Well, since the last roundup was posted it has been quite an eventful week. We saw teams at the
top of the standings clash, in addition to a huge upset that has tightened up the title race even
more. Let’s dig in.
Michigan split their two league games for the second week in a row, this time in surprising fashion. The Wolverines avenged their midseason loss to Wisconsin in a way that was almost identical to the way the Badgers beat them the first time. It was tight for about thirty-four minutes until Michigan pulled away in the final six. Their next game of the week looked like a forgone conclusion as they traveled to Happy Valley to play a Penn State team who sported a 1-11 record in Big Ten play. Penn State probably need a weird game to pull off the upset, and a weird game they got. John Beilein was ejected for the first time in forty years, Michigan took a sixteen point deficit and got it all the way down to four and still lost, and Zavier Simpson had six turnovers. This was a top three upset of the Big Ten season, reminiscent of the loss Michigan took to Penn State in 2013.
In the upcoming week Michigan has a big home matchup with Maryland, hot off their win against Purdue. Then the Wolverines get five days to recover until they travel to Minnesota to take on the Golden Gophers in what should be a very competitive game. With two of their last four games coming against Michigan State, Michigan probably needs to win both of their games this week to grab a share of the Big Ten Title.
Purdue:
Purdue also got a split this weekend, first getting a twenty-point victory over Nebraska at home, and then getting beat by a strong Maryland team on the road. The loss to Maryland isn’t a bad loss at all, especially considering Purdue no longer has to play against a team in the top five of the Big Ten standings for the rest of the regular season. The Boilermakers are officially my favorite to win the regular season title now.
This Saturday Purdue will welcome the Nittany Lions of Penn State, hot off their upset of Michigan, to Mackey Arena. Then the following Tuesday it is rivalry night in Bloomington as Purdue takes on their in-state rival Indiana for the second time this year. Indiana won the first matchup by a score of 70-55.
Michigan State:
Michigan State got back to their winning ways this week with big wins against Minnesota at home and a huge road win against Wisconsin (huge might be an understatement). MSU jumped out to a huge lead right off the bat against Minnesota and then just kept them at arm’s length throughout the rest of the game. Against Wisconsin, it was a back and forth battle that came right down to the last few minutes, until a great defensive effort kept Wisconsin scoreless for four of the last six minutes.
In the upcoming week Michigan State has two home games that should probably both be wins. On Sunday the Spartans take on Rutgers, and then on Wednesday night they take on Ohio State, who are coming off a loss at home to Illinois. Wins in these games would set up Michigan State very well heading into the big rivalry game with Michigan.
Wisconsin:
Wisconsin went into this week feeling comfortable about their play going into two colossal matchups with the Michigan teams. They went 0-2, but both losses were very close. Heading into the final minutes of both games wins were within reach, but two late game meltdowns cost Wisconsin in the Big Ten standings. Against MSU it was their inability to hit shots, against Michigan it was their inability to stop Charles Matthews from hitting shots.
Wisconsin only has one game this week, and it is a Monday night home game against Illinois. Despite their record, nobody wants to be playing the Illini right now, home or away. Something to watch for in this game would be how the Badgers handle the high energy defense of Illinois.
Maryland:
Last week Maryland only played one game, and it was a big one. The Terps earned a big home victory over Purdue by the score of 70-56. Maryland was down after the first half but used their size inside to their advantage in the second half to come back and win. Maryland is a team who could use that size to win the Big Ten Tournament and make an NCAA run if they get the right matchups.
While the win over Purdue was important, an even bigger week looms ahead for Maryland. Saturday at noon they travel to Ann Arbor for a game against Michigan. It should be very interesting to see how they use their size inside against a team who only has one true big in their rotation. Then on Tuesday Maryland takes on Iowa in another road game. This will be their first matchup of the year against both teams. I’d think that Maryland fans are looking for a split this
week.
Picking the Big Games:
Maryland @ Michigan: This game is likely going to go down to the wire, but I trust Michigan’s star players to make the right plays to close this game out at home. Look for a big rebound game from Zavier Simpson.
Maryland @ Iowa: It is tough to predict Maryland to lose twice in a row after such a big win over Purdue, but Iowa is just so tough to beat at home. The only two teams to beat Iowa on their own court this year are Wisconsin and Michigan State. I’ve got Iowa big in this one.
Purdue @ Indiana: At first, I wasn’t going to include this game in the big games list but I couldn’t pass up the rivalry. Indiana has been pretty easily beat at Assembly Hall this year (currently on a four-game losing streak there), but I think they will play Purdue very tight. Still, I think Purdue will get some big shots late from Ryan Cline and Carsen Edwards.
Michigan @ Minnesota: Michigan is only 4-3 in Big Ten road games, and Minnesota put up a very tough game against them back in Ann Arbor. This Michigan team just hasn’t been hitting the same late game shots on the road as they do at home. I think Minnesota will win this by building a ten-point lead early, and just keeping Michigan from getting too close the rest of the game.
Other Bullets:
Charles Matthews is now playing like someone on a mission. After a quiet stretch through late January and early February, he had huge games against Wisconsin and Penn State. If he stays on this pace through March he may sneak into the first round of some NBA Mock Drafts.
Don’t look now, but Illinois is on a four-game win streak including wins over Michigan State and Ohio State. They had an awful start to the season, so an at-large bid is out of reach for the NCAA Tournament, but watch out for them to surprise people in the Big Ten Tournament and possibly fight for an auto-bid.
Iowa has continued their strong play, and while they aren’t close enough to snag a spot in the Contenders portion of this column, they are probably sitting at a five or six seed in the NCAA Tournament as of now. They are a very dangerous team.
You can follow Brendan on Twitter @Brendan4efc for plenty of Big Ten hoops, general hockey, AFCAA, and Everton F.C. thoughts.
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