The Big 12 sent eight schools to the 2026 NCAA Tournament -- among them Arizona, which advanced all the way to the Final Four in Indianapolis after winning the league title by multiple games and conference tournament in dramatic fashion. It was a great year for the conference, all things considered, especially after Big 12 alums AJ Dybantsa (BYU) and Darryn Peterson (Kansas) went first and second in the 2026 NBA Draft. For what it's worth, three of the top eight teams in the preseason rankings at BartTorvik.com are in the Big 12.
And it is those three teams -- specifically Arizona, Houston and Kansas -- that top our Big 12 projections after a panel of CBS Sports writers and analysts submitted ballots predicting how things will unfold. In my mind, the most interesting story is at Kansas, where Bill Self enters Year 24 in Lawrence trying to return to the Sweet 16 for the first time since he guided the Jayhawks to his second national championship in 2022. To help him do it, the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame coach has enrolled Tyran Stokes, the top-ranked prospect in the Class of 2026 and favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
An 18th Big 12 regular-season title is definitely possible. But Arizona and Houston -- not to mention Texas Tech and Iowa State -- are obvious hurdles in KU's path to securing another trophy. Here is everything you need to know about the Big 12 -- including player of the year predictions, conference standings and the best players in the league.
Pistons star Cade Cunningham won 2021 Big 12 Player of the Year honors in his only season of college basketball at Oklahoma State. Since then, the award has been given out five more times, and yet Cunningham remains the last freshman to win it. But that should change this season thanks to Tyran Stokes' enrollment at Kansas.
The 6-foot-8 guard is the top prospect from the Class of 2026 and leading candidate to be the first pick of the 2027 NBA Draft. If Stokes meets those expectations, he should become in June just the third Kansas player to go No. 1 overall -- joining Danny Manning (1988) and Andrew Wiggins (2014). If Stokes doesn't win Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors, it might be Caleb Holt's award to grab.
The 6-5 guard is ranked third in the Class of 2026, according to 247Sports, behind only Stokes and Arkansas freshman Jordan Smith. Holt is expected to start in Arizona's backcourt next to North Carolina transfer Derek Dixon. For Arizona to make back-to-back Final Fours under Tommy Lloyd, the Wildcats will need Holt to impact things on both ends of the court, especially defensively, where his 81-inch wingspan is a huge advantage on the perimeter.
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