Big Ten tournament outlook

Badger Herald sports staff

1. Illinois (22-5, 13-3)

After a 52-year wait, the Illini are outright Big Ten Champions once again. It was not easy, though, as Bruce Weber’s team survived scares from Purdue and Ohio State to close out the season and the conference title. Winners of its last 10, Illinois is hotter than any team in the league. The Illini last tasted defeat Jan. 24 in the Kohl Center, when the Wisconsin Badgers handed them a 76-56 trouncing. Deron Williams has established himself as one of the best guards in the Big Ten, leading the Illini with 13.9 points and 6.1 assists per contest. Illinois takes on the winner of today’s matchup between Ohio State and Indiana.

2. Wisconsin (21-6, 12-4)

Bo Ryan’s Badgers are playing some of their best basketball of the season heading into Indianapolis. Wisconsin is fresh off its regular season, ending with back-to-back road wins over Michigan State and Indiana, and has won four in a row. Newly crowned Big Ten Player of the Year Devin Harris leads the Badger attack, averaging 19.3 points and 4.4 rebounds while playing more than 36 minutes per game. Ryan has yet to win a game in the Big Ten Tournament, falling to Iowa in 2002 and being upset by a scrappy Ohio State squad in 2003. However, with their two-year reign as conference champions over, the Badgers will have something to prove as they await the winner of Purdue and Minnesota.

3. Michigan State (17-10, 12-4)

The No. 3-seeded Michigan State Spartans enter the Big Ten Tournament as one of the most talented squads in the conference. Though a No. 3 seed has never won the tournament, Michigan State has the offensive firepower to take home the title. The Spartans led the Big Ten in scoring (71.3 points per game), field-goal percentage (.522), 3-point shooting percentage (.434) and free-throw shooting percentage (.777) in the regular season, the only team in Big Ten history to lead the conference in all four categories in the same season. After winning five of their last six regular-season games, the Spartans carry momentum into Friday’s second-round contest against the winner of No. 6 Northwestern and No. 11 Penn State’s first-round battle.

4. Iowa (16-11, 9-7)

Injuries and academic problems have taken their toll on the Hawkeyes in 2003-04, but Steve Alford’s club has kept fighting. Despite playing with a limited six- or seven-man rotation, Iowa closed out the Big Ten regular season by winning four of its final six games. With Jared Reiner nursing an injured foot, Mike Henderson and Nick DeWitz ineligible and Sean Sonderleiter quitting the team, Pierre Pierce has emerged as the go-to guy in Iowa City. Pierce scores at a clip of 15.7 points per game and adds 5.6 rebounds to the Iowa cause. Jeff Horner and Brody Boyd are both excellent 3-point marksmen. The Hawkeyes meet Tommy Amaker’s Michigan Wolverines Friday.

5. Michigan (17-10, 8-8)

Tommy Amaker’s Wolverines enter Indianapolis in need of a few wins to earn an at-large bid to the Big Dance. All-Big Ten third-team selections Lester Abram and Bernard Robinson led Michigan to a 6-2 home conference record, but the Wolverines were just 2-6 on the road. With a 17-10 overall record, Michigan is looking in on the field. A game against Iowa makes for an interesting contest as the Hawkeye sharpshooters may offer a challenge to the athleticism and youth of the Wolverines. Michigan has shown flashes of being a better team than its record indicates, and if Daniel Horton and Courtney Sims are contributing like they have, the Wolverines are a formidable opponent.

6. Northwestern (13-14, 8-8)

Under the guidance of Big Ten Coach of the Year Bill Carmody, the vastly improved Wildcats posted their first .500 conference record since 1968. Northwestern has had its fair share of impressive wins, defeating the likes of Arizona State, Illinois, Wisconsin and Purdue, but also dropped contests to Penn State and Ohio State. First-team All-Big Ten honoree Jitim Young is the principal ingredient in Carmody’s offense. Young paces the Wildcats in scoring at 17.8 points per game, and at 6 feet 2, he leads the team in rebounding with 6.1 boards per game. Vedran Vukusic is quietly emerging as a very good player in the Big Ten. Northwestern has a first-round date with Penn State, with whom it split the regular-season series.

7. Purdue (17-12, 7-9)

At 17-12, Gene Keady’s Boilermakers are another team looking to better their chances for an NCAA bid. With an experienced nucleus, Purdue has the makings of a team with the desire and talent to pull off some upsets. The Boilermakers swept the season series against first-round opponent Minnesota, out-muscling the Gophers and limiting Kris Humphries’ production. Beating a team three times in one season, however, is a difficult task. Two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Kenneth Lowe is a leader who has endured injury and disappointment this season. After an excellent start to the conference season, Purdue faltered to a 2-6 record down the stretch. Lowe, Brett Buscher and Ivan Kartelo are seniors who will not go out without a fight.

8. Indiana (13-14, 7-9)

2003-04 was a season of frustration for the Hoosiers and their fans. After beginning conference play 3-1, Indiana went into a tailspin, losing eight of its last 10 Big Ten games, including an embarrassing 70-52 loss to Wisconsin on senior day. Sitting one game below .500, the Hoosiers are in danger of not even qualifying for the NIT and will need a strong showing in Indianapolis to keep their season alive. Bracey Wright is asked to shoulder the lion’s share of the scoring load, and he has delivered at 18.7 points per game. If the Hoosiers are to make a run, it will begin with the Ohio State Buckeyes, whom they face in the first round.

9. Ohio State (14-15, 6-10)

Jim O’Brien’s Buckeyes are sitting at 14-15 and looking to repeat the magic of last season’s tourney run, which took them all the way to the final round. The Buckeyes, however, have not found the regular scoring presence that Brent Darby proved to be last season. The first round pits O’Brien’s squad against the hometown Indiana Hoosiers, who are a senior-laden team with talent that has not matched their production. Similarly, the Buckeyes have struggled to meet preseason aspirations. Ohio State ended its season winning three of its last five, falling to Illinois in the season finale by one point. Momentum might be on the side of the Buckeyes, and center Velimir Radinovic, guard Tony Stockman and forward Terence Dials are all capable of carrying the load.

10. Minnesota (11-17, 3-13)

Led by freshman sensation Kris Humphries, the No. 10-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers won their final regular-season contest for the first time in the Dan Monson era.

However, the Gophers travel to Conseco Fieldhouse with the odds stacked heavily against them. The struggling squad lost seven of their final 10 games and finished at the bottom of the Big Ten standings with just three conference victories. Minnesota will climb on the back of Big Ten Freshman of the Year Humphries, who became the first freshman in Big Ten history to lead the conference in scoring (21 points per game) and rebounding (9.5 per game). The Gophers will take on No. 7-seeded Purdue tonight in the first round of the tournament.

11. Penn State (9-18, 3-13)

After losing its final 10 games of the regular season, No. 11-seeded Penn State limps into a first-round matchup against No. 6-seeded Northwestern tonight. The Nittany Lions enter the tournament looking for their first conference victory since Jan. 28. The struggling squad has lost 24 consecutive conference road games. Though Penn State travels to Indianapolis as a long shot, the Lions can look to all-Big Ten honorable mention Jan Jagla and Big Ten All-Freshman honoree Marlon Smith to provide offensive sparks. Jagla and Smith will need to put up strong numbers for the Big Ten’s lowest-ranked offense (58.5 points per game) to make any noise in the tournament.