Mat Mlodzinski gives his Big Ten basketball power rankings heading into week 10 of the season.
Week 9 team of the week:Â Nebraska Cornhuskers
Week 9 game of the week: #13 Nebraska – 58, #9 Michigan State – 56
Week 9 player of the week:Â Morez Johnson Jr. (Michigan)
Week 10 matchup of the week:Â #10 Nebraska at Ohio State (Jan. 5 at 6:30 p.m.)
Week 10 under-the-radar matchup of the week:Â #19 Iowa at Minnesota (Jan. 6 at 8 p.m.)
All games listed are EST
1) Michigan Wolverines
Last week’s ranking: 1 (-)
Record: 13-0 (3-0)
Last week: W vs. #24 USC (96-66)
Next week: at Penn State (Jan. 6 – 7 p.m.), vs. Wisconsin (Jan. 10 – 1 p.m.)
Quality wins: Gonzaga (Neutral), Villanova, Auburn (Neutral, USC, at TCU, San Diego State (Neutral), Wake Forest
Bad losses:
When is the last time a college basketball team has looked as dominant as Michigan? Through 13 games, they’ve got a total +/- of 393, which comes to an average of 30.2 for the margin of victory. That’s an incredible feat, especially when you look at the list of teams they’ve defeated. Things could get ugly this week for Penn State and Wisconsin.
2) Purdue Boilermakers
Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)
Record: 13-1 (3-0)
Last week: W at Wisconsin (89-73)
Next week: vs. Washington (Jan. 7 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Penn State (Jan. 10 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Alabama, Texas Tech, at Wisconsin, Auburn
Bad losses:
What a week it was for Purdue, as point guard Braden Smith dished out 12 assists against Wisconsin, passing Michigan State great Cassius Winston as the all-time leader in assists in Big Ten basketball. Purdue also won a fifth straight, as they seemed to have found something after getting blown out by Iowa State. It’s a somewhat light week with home games against Washington and Penn State, so a chance for Smith to keep tossing out dimes and the winning streak to grow.
3) Nebraska Cornhuskers
Last week’s ranking: 4 (+1)
Record: 14-0 (3-0)
Last week: W vs. New Hampshire (86-55), W vs. #9 Michigan State (58-56)
Next week: at Ohio State (Jan. 5 – 6:30 p.m.), at Indiana (Jan. 10 – Noon)
Quality wins: at Illinois, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Creighton, New Mexico
Bad losses:
If you aren’t on the Nebraska train by now, I don’t know what to tell you. They’ve got three Quad 1 wins, and it’s only January 5th. At 14-0, they’re clearly in the top tier of Big Ten basketball, and if you didn’t think so before the weekend, the win over Michigan State confirmed it.
Rienk Mast is playing out of his mind, Pryce Sandfort’s efficiency should be raved about, and it’s tough to even find a flaw on this team. With road games at Ohio State and Indiana, Nebraska has a chance to enter the discussion of national title contenders this week.
4) Illinois Fighting Illini
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-1)
Record: 11-3 (2-1)
Last week: W at Penn State (73-65)
Next week: vs. Rutgers (Jan. 8 – 8:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Texas Tech, at Ohio State, Tennessee, Missouri
Bad losses:
An eight-point win over Penn State is mildly concerning, but Illinois still figures to be a major player in the conference. They’ve only got one game against Rutgers this week, which is good, as they look to bounce back from a cold shooting night that saw Tomislav Ivisic go scoreless and the team shoot 22-of-56 altogether.
5) Michigan State Spartans
Last week’s ranking: 5 (-)
Record: 12-2 (2-1)
Last week: L at #13 Nebraska (58-56)
Next week: vs. USC (Jan. 5 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Northwestern (Jan. 8 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: North Carolina, Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky
Bad losses:
You really can’t fault the Spartans for losing a one-possession game on the road to a now top-10-ranked Nebraska team. But you can be upset about a 17-of-50 night from the floor and *checks notes* 21 turnovers. Obviously, that needs to be cleaned up, and it’s a bit of a problem, as it’s the third time this season Michigan State’s coughed it up 15 or more times.
6) Iowa Hawkeyes
Last week’s ranking: 9 (+3)
Record: 12-2 (2-1)
Last week: W vs. UCLA (74-61)
Next week: at Minnesota (Jan. 6 – 8 p.m.), vs. #16 Illinois (Jan. 11 – Noon)
Quality wins: UCLA
Bad losses:
Alright, Iowa, it’s your turn to prove to us if you belong this high up in the Big Ten basketball power rankings. I’d say this is where the second tier of the conference really starts, but after taking down UCLA, Iowa’s starting to turn some heads. Plus, Bennett Stirtz finally had a big game against good competition, going for 27 in the win. Maybe the Hawkeyes are starting to figure some things out?
7) Indiana Hoosiers
Last week’s ranking: 10 (+3)
Record: 11-3 (2-1)
Last week: W vs. Washington (90-80)
Next week: at Maryland (Jan. 7 – 6:30 p.m.), vs. #10 Nebraska (Jan. 10 – Noon)
Quality wins: Washington, Kansas State
Bad losses: at Minnesota
Indiana has hovered around the middle of the pack of the Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings for a few weeks now, but a recent win over some like competition in Washington has them back up a few spots. The craziest part of this game was Lamar Wilkerson going 6-for-17 and leading the Hoosiers in scoring (not great efficiency), but the team still shooting 52% for the game. Yeah, the rest of the guys went 25-of-43 and 9-of-18 from three, really making up for his cold, yet still solid night.
Now the Hoosiers turn their attention to Maryland, before taking down an undefeated Nebraska team. Not an easy week, but one that could boost their resume for Selection Sunday.
8) UCLA Bruins
Last week’s ranking: 6 (-2)
Record: 10-4 (2-1)
Last week: L at Iowa (74-61)
Next week: at Wisconsin (Jan. 6 – 9 p.m.), vs. Maryland (Jan. 10 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Washington, Arizona State
Bad losses:
I’m starting to feel bad for Mick Cronin, because he’s got some great talent in Donovan Dent and Tyler Bilodeau, but this Bruins team may never have an edge on the boards. The loss to Iowa sets them back briefly, but now it’s about the week at hand – at Wisconsin and Maryland. This could be a 2-0 week for a UCLA team that desperately needs some type of spark.
9) Ohio State Buckeyes
Last week’s ranking: 10 (+1)
Record: 10-3 (2-1)
Last week: W at Rutgers (80-73)
Next week: vs. #10 Nebraska (Jan. 5 – 6:30 p.m.), at Oregon (Jan. 8 – 10:30 p.m.), at Washington (Jan. 11 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: West Virginia, Notre Dame
Bad losses:
Ohio State has played some close games lately against all sorts of competition, which makes me think they might play a bit down to some teams and up to others.
This week isn’t one to do that, as they’ve got a big home game against Nebraska, before a tough road trip to Oregon and Washington. That’s three games in seven days and a chance for the Buckeyes to go 2-1 and prove they’re a tournament team here in January.
10) USC Trojans
Last week’s ranking: 7 (+3)
Record: 12-2 (1-2)
Last week: L at #2 Michigan (96-66)
Next week: at #12 Michigan State (Jan. 5 – 8:30 p.m.), at Minnesota (Jan. 9 – 8:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Seton Hall (Neutral), Arizona State (Neutral), at Oregon
Bad losses:
USC was the latest victim of the monster that is Michigan, and now they’ve got to play on the road at a Michigan State team eager to get past their tough loss to Nebraska. Add in a sneaky Minnesota team for another road game on Friday, and you’ve got a Trojans team just trying to stay afloat. This is a week where the experience of a guy like Chad Baker-Mazara virtually has to pay off.
11) Oregon Ducks
Last week’s ranking: 14 (+3)
Record: 8-6 (1-2)
Last week: W at Maryland (64-54)
Next week: at Rutgers (Jan. 5 – 7 p.m.), vs. Ohio State (Jan. 8 – 10:30 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
Alright, Oregon, don’t make me regret moving you all the way up to 11th! The Ducks still don’t have a great win yet, but they have won four of five, with the loss being a single-digit one to Gonzaga.
With Rutgers and Ohio State this week, Oregon has two games to try to prove they are back from a terrible start to the season. But a split, and the clock is ticking on their tournament chances. Pressure is on!
12) Wisconsin Badgers
Last week’s ranking: 13 (+1)
Record: 9-5 (1-2)
Last week: W vs. Milwaukee (80-60), L vs. #5 Purdue (89-73)
Next week: vs. UCLA (Jan. 6 – 9 p.m.), at #2 Michigan (Jan. 10 – 1 p.m.)
Quality wins: Providence
Bad losses:
New Year’s Resolution: Starting faster
Wisconsin might have moved up in this week’s Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings, but it’s more about why they were ever that low to begin with. Sure, the Badgers haven’t looked great, but they haven’t done enough to deserve that type of fall.
This week, they’ve got some great opportunities – UCLA at home and a chance to pull off an insane upset against Michigan. But above all, they’ve got to fix the defensive effort after giving up 89 at home to Purdue.
13) Minnesota Golden Gophers
Last week’s ranking: 16 (+3)
Record: 9-5 (2-1)
Last week: W at Northwestern (84-78),
Next week: vs. #19 Iowa (Jan. 6 – 8 p.m.), vs. USC (Jan. 9 – 8:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Indiana
Bad losses: San Francisco
It’s been a true up-and-down year for Minnesota, but the latest game was a positive, taking down Northwestern on the road. Cade Tyson had 24, Minnesota made 22-of-24 free throws, and then had 12 from Grayson Grove off the bench. All really good things ahead of a week where the Golden Gophers could realistically pull off an upset or two.
14) Washington Huskies
Last week’s ranking: 11 (-3)
Record: 9-5 (1-2)
Last week: L at Indiana (90-80)
Next week: at #5 Purdue (Jan. 7 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Ohio State (Jan. 11 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: at USC
Bad losses: at Seattle
While I haven’t given up on Washington, I’m giving them the true Oregon/Wisconsin treatment in my week 10 Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings. They’ve got talent, but it isn’t producing wins, so the only thing I can do is move them further down the list.
With Purdue and Ohio State this week, things are looking bleak, unless the Huskies can find some defense and play a full 40 minutes.
15) Maryland Terrapins
Last week’s ranking: 15 (-)
Record: 7-7 (0-3)
Last week: L vs. Oregon (64-54)
Next week: vs. Indiana (Jan. 7 – 6:30 p.m.), at UCLA (Jan. 10 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses: Georgetown
You can pretty much eliminate Maryland from NCAA Tournament contention at this point, but at least they made an effort against an Oregon team playing better. Still, the Terps struggle to hit threes at times, turnovers are a massive problem, and they haven’t had a quality win in 14 tries. This just isn’t their year in College Park.
16) Northwestern Wildcats
Last week’s ranking: 12 (-4)
Record: 8-6 (0-3)
Last week: W vs. Howard (80-60), L vs. Minnesota (84-78)
Next week: at #12 Michigan State (Jan. 8 – 6:30 p.m.), at Rutgers (Jan. 11 – 5 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
At a certain point, enough is enough, and for Northwestern, I’ve had enough of seeing them lose close games. Hopefully, moving them down four spots in the Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings will be enough of a wake-up call!
17) Penn State Nittany Lions
Last week’s ranking: 17 (-)
Record: 9-5 (0-3)
Last week: L vs. #20 Illinois (73-65)
Next week: vs. #2 Michigan (Jan. 6 – 7 p.m.), at #5 Purdue (Jan. 10 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses: Pitt
Say your prayers for Penn State this week, this could get UGLY against Michigan and Purdue…
18) Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Last week’s ranking: 18 (-)
Record: 7-7 (0-3)
Last week: L vs. Ohio State (80-73)
Next week: vs. Oregon (Jan. 5 – 7 p.m.), at #16 Illinois (Jan. 8 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Northwestern (Jan. 11 – 5 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses: CCSU
I actually feel pity for Rutgers, which is the worst team in Big Ten basketball and now has three games in seven days. Life just isn’t fair sometimes!