Brent Yarina, BTN.com Senior Editor, October 17, 2012

Over the next 10 days, BTN.com web editor Brent Yarina is going to unveil his 2012-13 preseason Big Ten Player Rankings one by one. The countdown will go in reverse order, of course, and each installment will include player stats and one video highlight from last season. Once the season starts, Yarina will release a weekly Player Rankings every Monday. Up first: Wisconsin's Jared Berggren.

Wisconsin's Jared Berggren
US Presswire

Berggren's career stats:

Per Game Team G GS MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG TOPG PFPG FG% 3P% FT%
2009-10 Wisc 19 0 4.1 1.1 0.4 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.5 .615 1.000 .500
2010-11 Wisc 29 1 6.9 2.4 1.1 0.3 0.0 0.3 0.5 1.3 .491 .318 .615
2011-12 Wisc 36 36 27.8 10.5 4.9 0.8 0.9 1.7 1.4 2.4 .452 .372 .732
Career 84 37 15.2 5.6 2.6 0.5 0.4 0.8 0.8 1.6 .463 .368 .700

Why he's No. 10: There are many Big Ten players more athletic and prolific than Berggren, but he's the typical Bo Ryan big man who improves with every passing year. Berggren was solid last season – his first as a starter – averaging 10.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 1.7 blocks per game. And remember, like all Badgers, Berggren's numbers are deflated as a result of Ryan's style of play that yields fewer possessions per game. Regardless, Berggren is a solid two-way player – his 1.7 bpg lead all Big Ten returners – and he figures to shoulder a bigger scoring load with Jordan Taylor's graduation. More proof of the defense: Berggren and his frontline mates limited this year's preseason National Player of the Year frontrunner Cody Zeller to 12 points and two rebounds in two games last season.

Why he may not live up to ranking: Berggren shoots a lot of 3-pointers (121 attempts last season accounted for 39 percent of his looks), so there's the chance he could go cold and lose confidence. Also, with Taylor's aforementioned graduation, Berggren will have a new man patrolling the point, which can lead to an adjustment period. Finally, the arrival of prized recruit Sam Dekker could take away from some of Berggren's production.

BTN.com web editor Brent Yarina covers football and men's basketball for BTN.com. He writes the popular uniform feature "Clothes Call," which also focuses on the latest cosmetic changes across Big Ten arenas and stadiums. Read all of his work here. You can subscribe to Yarina's RSS feed and follow him on Twitter @BTNBrentYarina.