The Big Ten has had plenty of opportunity to prove itself against the other top conference in college basketball this season. Sure. there have been some good moments for teams like Michigan State beating the likes of North Carolina, or Purdue taking down Alabama. Still, the top 25 ranked matchups haven’t quite favored the Big Ten thus far this season. Not to mention a majority of teams within the league who are currently ranked haven’t even had a clash of two ranked teams yet. It’s not ironic that the top five in this week’s Big Ten power rankings are the five teams who are ranked.<\/p>\n
It makes you wonder if the current five teams in the AP Top 25<\/a> will remain or drop once the bulk of the Big Ten season starts in January. Some big clashes played out this past week, and some teams are trending up, including UCLA after a huge win against former Pac-12 rival Arizona. As for the likes of Indiana and Illinois, they are trending in the wrong direction. Without further delay, let’s take a look at the Week 7 Big Ten basketball power rankings.<\/p>\n Nothing changed for the Golden Gophers after losing in blowout fashion to both Michigan State and Indiana. They remain on a break with their next game not until December 21 against Farleigh Dickinson. Coach Johnson certainly shouldn’t feel comfortable<\/a> about his job moving forward. The NET Rankings<\/a> don’t like the Gophers at all as they are down to 170th.<\/p>\n Another week, no change for the Huskies. After dropping their first two Big Ten games, including against USC who still only sits one spot ahead in these rankings. Washington got back on track with an 87-69 victory against Eastern Washington. Do they have the same energy for rival Washington State this week?<\/p>\n The Trojans didn’t take a step in the wrong direction, but at 7-4, they still have work to do. Beating Washington on the road was huge for the confidence of this team. Additionally, they also handled business against Montana State. USC has a couple more tune-up games before the calendar changes to 2025.<\/p>\n Jake Diebler’s Buckeyes have had plenty of opportunities to prove themselves this season with multiple NCAA resume-building matchups. Things once again went bad for Ohio State as they had no answers for the Auburn Tigers. It’s been great to see Devin Royal<\/a> play consistently, but outside of him, guys like Bruce Thornton<\/a> and Meechie Johnson<\/a> have not delivered in the big games. They have the talent to compete in the Big Ten, but right now they have to get things corrected. They have a matchup with Valpo before they take on another top-ranked SEC team in Kentucky this weekend.<\/p>\n The battle of New Jersey went just as expected, down to the wire. Seton Hall looked set for a huge road win. Dylan Harper<\/a> ripped out the hearts of the Pirates on a last-second buzzer-beater to get Rutgers a much-needed win. Perhaps the Scarlet Knights have some magic in the tank. Time to prove it against Princeton this week.<\/p>\n DYLAN HARPER CLUTCH GENE ACTIVATED \ud83e\uddec\ud83e\udd76#TheKnighthood<\/a>\ud83d\udee1\ufe0f\u2694\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/dc3fYHg3gn<\/a><\/p>\n — Rutgers Men\u2019s Basketball \ud83c\udfc0 (@RutgersMBB) December 14, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nBig Ten Basketball Power Rankings Week 7: Losses in Ranked Matchups Hurt<\/h2>\n
18. Minnesota (6-5, 0-2) Last Week: 18th<\/h3>\n
17. Washington (7-3, 0-2) Last Week: 17th<\/h3>\n
16. USC (7-4, 1-1) Last Week: 16th<\/h3>\n
15. Ohio State (6-4, 1-1) Last Week: 12th<\/h3>\n
14. Rutgers (7-4, 1-1) Last Week: 15th<\/h3>\n
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