With another big week in the Big Ten comes another
conference roundup! Let’s dig in.
Michigan:
Last week Michigan got two big wins, first at home
against a hot Maryland team. They followed that up with a Thursday night
blowout win at Minnesota. The Wolverines used the same formula for both wins,
jumping out to a lead early and then keeping their opponents at arm’s length
the rest of the game. Maryland did get closer than Minnesota, having it as a
two-possession game halfway through the second half. It was too little too late
though, as Michigan would retake a double-digit lead and never look back.
Next week Michigan plays their last two home games of
the season, taking on a depleted Michigan State team on Sunday and Big Ten
basement dweller Nebraska. In terms of Michigan’s Big Ten Title hopes, Michigan
needs to win both games this week. To win the regular season title it is a must
to defend your home-court.
Purdue:
Last week Purdue played two lower tier teams in the
Big Ten, playing Penn State at home and Indiana on the road. The Penn State
game was tight at the half, with PSU trying to play spoiler and but Purdue was
able to pull away with ease on their way to a 76-64 victory. Against Indiana
the game was more of a rock fight to the finish. Indiana held a slight lead
going into the final stretch but just couldn’t hit any shots late. That is a
huge rivalry win for Purdue, that could have easily been a loss.
Purdue’s two games in the upcoming week look fairly
easy on the surface but could end up being tricky. First is a Saturday bout on
the road against an up and down Nebraska team. Nebraska has been a bottom tier
Big Ten team but getting a road win there is never an easy task. Purdue will
then return home for a game against Illinois who certainly could pull off an
upset. There are only a few games left in this season so every game will count
in this race for the Big Ten title.
Michigan
State:
Michigan State went 2-0 this week, but injuries to
Nick Ward and Kyle Ahrens make the wins against Ohio State and Rutgers less
exciting. Ward was injured in a 62-44 win over Ohio State on Sunday in which it
was tied at 42 with about twelve minutes left, and Michigan State finished on a
20-2 run. On Wednesday night the Spartans found themselves in a dog fight with
Rutgers at home, until again they ran away with it and earned a 71-60 victory.
Kyle Ahrens re-aggravated his mid-season injury at some point in the second
half.
The injuries to Ward and Ahrens come at an inopportune
time, as their road game against Michigan comes on Sunday. At the beginning of
the year this game was circled as one of the biggest games on the Big Ten
schedule. Michigan State doesn’t need a
win against Michigan on the road, but if they were able to pull off the upset
they would set themselves up well for the Big Ten race in the final weeks.
Wisconsin:
Wisconsin only had one game this week, being a home
tilt against Illinois. The game went back and forth throughout the whole
contest, but Wisconsin was able to make the important shots down the stretch to
get a 64-58 victory.
Wisconsin goes on the road twice this upcoming week
against lower tier Big Ten teams, playing at Northwestern on Saturday and
Indiana on Tuesday. The more dangerous of these teams right now is Indiana, who
is looking for a few more wins to push them back into the tournament situation.
The Hoosiers showed their ability to get close in making some an upset with a
road win against Michigan State and the scare they put into Purdue last week.
Maryland:
Maryland split both their two games on last week’s
road trip with a loss against Michigan and a big win against Iowa. Maryland did
a good job of keeping the game against Michigan close, but just couldn’t
contain the Wolverine’s on offense in the last ten minutes. In the game against
Iowa on Tuesday it was a back and forth contest, but Maryland was able to win
with Iowa’s potential game-winner at the buzzer missing. That was a huge result
for a young Maryland team to go into a hostile road environment like
Carver-Hawkeye Arena and get a win.
Picking
the Big Games:
- Michigan
State @ Michigan: I like Michigan in
this game for two reasons. First, Michigan hasn’t lost a home game since
January of 2018. They have been dominant defending their own court. Second,
Michigan State doesn’t have the depth coming off the bench of their starters can’t get it done.
If Xavier Tillman ends up in foul trouble, that will most likely be the undoing
of MSU.
- Purdue
@ Nebraska: Nebraska is fresh off a
bad loss to Penn State, and there is no reason they should win this game. But
there is always a few games in February that make little sense, and I think
this will be one of them.
- Wisconsin @
Indiana: Indiana is a desperate team, and that is dangerous. But I do not think
they will have the answers for stopping Ethan Happ, and if their reaction ends
up being to double him, then Wisconsin will beat them with the three-point
ball.
Other
Bullets:
- Penn
State is heating up a little after their win over Michigan. They took Purdue
down to the wire, and then beat the brakes off Nebraska. You can group them
into the club with Illinois of “Nobody wants to play us in the Big Ten
Tournament.”
- Indiana’s
quest for the tourney: IU blew a big chance for a signature win against Purdue
with a couple point lead at home, but they have a couple chances left in
February.
- Minnesota’s
quest for the tourney: Minnesota is probably in the field right now, but can’t
afford any bad losses down the stretch, and probably need at least one win in
the Big Ten Tournament.
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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