DetroitSports.Today™

Detroit Sports News Continuously Updated

Big Ten Power Rankings: Purdue Back on Top

by

Purdue basketball is the best team in the Big Ten.

The fight for the top spot in the Big Ten is on, as is the race to avoid the bottom three. This league has proven to be very competitive, and it still wouldn’t be shocking if the league’s winner ended with five losses. Every team in the Big Ten has at least two conference losses already. The top three teams still have games against each other. As those three have separated themselves. The Purdue Boilermakers have once again climbed to the top of the Big Ten Basketball power rankings. Let’s look at how the whole 18-team Big Ten Basketball power rankings stand.

Big Ten Power Rankings: Purdue Back on Top

18. Penn State (13-11, 3-10)

Wow, has it been an up-and-down road for Penn State? After beating Purdue early in the schedule, the Nittany Lions have quickly fallen to the bottom of the barrel in the Big Ten. Injuries have had key players like Ace Baldwin Jr and Yanic Konan Niederhauser in and out of the lineup. With their last game on the road at UCLA, Penn State dropped its fifth-straight game, this time with Nicholas Kern , arguably the team’s top defender, having a rough night. High expectations aren’t living up in year two for Mike Rhoades.

17. Washington (12-11, 3-9)

Sure, it’s been a very tough first season for head coach Danny Sprinkle. The Huskies have looked like the worst team in the Big Ten, and that doesn’t come as a surprise. They have been able to win three conference games, which is pretty good for a team that lacks Big Ten guys at this point. Beating Minnesota on the road to end a six-game losing streak was pretty big for the program. Then they got their third win in league play against a beat-up Northwestern team. Zoom Diallo has been putting in strong minutes for the Huskies lately.

16. Minnesota (12-12, 4-9)

The Golden Gophers have been putting up a fight. That’s the good news; the bad news is it’s probably not going to be enough to keep coach Ben Johnson around. Minnesota currently sits 16th in the Big Ten and is trending towards missing the Big Ten Tournament. That’s despite owning wins over Michigan and Oregon. This battle to avoid the bottom three is as contested as the top of the Big Ten.

15. Northwestern (13-11, 4-9)

The Wildcats’ NCAA Tournament aspirations are pretty much spent. Now, the goal is to survive the rest of the regular season. Impactful injuries have befallen Northwestern. First, losing Brooks Barnhizer to a foot injury was crushing. But the biggest blow has to be starting guard Jalen Leach tearing his ACL, it just kills an already beat-up team. Not the way those two seniors wanted to see their Wildcat careers end.

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

14. Iowa (13-10, 4-8)

Is Fran McCaffrey feeling the heat? His Hawkeyes are pretty much in a freefall. After announcing starting center Owen Freeman is out for the remainder of the season, a lot of their NCAA hopes are dashed. With now three-straight losses against three teams in the thick of the Tournament hunt, and even harder games still left on the schedule, Iowa is in trouble.

13. Rutgers (12-12, 5-8)

When the Scarlet Knights have their full lineup, they can compete with anyone in the Big Ten. They were without Ace Bailey this past weekend, and it cost them in a tough match-up at Maryland. In the game before that, Bailey and Dylan Harper were huge. Harper’s 28 points helped Rutgers put down then-ranked No. 23 Illinois. There are a lot of what-ifs with the Scarlet Knights this season.

12. Indiana (14-10, 5-8)

It’s not a secret that Mike Woodson is in his final season as the head man in Bloomington. But a lot more was expected out of this team. Heck, they fought like crazy against Michigan this past weekend and even had the game tied late. They lost another close one, and that’s now five straight losses and a trip to the Breslin Center coming up.

11. Oregon (16-8, 5-8)

It feels weird having Oregon this low, but a six-game slide isn’t helping the cause. The Ducks put up 50 points in the first half of their last game at Michigan State. 50 in the Breslin Center, that’s pretty unheard of, especially by the visiting team. Not to mention, Jackson Shelstad was lighting it up. They quickly fell apart and lost their 14-point halftime lead. Blowing a 14-point lead and losing by 12 isn’t boosting anyone’s confidence in Eugene.

10. USC (13-10, 5-7)

I’m not sure anyone expected the Trojans to be in the top 10 of the Big Ten this season. But Eric Musselman has USC right in the thick of it. Let alone the way they outclassed Michigan State in all facets of the game when the Spartans visited the Galen Center. Too bad that heat didn’t carry over to their next two games, as they dropped games at Northwestern and Purdue. Still, USC has plenty of room to grow. Wesley Yates III   was impressive at Purdue, scoring 30 points against the Boilermakers in Mackey Arena.

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

9. Ohio State (14-10, 6-7)

As soon as the Buckeyes find a little rhythm, they hit a wall the next game. After a three-point win against the Maryland Terrapins, Ohio State fell apart on the road at Nebraska. I guess that’s just how life in the Big Ten is. The next three games are at home. Wins in all three would help keep the Buckeyes in the NCAA tournament conversation.

8. Nebraska (16-8, 6-7)

I had Nebraska written off because of their six-game losing streak in January. Man, I was wrong. They have since won four straight games. Three of which have come against Illinois, Oregon, and most recently Ohio State. Brice Williams is back to playing like an All-Big Ten player, much like he did for the first month and a half of the season. The Huskers are a tournament team.

7. Illinois (16-8, 8-6)

This team has all the talent in the world, and they are just gross to watch. The fans might be as annoying as the product on the floor each night for the Illini. They have plenty of playmakers young and old, yet they have six losses in the Big Ten. ‘Mr. Lottery Pick’ Kasparas Jakucionis has been sloppy over the last several weeks. Not to mention, their best player as of late, Will Riley  isn’t even starting. Riley has been the leading scorer in each of the last three games. His 27-point performance against Minnesota was huge, especially on the road.

6. Maryland (18-6, 8-5)

The Terps have an outside chance of sneaking up and stealing the Big Ten with four of their last seven games coming at home. They get the Spartans in College Park late in the schedule. Maryland also has a game at Michigan to prove themselves as well. They go to Nebraska this week, so that will be a test. These next few games could cement Maryland’s status as a Big Ten contender.

5. UCLA (18-6, 9-4)

That Big Ten toughness Mick Cronin was looking for has shown up. The Bruins have been on a role, and even with six players being out because of sickness, UCLA followed up their two-point win against Michigan State with a thrashing of Penn State. Seven straight wins have the Bruins right on the heels of a top-four finish in the Big Ten race.

4. Wisconsin (19-5, 9-4)

The Badgers are in the same boat as UCLA. They are right there, and any slip-up by the three teams right ahead of them, Wisconsin is ready to pounce. Can they go into Mackey this week and knock off the Big Ten leading Boilermakers? An upset win against Purdue would make the Badgers a clear top-three team in the conference.

3. Michigan (18-5, 10-2)

The Wolverines continue to ascend. They are tied for second with rival Michigan State, and they continue to win tight games. That is only building their confidence. It also appears that point guard Tre Donaldson has found his footing. Turnovers are still a lingering issue, though. Michigan has a statement game against Purdue this week.

2. Michigan State (19-4, 10-2)

The annual February slide happened during the Spartans’ California trip. They bounced back hugely as they took down Oregon to help coach Izzo tie Bobby Knight for Big Ten victories all-time . Jase Richardson proved he is legit with a 29-point performance that was magical. Even with Jeremy Fears Jr and Xavier Booker both out sick, this was a huge win for the team.

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

1. Purdue (19-5, 11-2)

The cream rises to the top. Here’s Matt Painter’s Boilermakers back atop the Big Ten. Winners of 11 of their last 12 games, Purdue has a huge game ahead with a road trip to Ann Arbor. The production from Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn is scary. This game is going to be a must-see match-up, no doubt.

 

Photo credit: © Alex Martin/Journal and Courier /USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The post Big Ten Power Rankings: Purdue Back on Top appeared first on Last Word On Basketball .