{"id":209114,"date":"2025-10-13T02:00:22","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T02:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/209114\/"},"modified":"2025-10-13T02:00:22","modified_gmt":"2025-10-13T02:00:22","slug":"key-big-ten-headlines-for-the-2025-26-college-basketball-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/209114\/","title":{"rendered":"Key Big Ten Headlines for the 2025-26 College Basketball Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Starting with Minnesota\u2019s exhibition against North Dakota State on Thursday, there are 171 days of hoops leading up to the NCAA championship game on Monday, April 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. (That\u2019s just a 66.1-mile bus ride from Purdue\u2019s Mackey Arena, by the way.)<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s get to the headlines:<\/p>\n

Illinois Can\u2019t Get the Balkan Five on the Floor<\/p>\n

Brad Underwood\u2019s Illini have one of the biggest groups of newcomers in the league, highlighted by Arkansas transfer Zvonimir Ivisic, Cal transfer Andrej Stojakovic, 22-year-old pro point guard Mihailo Petrovic and freshman David Mirkovic. Throw in incumbent center Tomislav Ivisic, perhaps Illinois\u2019 best player, and you get what\u2019s known as the \u201cBalkan Five.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Underwood has yet to have them all on the floor together. Mirkovic didn\u2019t make it to Illinois until the end of July and Petrovic arrived in August just before school started, and by the time they reached the practice floor, Stojakovic suffered a knee strain that has kept him out since (though he went to the doctor Friday to set the timetable for a return expected to be soon).<\/p>\n

However, Tomislav Ivisic underwent a tonsillectomy on Wednesday that will sideline him for a week or two. Could the Illini have everybody for their \u201csecret scrimmage\u201d with defending national champion Florida on Oct. 25 in Florida? That would be 17 days after Ivisic\u2019s procedure. \u201cIt\u2019s just a matter of how his body handles the healing process,\u201d Underwood said. \u201cSo I don\u2019t know. But he\u2019ll be out a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Petrovic, meanwhile, has not been cleared to compete by the NCAA. Last year, Ivisic was not cleared until four days before the season opener \u2014 though no two NCAA eligibility-review timelines are the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Brothers<\/p>\n

Brothers Tomislav (pictured) and Zvonimir Ivisic will form one of the largest frontcourt duos in NCAA basketball<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

Oregon\u2019s Shelstad Shelved With a Broken Hand<\/p>\n

Oregon junior point guard Jackson Shelstad looked sharp for the Big Ten media day festivities on Thursday. Even the black cast on his right arm seemed to work.<\/p>\n

The third-team all-Big Ten honoree last year \u2014 who built a reputation with his huge shots at the end of games \u2014 suffered the injury at the start of October. Given his four- to six-week healing process, he\u2019s uncertain for Oregon\u2019s opener Nov. 4 vs. Hawaii. The Ducks also host Rice (Nov. 7) and South Dakota State (Nov. 12) by the six-week mark.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully sooner than that,\u201d Shelstad said. \u201cI\u2019m doing everything I can to get back. I\u2019m doing cardio and staying in shape. Ballhandling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen him working on his left hand,\u201d said teammate Nate Bittle.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just have to stay away from contact,\u201d Shelstad said.<\/p>\n

Shelstad and Bittle, by the way, were among the 10 players voted to the Big Ten\u2019s preseason all-league team. Purdue\u2019s Braden Smith, the nation\u2019s only returning first-team All-American, leads the cast that includes Big Ten returnees Trey Kaufman-Renn (Purdue), Nick Martinelli (Northwestern), Bruce Thornton (Ohio State) and John Blackwell (Wisconsin). UAB transfer Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan), Drake transfer Bennett Stirtz (Iowa) and New Mexico transfer Donovan Dent (UCLA) also made the cut.<\/p>\n

Shelstad\u2019s potential replacement committed to the Ducks on Oct. 2: Six-foot-4, 190-pound sophomore Wei Lin, who spent the last three years playing professionally for the Nanjing Monkey Kings in the Chinese Basketball Association. Lin, 22, averaged 21 points and five assists per game last season while shooting 34.9 percent on three-pointers and 87.6 percent at the line. He\u2019s the first Chinese pro to join an NCAA team.<\/p>\n

Big Ten Scoring Champ \u201cHumbled\u201d in Offseason<\/p>\n

Over the last 30-plus years, five players have led the Big Ten in scoring in back-to-back seasons: Zach Edey, Luka Garza, Evan Turner, Glenn Robinson and Steve Smith. Four of the five were top-10 picks in the NBA draft and Garza went in the second round.<\/p>\n

Why bring this up? Because Northwestern\u2019s Nick Martinelli, who averaged 20.5 points per game last year, has a chance to go back-to-back this season. But when Martinelli declared for the draft last summer and was invited to workouts, he didn\u2019t feel like he was taken seriously. \u201cFull transparency: I think that, obviously, the two things they were looking for in my game, as everyone knows, is three-point shooting and defense,\u201d Martinelli said. \u201cBut it was a super-humbling experience coming off a pretty good season. I thought that I\u2019d get a real look \u2014 and definitely I got the sense I was kind of just there to be a sparring partner with those really high-level guys that teams were looking at. That\u2019s definitely a humbling experience, a motivating experience for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martinelli will have ample opportunities to score again this year as the Wildcats graduated their other three double-figure scorers. Sophomore guard K.J. Windham (5.6 ppg) owns the next-best average among returnees.<\/p>\n

\"Big<\/p>\n

Big Ten Scoring Champion Nick Martinelli declared for the 2025 NBA Draft but felt he wasn\u2019t taken seriously<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

Building Virtually From Scratch<\/p>\n

There are four new coaches in the Big Ten this year: Indiana\u2019s Darian DeVries, Iowa\u2019s Ben McCollum, Maryland\u2019s Buzz Williams and Minnesota\u2019s Niko Medved. All four essentially got to pick every player on their roster.<\/p>\n

Maryland retained nobody from its Sweet Sixteen squad. Indiana welcomed back two walk-ons who combined to play one minute last year. Iowa kept one scholarship player: redshirt freshman Cooper Koch, who played just 136 minutes as he endured a collapsed lung. Minnesota boasts two scholarship returnees, though sophomore guard Isaac Asuma was the only one who played last year.<\/p>\n

Considering that retention is regarded as one of the leading indicators of a team\u2019s potential for success, these four teams have ground to make up on the likes of Purdue, which retains 69.7 percent of its minutes, Ohio State (49.5 percent), Illinois (45.0 percent), UCLA (43.0 percent), Northwestern (42.7 percent) and Michigan State (41.7 percent).<\/p>\n

But maybe Iowa deserves an asterisk because McCollum brought five players with him from Drake, and that quintet logged 3,579 minutes on the same team last year. But point guard Bennett Stirtz, who led the nation with 39.4 minutes per game, says Iowa won\u2019t be Drake 2.0. \u201cWe\u2019ve added some pick-and-pop threats,\u201d Stirtz said. \u201cWe\u2019re still trying to figure out who we are on offense, but we can really space the floor and I can really feel that in practice. There\u2019s a lot more space out there on offense.\u201d<\/p>\n

But when Iowa traveled to Saint Louis for a \u201csecret scrimmage\u201d on Saturday, the Billikens reportedly claimed a 99-74 win.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Michigan\u2019s Potential X-Factor<\/p>\n

Despite losing Danny Wolf to the NBA Draft\u2019s first round and fellow 7-footer Vladislav Goldin to graduation, Michigan\u2019s frontcourt might be even better this year with transfers Yaxel Lendeborg (UAB), 7-foot-3 Aday Mara (UCLA) and rebounding savant Morez Johnson Jr. (Illinois) joining stellar backup Will Tschetter.<\/p>\n

Returning starters Roddy Gayle Jr. and Nimari Burnett and freshman Trey McKenney, a McDonald\u2019s All-American, have a handle on the wings. This makes North Carolina transfer Elliot Cadeau, who takes over the point for the departed Trey Donaldson, perhaps the young man with the biggest question mark next to his name. Cadeau averaged 9.4 points and 6.2 assists for the Tar Heels last year, but he\u2019s a career 28.1 percent three-point shooter on limited attempts. \u201cI think Elliot is going to be able to play so fast,\u201d Gayle said. \u201cHe\u2019s extremely quick. He\u2019s extremely agile. His ability to play in the pick-and-roll and be able pick defenses apart is really next-level. He\u2019s very similar to Trey. I think Trey was probably a better shooter. Elliot\u2019s going to be able to get downhill and create for others.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHis IQ and his playmaking is exceptional,\u201d Burnett said. \u201cThere\u2019s times where he\u2019s going so fast and I\u2019m thinking like, there\u2019s no choice but to finish, and then he just stops on a dime, makes a read, makes a pass \u2026 it\u2019s just a joy to play with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"After<\/p>\n

After withdrawing from the NBA Draft in May, Yaxel Lendeborg signed with the University of Michigan<\/p>\n

Getty<\/p>\n

The Five-in-Five All-Stars<\/p>\n

Momentum has been building for the NCAA to change the eligibility rules to allow all athletes to play five seasons, but in a five-year window. If the \u201c5 in 5\u201d plan becomes law soon, there are 41 fourth-year seniors on scholarship in the Big Ten who could conceivably return for a fifth season.<\/p>\n

The potential at the point guard position alone is ridiculous with Purdue\u2019s Braden Smith, Iowa\u2019s Bennett Stirtz, Ohio State\u2019s Bruce Thornton and UCLA\u2019s Donovan Dent all eligible under the proposed criteria.<\/p>\n

Of course, this would be just one more cluster for Big Ten coaches to sort out. But Michigan State\u2019s Tom Izzo sees at least one positive. \u201cThat\u2019s one of the things that would be even for all of us,\u201d Izzo said. \u201cSome of the other things are not even for all of us. If that\u2019s what they think is right, I\u2019m fine with that. The only problem with it that I see is, now, if you want to get freshmen in there, then all of a sudden you\u2019re playing against 24-year-old guys. That\u2019s hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

Exhibitions to Whet Your Appetite<\/p>\n

While fans can\u2019t attend the \u201csecret scrimmages,\u201d there are several big-time exhibition games that will draw large crowds before the regular season begins Nov. 3.<\/p>\n

Oct. 18: BYU at Nebraska<\/p>\n

Oct. 24: Purdue at Kentucky, Oklahoma vs. Wisconsin (in Milwaukee), Utah at Oregon<\/p>\n

Oct. 25: Michigan vs. St. John\u2019s (at Madison Square Garden)<\/p>\n

Oct. 26: Baylor vs. Indiana (in Indianapolis), Northwestern at Iowa State<\/p>\n

Oct. 28: Michigan State at Connecticut<\/p>\n

\"AJ<\/p>\n

AJ Dybantsa headlines what should a very exciting BYU Cougars team<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

By the Numbers<\/p>\n

Twelve players jumped from one Big Ten school to another during the offseason, and Washington coach Danny Sprinkle grabbed four of them: USC starting backcourt Desmond Claude (15.8 ppg) and Wesley Yates III (14.1 ppg), Indiana wing Bryson Tucker and Rutgers big Lathan Sommerville.<\/p>\n

USC compensated by adding Maryland shooter Rodney Rice (13.8 ppg). As mentioned above, Michigan brought in UCLA\u2019s Aday Mara and Illinois\u2019 Morez Johnson Jr., while UCLA filled its lanky center role with Michigan State\u2019s Xavier Booker.<\/p>\n

Indiana guards Myles Rice (Maryland) and Gabe Cupps (Ohio State) found new places to play. Ohio State\u2019s Sean Stewart joined Oregon\u2019s teeming frontcourt, where he gets to be teammates with older brother Miles (a Howard transfer). Last but not least, Iowa sharpshooter Pryce Sandfort joined Nebraska.<\/p>\n

Speaking of Nebraska, the Cornhuskers are among the eight Big Ten teams who boast at least four international players. Illinois, Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, Washington and Wisconsin also have four players who list their hometown outside the United States, while Rutgers leads the league with five international players.<\/p>\n

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