By Tristan Freeman, Special to the HoriZone Roundtable
We’re about a month into the 2025-26 college basketball season, which, for the Horizon League, means one thing… conference play! The Horizon has the special distinction of having one of the earliest starts to league games. And with the new conference tournament format coming into play, it’s more important than ever to get one of the top three seeds, since a first-round home win allows them to make the semifinals in Indy.
Each team has won and lost at least one game to this point, showcasing both strengths and weaknesses in its roster. Here’s a look at why each team can and/or can’t finish in the top three of the standings.
(Order is based on this week’s Power Rankings)
Northern Kentucky Norse – 6-2
Why NKU can finish top-3: Donovan Oday’s POY candidacy
The former Cal State Fullerton guard is off to a great start with the Norse, leading them with 18.2 ppg on 60% FG shooting, along with 46% from beyond the arc. That includes 20 points against Central Michigan, along with 27 in a win over Wofford. After losing so much production in the previous season, NKU not only has Oday but senior Dan Gherezgher Jr. (17.4 ppg), having a big second year with the program as all-league talents.
Why NKU can’t finish top-3: Ups and downs of freshman Ethan Elliott
The 6-3 freshman guard from Australia has started all seven games, leading the team with 4.6 apg. Elliott had an eight-assist game against Central Michigan and overall has a 2.7 A/TO ratio. The concern is that he’s gone scoreless in the past two games against Wofford and Eastern Kentucky, and his minutes are starting to go down. If he’s not the answer in Horizon play, that’s going to put more pressure on Oday to provide even more production.
Robert Morris Colonials – 6-3
Why RMU can finish top-3: Quality frontcourt depth
The Colonials had the top frontcourt in league play last year in POY Alvaro Folgueiras and Defensive Player of the Year, Amarion Dickerson. This year’s crop isn’t as good individually, but it’s arguably the most depth RMU has had since joining the Horizon. Transfer forward Nikolaos Chitikoudis leads them with 13.4 ppg, while former IU Indy forward DeSean Goode is putting up 11.9 ppg and 9.0 rpg, which is No. 1 in the conference. Add former top-100 prospect and impact reserve Josh Hill (10.3 ppg) to the mix, and you have another deep frontcourt for teams to contend with.
Why RMU can’t finish top-3: Offensive inefficiencies
When RMU has won its games, the frontcourt has led the way. But when they struggle, scoring has been hard to find. One stat to watch is FT issues: the team ranks at the very bottom, getting to the line just 9 times per game, while the opposition has around 10 more. If they don’t make enough threes, they can be vulnerable to losing in low-score battles.
Youngstown State Penguins – 4-4
Why YSU can finish top-3: Quality depth
Youngstown’s rotation runs 9-10 deep when healthy, having a good balance of size and depth. While only Chris Carroll (14.1 ppg) puts up more than 10.5 ppg on the team, the Penguins can get good production from anyone, evident from the 48 bench points in the team’s signature 90-81 road win over Grand Canyon. It’s a team with strong high-end talent, without relying on one guy to win.
Why YSU can’t finish top-3: Interior defense
Replacing 7-3 center Gabe Dynes wasn’t going to be easy, with former NKU center Imanuel Zorgvol showing flashes in extended minutes. But one area of concern with the Penguins is opposing teams scoring too easily inside, with bigs from the previous losses all having big nights against them to this point. Youngstown ranks in the 300s in terms of two-point field goals allowed. The quality 3-point defense (15th nationally at just 5.3 makes a game allowed) helps offset the interior issues, but against good frontcourts in the Horizon, this could be a major issue.
Oakland Golden Grizzlies – 3-5
Why Oakland can finish in the top-3: Frontcourt depth
The Grizzlies have the Preseason Horizon League Player of the Year in Buru Naivalurua (14 ppg and 5.6 rpg), but the face of the team so far has been Isaac Garrett, who leads the team with 16.1 ppg and 5.9 rpg. The former JUCO star had high-major offers this offseason, plenty of hype, and is still outperforming expectations. There’s also Jacksonville State transfer Michael Houge (17.3 ppg), who has had an impact after returning from a preseason lower-leg injury.
Why Oakland can’t finish in the top-3: 3-point defense
The Grizzlies’ poor defensive numbers can easily be explained, as they’ve played three top-5 teams on their schedule to date. However, they’ve also allowed 87+ points to three other teams, with threes being the issue. In losses to Eastern Michigan and Montana, Oakland allowed 10 made threes. Adjusting to the unique zone defense may be the issue for the newcomers, but with league play starting, they have to figure it out sooner rather than later.
Green Bay Phoenix – 4-5
Why GB can finish in the top-3: Genuine defensive improvement
A year ago, the Phoenix were among the worst teams in the nation on defense. So far, they’re closer to the middle of the road, impressive considering that they’ve yet to play a home game against a D1 foe. Given some of the early struggles with other teams on that end, this could make Green Bay a tough out in league play.
Why GB can’t finish in the top-3: Rebounding and interior defense
With Marcus Hall (16 ppg and 5.7 rpg) having an early breakout campaign, Green Bay should get some real frontcourt production. The issue has been the five-spot, with an already small roster looking even smaller against decent frontcourts. They were a bad rebounding team a year ago, and with only two guys averaging more than 4.5 boards a game, they likely will remain weak in that area.
Wright State Raiders – 4-4
Why Wright State can finish top-3: Much more balanced compared to the past
The Raiders have always been known for being an elite offensive unit that struggles on defense, leaving them vulnerable to unexpected losses. The transfer departures have hurt the offense a bit to start out the season, but the defense, before surrendering 94 points in the loss to Butler, has improved to a reasonable degree, including an impressive 20th ranking in three-point makes allowed at just over five. If that continues, Wright State can be a factor.
Why Wright State can’t finish top-3: Lack of potent scorers
Another key freshman who has been a nice early surprise has been Michael Cooper, who leads the team with 14.4 ppg. However, he’s the only Raider averaging more than 11 ppg, with the frontcourt players’ production being more inconsistent. Even though the defense has gotten better, Wright State needs more from the others and not to over-rely on Cooper.
Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons – 4-5
Why PFW can finish top-3: Successful transfer pickups
Another year, another season of the Mastodons having quality backcourt play, led by an early breakout campaign from Corey Hadnot II, who leads the team with 18 ppg. Just as key to the team are the two newcomers, DeAndre Craig and Mikale Stevenson, who are currently averaging 14.7 ppg each. Both were double-digit scorers at their previous stops and were expected to be starters for Fort Wayne. So far, both have been as good as expected.
Why PFW can’t finish top-3: Defense
The faster pace of play compared to the rest of the Horizon League will make their defense look worse, but against D-1 opponents, Fort Wayne has allowed 83+ points in all but one game. In those games, including losing by 12 at Western Michigan, the offense wasn’t able to keep up, scoring around 70 points. We’ll see if this team needs to win its games via shootout starting this week.
Milwaukee Panthers – 3-5
Why Milwaukee can finish top-3: Danilo Jovanovich’s late breakout campaign
Losing star forward Jamichael Stillwell was always going to be replaced, but a huge bright spot for the team has been senior Danillo Jovanovich, a former top-100 prospect who struggled at the high-major spots but is second on the team with 13.4 ppg and 5.6 rpg, including a team-high 21 points against Akron this past weekend. The guard duo of Seth Hubbard and Amar Augillard has been as advertised, but the balanced production from the frontcourt will make them difficult to stop.
Why Milwaukee can’t finish top-3: Massive defensive concerns
Speaking of the Akron game, the Panthers allowed a whopping 105 points, 50+ in each half. As a team, Milwaukee is allowing over 84 points a game, 80+ in five of the games. If this doesn’t improve, this team will also need to win several shootouts to finish in the top half.
IU Indy Jaguars – 3-6
Why IU Indy can finish top-3: Blistering pace of play
New coach Ben Howland’s system is one of the fastest in the nation, with the team averaging over 91 ppg. Of course, they’re also giving up over 96 ppg, which would rank dead last. Yet, with wins over Eastern Michigan and Morehead State, and with the Jaguars keeping it close with others, they have the potential to run teams off the floor. Plus, with several teams having defensive issues of their own, IU Indy could be very capable of winning plenty of shootout-like games.
Why IU Indy can’t finish top-3: Awful rebounding unit
The late coaching change forced the program to scramble to recreate its roster, with solid guard depth. But the clear lack of size on paper has shown throughout the games, with IU Indy ranking near the bottom nationally in all rebounding categories. The issue isn’t with their initial defense; it’s that they allow too many second-chance opportunities, which opponents have been doing to this point. And in a game with a ton of possessions, that’s going to hurt their chances of winning.
Cleveland State Vikings – 3-6
Why Cleveland St can finish top-3: Dayan Nessah’s rising stardom
After a limited role at George Washington, the 6-7 forward transferred to a rebuilt Vikings roster. He had one of the top individual performances on opening night, producing 25 points and 11 rebounds in OT against Loyola Chicago. Through seven games, he’s averaging a team-high 15.3 ppg and 6.4 rpg. He’s an all-league candidate and will likely win a few games for Cleveland State on his own.
Why Cleveland St can’t finish top-3: Defense is truly horrendous
Unlike some of the other teams with rough defensive numbers, it’s difficult to defend Cleveland State. The top teams they’ve played to this point are Kent State, Northwestern, and Missouri. They’ve also allowed 102 points to Kent State and 90 to Valpo, both in losses. It’s a new coach, staff, and roster, but this unit doesn’t look anything like its predecessors on that end of the court.
Detroit Mercy Titans – 2-6
Why Detroit can finish top-3: Likely improvement from the young core and senior duo of Geeter and Lovejoy
It’s been a rough start to the season for the Titans, mainly playing road games against quality competition. But they’ve gotten solid production from the likes of freshmen Lance Stone and Keshawn Fisher, who should only grow from here against competition at their level. Statistically, seniors Orlando Lovejoy and Legend Geeter haven’t gotten off to great starts, but going forward, look for their production and impact to increase.
Why Detroit can’t finish top-3: Three-point shooting woes remain
Detroit currently ranks in the bottom 5 nationally, shooting beyond the arc at under 25%. While you want to excuse it with the strength of schedule, the Titans also ranked in the bottom in both makes and attempts last year. And when you have the most retention among any Horizon team coming into this season, it’s hard to envision them being better at that.
