Through the Phog
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Big 12 basketball tiers for the 2023-2024 season; Kansas, Houston lead the way

By Tony Zuzzio

LAWRENCE, KANSAS - FEBRUARY 28: Members of the Kansas Jayhawks celebrate with the Big 12 conference trophy after their 67-63 win over Texas Tech Red Raiders at Allen Fieldhouse on February 28, 2023 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
LAWRENCE, KANSAS - FEBRUARY 28: Members of the Kansas Jayhawks celebrate with the Big 12 conference trophy after their 67-63 win over Texas Tech Red Raiders at Allen Fieldhouse on February 28, 2023 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) /
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MANHATTAN, KS – FEBRUARY 21: Head coach Jerome Tang (R) of the Kansas State Wildcats instructs his players during the second half of the game against the Baylor Bears at Bramlage Coliseum on February 21, 2023 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS – FEBRUARY 21: Head coach Jerome Tang (R) of the Kansas State Wildcats instructs his players during the second half of the game against the Baylor Bears at Bramlage Coliseum on February 21, 2023 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /

Tier 2: Middle of Pack fighting for NCAA Tournament bids

Kansas State Wildcats

Jerome Tang came in with a bang last year. Led by as he would say “two dudes” in Keyontae Johnson and Markquis Nowell, who had a nice run in the tourney and found out those higher seeds aren’t as easy to beat as their fan base thinks. He does have their fan base drinking the Tang, though.

Little brother should take a step back this year after losing their two dudes from last year. Tomlin and N’Guessan will lead the way with high-scoring transfers, and Tylor Perry from North Texas and Arthur Kaluma from Creighton are most likely to carry the scoring load.

Iowa State Cyclones

Iowa State lost most of its leading scorers from last year but returns pass first point guard Tamin Lipsey and several other depth pieces. Add in several top 100 recruits and three double-digit scoring transfers, and they will give teams fits at home with Hilton rocking.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Guns Up?! Well, they were mostly holstered last year with a ninth-place Big 12 finish and a 16-16 record. They will look to improve this year and should finish somewhere in the bottom of the middle tier.

West Virginia Mountaineers

In what should be a transitional year with the Huggy Bear blow-up, expect a mediocre season for WVU. Under a new coach and a lot of new transfers, this team could fight to try to stay on the tourney bubble most of the year but could slide down to the bottom tier just as easily. Will be tough not to see Huggy Bear manning the sidelines.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

The Cowboys should be right there riding the bubble most of the year as well. While they lost several key players to the transfer portal from last year’s team, they will return former Jayhawk Bryce Thompson as their leading scorer, who averaged 11.8 PPG last year. Add that with multiple top 100 recruits and three transfers that averaged double figures and they will be in the mix to make the Big Dance.

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