Big Ten finally showing signs of a return to form?

With all the high-powered coaching talent in the conference at the moment, hopefully the conference is not far from a return to being one of the more powerful conferences in the country.

For almost 10 years now, the level of basketball in the conference has been just plain shameful. And how could it not be? With the likes of Amaker, Alford, Monson, Mike Davis, and a burned out Keady roaming the sidelines, not to mention perennial doormats NU and PSU, things had become pretty bleak on the BT hoops landscape.

In short, being a powerhouse in the BT over the last decade has ranked right up there with being the best downhill skier in Kenya.

But things look to be changing. The arrival of coaches with pedigrees and potential like Crean, Painter, Beilein, Tubby Smith, and Lickliter, to go along with stalwarts Webber, Izzo, Matta, and Ryan, the conference appears to be heading back to prominence on the national scene.

This is good for all parties involved, with the possible exception of those who benefited from the conference's lack of talent in recent years.