Big Ten Men’s Basketball

The conference became incredibly hard to decipher

Hopefully, you got some nice rest over winter break. For college basketball fans, a fresh mind’s certainly needed to decipher the Big Ten.

While you were out – with all stats as of Jan. 21 – Wisconsin beat conference newcomer Nebraska but proceeded to lose three straight – including the first two at home. A terrible showing on the road at Michigan followed in the form of a 59-41 loss, but then the Badgers rebounded by traveling to Purdue and shooting the lights out in a 67-62 victory.

Famous for their consistency in reaching 10 consecutive NCAA tournaments under Bo Ryan, the Badgers topsy-turvy season to date might as well serve as the template for the rest of the conference.

Illinois, with a 15-3 overall record and 4-1 mark in Big Ten play, has sat near the top of the conference for most of the season, but even the Illini have laid some eggs in the form of a 64-48 mid-December loss to Nevada-Las Vegas (now highly ranked, but still) and a 75-60 loss at Purdue on New Year’s Eve.

Michigan, seemingly back to prominence, brought a 14-3 record (4-1 Big Ten) into Iowa City Jan. 14 – and the Hawkeyes responded with a 75-59 demolition of the Wolverines. Indeed, Iowa has been one of the conference’s biggest surprises, picking up wins at Wisconsin and Minnesota in addition to the Michigan game, but sits at just 11-9 (3-4 Big Ten).

Ohio State, of course, is still a top-10 team, though the Buckeyes already have been upset on more than one occasion this season. Michigan State rebounded from its arduous first two games, losses to North Carolina and Duke, winning 15 straight games before dropping two in a row to Northwestern and Michigan.

Indiana became one of the nation’s darlings after its rousing 73-72 victory over undefeated No. 1 Kentucky Dec. 10 in Assembly Hall but sits just 3-3 in Big Ten play.

Individually, familiar names in OSU’s Jared Sullinger and PU’s Robbie Hummel reside in the top five for scoring – albeit at Nos. 4 and 5. Two Northwestern Wildcats, John Shurna (first with 19.1 points per game) and Drew Crawford (third with 17.6) bookend Penn State’s Tim Frazier (18.2).

So what’s the deal – is the Big Ten ocean-deep in talent, or just highly mediocre? Cases could be made for both, but hey – it’s only January.

-Mike Fiammetta

Big Ten hears Hawkeyes’ roar

While many considered the Big Ten to be one of, or even the best, conference in college basketball entering this season, little, if anything, was expected of lowly Iowa, who has not had a winning year since the 2006-07 season. But after making some noise with upsets against then-No. 11 Wisconsin (in the Kohl Center, no less) and then-No. 13 Michigan, Iowa has made it clear that it refuses to be a pushover anymore.

Head coach Fran McCaffery reiterated that concept on Jan. 10, a night where things weren’t going so well for Iowa against then-No. 7 Michigan State.

Down 69-41 with 10:55 remaining in the game, the Hawkeyes gathered around McCaffery on the floor during a timeout, where the second-year coach, during an already animated pep-talk, proceeded to pick up and slam a chair onto the court in front of his players.

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany was later quoted by USA Today expressing his preference that the episode never be repeated. But in a press conference two days after the incident, McCaffery made it quite clear he has no apologies to offer and no plans to tone down his actions on the sidelines.

“No, not at all,” McCaffery said when asked if he has any regrets. “If anybody thinks I’m going to sit there with my hands crossed when we’re down by 40, they got the wrong guy, OK. I was brought in here to change the culture. I’m going to coach with passion, and my players know that.”

As of Jan. 21, McCaffery has the Hawkeyes sitting in eighth place in the Big Ten and has already almost met the team’s win totals from a year ago – McCaffery’s first year on the job. The Hawkeyes finished with an 11-20 overall mark in 2010-11 and a 4-14 record in conference play. With 11 games remaining on the schedule, Iowa already has posted an 11-9 record and a 3-4 streak in conference play.

One of the conference’s most pleasant surprises, the Hawkeyes are doing damage with a solid rebounding game and a steady offense headed by guard Matt Gatens and forwards Melsahn Basabe and Zach McCabe.

Though they don’t seem prepared to fight for the throne of the conference, Iowa appears to at least be a thorn in the side of the Big Ten’s very best.

“I have no regrets, I have no apologies, none whatsoever. I’m going to continue to coach the same way, and we’re going to keep working, improving, and battling, and fighting until we’re up by 40,” McCaffery said.

-Elliot Hughes

WCHA men’s hockey

Upsets abound; North Dakota, Minnesota end in fisticuffs

Nothing is ever surprising in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

The WCHA has historically been a gritty, tough conference where anyone can beat anyone. And over break, it saw a fair amount of upsets.

So as Colorado College took a loss from St. Cloud State, Nebraska-Omaha bested Minnesota-Duluth and Wisconsin was blanked by Minnesota State, no upset was more defining than North Dakota’s 2-1 rout of Minnesota.

North Dakota suffered a road sweep at Minnesota earlier in the year and was more than looking forward to the chance to get another shot at the conference leader. Certainly, after a Friday night win, UND’s confidence could not have been higher. But oh, how hard the mighty fall.

The following night, Minnesota smacked North Dakota 6-2, and UND wasn’t too happy about it.

While they’re no longer known as the Fighting Sioux, senior defenseman Ben Blood personified the nickname to an extreme, throwing a punch at 5-foot-8, 173-pound freshman forward Kyle Rau of Minnesota.

Blood, standing at 6-foot-4, 226 pounds, is UND’s biggest skater. Rau, on the other hand, is Minnesota’s smallest. Sure, it wasn’t a classic David versus Goliath, but Blood’s move tainted his image, making him out to be one of the dirtiest players on the ice, and caused the assistant captain to lose his title.

With the Big Ten adding hockey to its lineup, the series was the last time Minnesota and North Dakota would meet as conference foes at UND. And what a note the rivalry went out on.

-Kelly Erickson

Zengerle comes up just of shy of school record

As Western Collegiate Hockey Association play continued over the University of Wisconsin’s winter break, the Badgers compiled a 5-1, 3-1 WCHA record, an impressive run that allowed Wisconsin to finally climb over the .500 mark for the first time after showing signs of youth all season. One of the best stretches of the Badgers’ season not only improved their record but included a career milestone for one Badger and marked the end of an impressive and near-school record for another.

In game one, at Minnesota State on Jan. 13, Wisconsin not only collected its first road win of the season, but freshman goaltender Joel Rumpel stonewalled the Mavericks’ offense for his first career shutout in the 4-0 win. It was Wisconsin’s first team shutout since Jan. 7 last season.

“[Rumpel was] very good. He only let two goals in all weekend, … he did a fine job for us, gave us a chance both nights,” head coach Mike Eaves said.

The following night in game two, the Badgers had the tables turned on them, being shut out for the first time this season. With zero on the scoreboard, Mark Zengerle had his 20-game point streak snapped, leaving him one game shy of tying the school record set by Eaves in 1977-78.

“It’s quite an accomplishment,” Eaves said. “I don’t think people realize, to be that consistent, what goes into it. And Mark has always been a player that has found his way in the score sheet, and probably on Saturday, just like the rest of the team, had as good of scoring chances that he set up, or he had himself, as any other night that he’s had in the streak. The puck just would not find its way into the back of the net. But it speaks to the consistency of his play and effort over the course of those 20 games.”

-Brett Sommers