Recruiting: A look at the Class of 2015 Top-100

Recruiting rankings can be a daunting mountain of information to tackle. The pool of players is vast, often with little separation between groups of players bunched closely together.

Individual rankings are obviously subjective, but 247Sports provides a comprehensive directory by merging lists from major recruiting sites around the web, using a formula which "converts average industry ranks and ratings into a linear composite index capping at 1.0000, which indicates a consensus No. 1 prospect across all services."

I'll be taking a look at the top 100 Class of 2015 prospects, identifying players who have either committed to a Big Ten school or are strongly considering attending one.

[Note: The No. before a player name denotes their 247Sports composite rank. The list of schools immediately after their name are programs the player is considering or has committed to play for. There will often be other Big Ten teams that have offers out to these players, but only teams with a legitimate shot of landing that player will be listed.]

Rank: Nos. 1-10

No. 4: PF Ivan Rabb - Ohio State

No. 6: C Diamond Stone - Wisconsin, Michigan State

No. 9: PF Henry Ellenson - Wisconsin, Minnesota

No. 10: PF Carlton Bragg - Ohio State, Illinois

Rank: Nos. 11-20

No. 14: PG Isaiah Briscoe - Rutgers

No. 15: PF/C Caleb Swanigan - Michigan State

No. 17: PG Jalen Brunson - Michigan State, Purdue, Illinois [Updated: Has official visits scheduled to each.]

No. 19: PF Elijah Thomas - Illinois

Rank: Nos. 21-30

No. 24: C Deyonta Davis - Committed to Michigan State 12/11/2013

No. 26: SG Perry Dozier - Michigan

No. 27: PG Jawun Evans - Illinois

No. 29: PG/SG Jalen Coleman - Michigan, Illinois

Rank: Nos. 31-40

No. 34: SG Prince Ali - Indiana, Michigan, Maryland [Update: Committed to UCLA over the weekend]

No. 36: SG Eric Davis - Michigan State, Michigan

No. 37: SG Austin Grandstaff - Committed to Ohio State 5/4/2014

No. 38: C Daniel Giddens - Committed to Ohio State 7/4/2014

Rank: Nos. 41-50

No. 46: C Doral Moore - Illinois, Ohio State

No. 50: SG Jimmy Whitt - Illinois

Rank: Nos. 51-60

No. 53: SF D.J. Williams - Committed to Illinois 11/5/2013

No. 55: PF Esa Ahmad -- Ohio State, Maryland

No. 56: SF Danjel Purifoy - Maryland

Rank: Nos. 61-70

No. 67: PG Corey Sanders - Rutgers

Rank: Nos. 71-80

No. 71: PG Glynn Watson - Maryland, Nebraska

No. 72: PG A.J. Harris - Committed to Ohio State 8/12/2013

No. 78: SG Chris Clarke - Maryland, Minnesota

No. 80: SG Shake Milton - Indiana, Illinois

Rank: Nos. 81-90

No. 81: SF Mickey Mitchell - Committed to Ohio State 8/22/2013

No. 82: SG Aaron Jordan - Committed to Illinois 1/4/2014

No. 83: SG Brevin Pritzl - Committed to Wisconsin 5/22/2014

No. 84: PG Bryant Crawford - Indiana

No. 86: PF Juwan Morgan - Indiana

No. 89: PF Trevor Manuel - Michigan State

Rank: Nos. 91-100

No. 92: PF Mike Watkins - Committed to Penn State 6/12/2013

No. 95: SG Josh Reaves - Committed to Penn State 7/1/2014

No. 96: SG K.J. Walton - Minnesota, Illinois

No. 98: PG Kevin Dorsey - Committed to Minnesota 7/12/2014

No. 99: PF Josh Sharma -- Wisconsin

Big Ten Program Rankings

Overall Ranking	Team	Commitments	5*	4*	3*	Player Score Avg.
No. 3	Ohio State	4	0	4	0	97.02
No.11	Illinois	2	0	2	0	96.47
No. 12	Michigan State	2	1	0	1	94.63
No. 13	Penn State	3	0	2	1	90.59
No. 26	Iowa	3	0	0	3	86.27
No. 34	Northwestern	2	0	0	2	86.37
No. 35	Wisconsin	1	0	1	0	95.04
No.39	Minnesota	1	0	1	0	93.81
No. 45	Purdue	2	0	0	2	82.66
No. 56	Nebraska	2	0	0	1	77.74
N/A	Rutgers	0	0	0	0	N/A
N/A	Maryland	0	0	0	0	N/A
N/A	Michigan	0	0	0	0	N/A
N/A	Indiana	0	0	0	0	N/A

Items of Note

• It's still early, as only two of the top 11 players in the country have pledged their allegiance to a program, but having four Big Ten teams in the top 13 after having just two in the top 20 (Ohio State and Indiana) last season is a significant sign for the Big Ten. It's far too early to tell what sort of effect conference realignment is having on recruits, but the current trend bodes well for B1G basketball.
• It's somewhat disconcerting to see Indiana, Michigan and Maryland without any commitments yet. These are three schools that typically find themselves amongst the most highly regarded basketball programs schools in the nation. Plenty of big names remain on the board, several of whom will likely find themselves on one of those three rosters, but these schools have not done themselves any favors with a slow start.
  
• The Illini are plastered all over the top 100 board. They could climb even higher than No. 11 when all is said and done. Head coach John Groce and his team are doing an exceptional job on the recruiting trail. The last few years have been disappointing following an elite run during the early 2000's, but with the way Groce is recruiting magic could once again be in the air Champaign.
  
• Eighty-nine. Seventy-three. Sixty-nine. Seventy-four. One hundred and twenty-three. Those are Penn State's recruiting class rankings, starting with 2013 and going back to 2010. Coming in with the No. 13 class in the nation is nothing short of remarkable. They have two top 100 players and a three-star small forward in Deividas Zemgulis. Pat Chambers still has one scholarship to play around with, so this class could, inconceivably, get even better. It would be one of the most remarkable recruiting turnarounds in recent memory.
  
• That No. 35 next to Wisconsin could look very low a few months from now. Landing either Diamond Stone or Henry Ellenson, both top 10 big men, would likely catapult Bo Ryan's Badgers into at least the top 15. Both are high on Wisconsin, with Ellenson said to be especially fond of playing close to home. Both are Wisconsin natives, which should give Ryan a bit of a leg up on his competition.
  
• Newcomer and perennial basketball laughing stock Rutgers has a legitimate shot of landing both No. 14 Isiaiah Briscoe and No. 67 Corey Sanders. The Scarlet Knights need to recruit well immediately to have any hopes of competing in the Big Ten. Eddie Jordan has already lost two commits this summer -- Austin Burnette and Leroy Butts -- but all can be fixed by landing New Jersey native Briscoe or the high-rising Sanders. [Note: For some reason, 247 still has Burnette listed as a Rutgers commit even after his July de-commitment. As of now, Rutgers does not have a commitment for 2015.]
• Ohio State still has two scholarships open. Adding another four-star and even a three-star could make this easily the deepest recruiting class in the nation, likely landing them a No. 1 overall spot. There are several big pieces yet to fall -- Ohio State has targeted Ivan Rabb, but is unlikely to land the highly sought after prospect -- but one would expect Thad Matta to be pretty thrilled with his class thus far.
• Matta may have the most complete class, but Izzo, never one to be outdone, has the best player. Deyonta Davis, ranked 24th in the nation, is the highest rated Big Ten commit. As a junior, Davis was the leader of the 28-0, Michigan High School Athletic Association Class A state Muskegon boys basketball team. He averaged 15 points and 13.2 rebounds per game while blocking 199 total shots. He can shoot. He can dribble. He can throw down. And he'll swat your shot into the upper deck.