of a stretch in which they play all six ranked teams in the Big Ten. Consecutively. They have lost the first three. I do not have high hopes for the next three.

17. Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Last week’s ranking: 16 (-1)

Record: (8-8, 1-4)

Last Week: L vs. #20 Purdue (50-68)

Next Week: vs. #22 UCLA (Jan. 13 – 6:30 p.m.), at Nebraska (Jan. 16 – 9 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: at Kennesaw State

Rutgers continues to disappoint. The Scarlet Knights posted 17-for-52 shooting on their way to just 50 points against the Boilermakers. It looks unlikely that they will turn this ship around.

18. Minnesota Golden Gophers

Last week’s ranking: 18 (-)

Record: (8-8, 0-5)

Last Week: L at Wisconsin (59-80)

Next Week: at Maryland (Jan. 13 – 6:30 p.m.), vs. #24 Michigan (Jan. 16 – 7 p.m.)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: vs. North Texas

Well, the Gophers managed to hang around with Wisconsin during the first half, but Wisconsin pulled away early in the second half. Dawson Garcia posted a double double with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the loss, but that is the only bright spot on Minnesota’s roster. Minnesota is a 15.5-point underdog against Maryland.