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2008 Big 12 Basketball Predictions

Written by Steve Janus

Texas returns a boatload of talent to a team that tied Kansas for the Big 12 regular season title. The Longhorns get 4 of their 5 starters back this season and while D.J. Augustin will get difficult to replace, there’s plenty of players to spread the ball to. The Big 12 is Texas’s to lose this year.

If there was a team that could challenge the Longhorns for the Big 12 title this year it has to be Oklahoma. They return their best player in Blake Griffin, a surefire NBA lottery pick, and have surrounded Griffin with a very talented group. Third-year coach Jeff Capel is looking at his best team yet.

Kansas lost the majority of it’s National Championship squad, but the recruiting power of the Jayhawks should come through and make them a contender in the Big 12. It might be a slow start for KU this season, but by the end of the year they will be poised to make a run in the conference and the NCAA Tournament.

Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas are all give equal shots at winning the national title this year at +3000 odds to win the NCAA Tournament.

Baylor returns an explosive offensive group to the court for the 2008-09 season. The Bears struggled on defense last season, but if they improve that part of their game they can be one of the best teams in the country. Expect them to compete with Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas for the top spot in the Big 12 this year.

The Texas A&M Aggies return three of their most important players from last season’s NCAA Tournament team. While another bid for the tournament isn’t out of the question, they aren’t deep enough to compete with the top-tier teams in the conference.

Oklahoma State enters the post-Sutton era with a new head coach, Travis Ford. Ford’s style is vastly different than the style the Cowboys have played for the last 18 years, but change is exactly what was needed in Stillwater. This is a team that could possibly upset one of the top teams in the conference, but they may lack the consistency to be truly successful over the course of the year.

It’s likely to be a rebuilding year at Missouri for the basketball program. There are many new faces and it’s hard to see how the team will mesh together. The Tigers should be good enough to finish at near the top of the bottom half of the Big 12.

Pat Knight tries to fill his father, Bobby Knight’s, enormous shoes this year at Texas Tech. While it’s unlikely that Pat can lead this team to the top of the conference, the Red Raiders have a solid backcourt returning, but will struggle against the inside game of the majority of the conference.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers return a group of solid shooting guards, but will struggle in the paint. With the movement of the three-point line, shooting percentages, and wins, for the Huskers will be down this season.

Kansas State played well last season, but they lost their two best players, Michael Beasley and Bill Walker. With no one to fill the voids left by their two stars, the Wildcats will struggle to stay out of the Big 12 basement.

It’s been a long time since the Iowa State Cyclones have been a factor in the Big 12 standings and it looks like Cyclone fans will have to wait even longer. Team captain, Wesley Johnson transferred in the off-season and there’s just not a solid enough group here for Iowa State to notch many conference wins.

Colorado is undergoing some major changes to it’s basketball program, but those changes aren’t going to help the Buffalo this year. This program is still a long way from being considered anything other than one of the worst teams in the conference.

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