(BIG TEN) – The Big Ten will open its 122nd season Monday night, as 16 teams take the court, with the two remaining teams, Iowa and Rutgers, set to open play on Tuesday and Friday, respectively. Monday’s opening night slated included a trio of games against AP top 25 ranked opponents. Purdue and UCLA will open the season at the Hall of Fame Opening Night Event in Las Vegas, where the Boilermakers will face Gonzaga, while the Bruins will meet Arizona, renewing their Pac-12 rivalry. Ohio State will also travel west to face BYU in Salt Lake City.
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The Big Ten welcomes two new coaches for the 2026-27 season. Michigan’s Mike Boynton Jr. and Oregon’s Tony Stubblefield will begin their first seasons at their respective schools, while Rutgers’ Associate Head Coach Brandin Knight moves over one seat in the absence of head coach Steve Pikiell. On the other side of the spectrum, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo will begin his 32nd season with the Spartans, while Matt Painter will begin his 22nd season at Purdue.
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The Big Ten is well represented in the preseason AP and USA Today Coaches’ Polls with 12 teams earning recognition in one or both polls. Illinois leads the way, as the Illini enter the season ranked No. 3 in both polls, followed by No. 6 Michigan State, No. 16/20 Michigan, and No. 21/22 USC. The media included UCLA at No.22, while the coaches listed Purdue at No. 24. Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Nebraska, Ohio State, and Wisconsin also received voted in one or both polls.
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The Big Ten capped the 2025-26 campaign with its first NCAA title since 2000, as Michigan topped Connecticut 69-63 in Indianapolis. Elliot Cadeau was named Most Outstanding Player after leading the Wolverines to their second crown and the 11th for the Big Ten. Illinois joined Michigan at the Final Four, marking the ninth time two Big Ten teams have reached the tournament’s final weekend.
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Three Big Ten players, Illinois’ David Mirkovic, Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau, and Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. have been named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Preseason Player of the Year Watch, with Mirkovic and Fears also named to the AP Preseason All-America Team. The trio also claimed spots on the CBS Sports Preseason All-America squad, with Mirkovic and Fears garnering First Team honors and Cadeau receiving third team accolades.
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Michigan State guard Jeremy Fears has been named 2026-27 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year by a select media panel. Last season, Fears was the only player in the country to average 15.0 points and 9.0 assists, posting a team-high 15.2 points while leading the nation with 9.4 assists. The Joliet, Ill. native also ranked second in the country with 328 total assists, setting a new Michigan State record for assists in a season.
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The media panel also selected a 10-member Preseason All-Big Ten Team. Nine of the Big Ten’s 18 teams are represented on the team, with Fears and Nebraska senior Pryce Sandfort named as unanimous selections. Fears and Sandfort joined by Illinois’ David Mirkovic and Andrej Stojakovic, Maryland’s Pharrel Payne, Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau and Trey McKenney, Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr., UCLA’s Trent Perry, USC’s Rodney Rice, and Wisconsin’s Nolan Winter.
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Michigan claimed its 16th Big Ten championship in 2026, winning its final 15 games to set program and conference marks with a 19 league wins. The Wolverines’ 10-0 Big Ten road record helped the squad become the second team in conference history, and the first in 50 years, to finish league road play unbeaten, joining Indiana’s 9-0 mark during its perfect 1975-76 season.
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Purdue topped Michigan 80-72 to win its third Big Ten Tournament title. The Boilermakers were the first seven seed to reach the championship game. Purdue guard Braden Smith was named Jim and Kitty Delaney Most Outstanding Player and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by teammate Oscar Cluff, Michigan’s Aday Mara and Wisconsin’s John Blackwell and Nick Boyd.
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For the ninth consecutive year, each Big Ten Conference member institution will compete in a 20-game conference schedule. Beginning on Tuesday, Dec. 1, a total of 18 conference games will be played between Dec. 1-13 before conference play breaks. Big Ten action will resume on Wednesday, Dec. 30 with a pair of contests. During the conference season, each member institution will play a 20-game league schedule, facing three schools both home and away, while meeting 14 teams once. Of the single-play opponents, member institutions will play seven at home and seven on the road.
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The 30th annual TIAA Big Ten Tournament will be played at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, March 9-14, 2027. The tournament will open with a pair of games on Tuesday, March 9 and culminate with championship on Sunday, March 14.
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