By Marc ZarefskyThe Daily Northwestern

Ohio State’s Greg Oden came into the season as the nation’s top freshman. So far Oden has not disappointed, averaging more than 14 points and nine rebounds.

But the Big Ten has a handful of other fabulous freshmen, including two of Oden’s teammates, who are making a name for themselves through the first week of conference play.

Buckeyes point guard Mike Conley Jr., a high school teammate of Oden’s, is leading the conference with nearly seven assists per game, helping Ohio State become the conference’s highest scoring offense with slightly more than 80 points per game.

Ohio State also is led by Daequan Cook, who is first among freshmen and sixth overall in the Big Ten in scoring with 15.5 points per game, fifth in field-goal percentage and first in 3-point percentage in the conference.

“They’ve learned a lot, and you could tell by the way they played Illinois they’re not playing like freshmen anymore,” Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said.

Helping hands

After capping off a successful 9-4 football season with the Penn State football team, sophomore Jordan Norwood is set to trade in his cleats for high-tops.

The wide receiver has been in contact with coach Ed DeChellis to join the Nittany Lions basketball team (10-5, 1-1).

“He says he’d like to try to do it, but we’re going to take it step-by-step and day-by-day to see how it goes,” DeChellis said.

On the football field, Norwood was one of the Nittany Lions’ leading receivers this season, finishing with 45 receptions for 472 yards and two touchdowns.

Before starring for the Nittany Lions on the football field, Norwood led State College Area High School to its first ever state basketball championship in 2003.

But, DeChellis said, getting into basketball shape and learning the system would be tough hurdles for Norwood.

“It’d be foolish to put expectations on Jordan that he’s going to come in and play minutes,” DeChellis said.

no place like home

The conference season is only one week in, but it already is clear that home-court advantage makes a difference.

Of last week’s 10 games, eight victories came at home.

“That’s been the storyline of the league so far – try to win your games at home and try to steal one or two on the road,” DeChellis said.

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said these early road losses aren’t unusual.

“I don’t think it’s different from any other conference, for the most part,” Izzo said. “I don’t think there have been any surprises, but the Big Ten is always a little more special because of the crowds. There’s no place you can go into and feel comfortable that you’re going to win.”

Reach Marc Zarefsky at [email protected].