Griffiths: Indiana is team to beat in Big Ten tournament
By DOUG GRIFFITHS
ISL Assistant Editor
How tough is the Big Ten?
Well, Michigan, a Top 10 team all season long, doesn’t even get a first-round bye in the Big Ten Tournament, and four Big Ten teams enter the postseason ranked in the Top 10, Wolverines included.
As we brace for the start of the annual conference tournament today in Chicago, many are talking about whoever emerges as the winner will face more of a grind in the Windy City than it will in the NCAA Tournament.
Yes, that’s life in the Big Ten this year.
There are eight 20-win teams and three players that are deserving of national player of the year honors in Michigan’s Trey Burke, and Indiana’s Cody Zeller and Victor Oladipo. And there are still more that, if they so choose, will be NBA lottery picks in June.
This year’s Big Ten Tournament has all the makings of the best its ever been, and the past 15 years have been pretty good.
This year is different though. On top of the star power the league features, it also has four teams that are legitimate Final Four contenders, and any four of them could win the national championship.
You wonder how a first-year head coach in the conference feels about playing in such a loaded event.
Nebraska coach Tim Miles, whose Huskers enter today’s play 14-17 overall, including 5-13 in the Big Ten, points out that Illinois is the eighth seed in the Big Ten Tournament yet beat the No. 1 team in the nation in Gonzaga earlier this year.
“This league is unbelievable,” Miles said. “At the end (of the regular season), you realize what a grind it was. I have a whole bunch of new gray hair I have the Big Ten to thank for.”
No wonder Miles is going gray quicker than he wants. A strong case can be made for each one of those eight 20-win teams deserving to earn an NCAA Tournament bid.
Matt Painter’s Purdue Boilermakers would have to win the Big Ten Tournament to earn their seventh straight bid to the Big Dance. Painter is just hopeful his 15-16 Purdue team can at least win a couple games in Chicago to make sure its playing in the postseason or even gets fortunate enough to be chosen by the NIT or CBI with less than a .500 record.
“I want to play basketball,” Painter said. “The way we have played the last two weeks, I would play exhibition games right now. I would do anything in my power to keep playing. Three weeks ago, I wouldn’t have felt that way. But the promise and fight they have shown really is encouraging.
“A month ago, you were trying to beg people to do stuff and do basic things. Now, they are fun to coach. It’s fun to coach when everybody is on the same page. There’s no doubt about it, it’s fun. You want to start over and play 30 games, but that is not the way it works. Hopefully, we can continue to play games. It’s an exciting time of the year.”
It certainly is an exciting time of the year.
So without further ado, I forecast how things will shake out in the Windy City.
Opening Round
#8 Illinois 70, #9 Minnesota 62
Illini usually play well in front of partisan United Center crowd and will against a Gopher team that hasn’t shown much interest of doing anything of note away from The Barn.
#5 Michigan 90, #12 Penn State 69
No hangover from the gut-wrenching loss to IU Sunday as the Wolverines really turn it on for postseason. Michigan has way too much talent for Nittany Lions to make this a game.
#7 Purdue 66, #10 Nebraska 55
The Boilermakers have picked a perfect time to decide to play their best basketball of the season. A.J. Hammons should have a huge game as Huskers have no answer for him.
#6 Iowa 61, #11 Northwestern 57
Northwestern always seems to play a competitive game in the Big Ten Tournament, but always comes up short. Next loss will be Coach Bill Carmody’s last in Evanston.
Quarterfinals
#1 Indiana 80, #8 Illinois 68
This could really be an entertaining game considering the only time these two teams met in the regular season was decided in the last second. Don’t expect Cody Zeller to have a brain lapse this time around, however, as Hoosiers have too much firepower to slip up again against the Illini.
#5 Michigan 65, #4 Wisconsin 60
The Badgers limp to Chicago after losing two of their last three with the lone win coming by 3 against lowly Penn State. One and done for Bo Ryan’s bunch.
#2 Ohio State 71, #7 Purdue 61
This could be your quarterfinals upset special, but the Buckeyes are always a tough out in this event. OSU’s 67.9 winning percentage in Big Ten tourney is second to none as is its seven championship game appearances. Young Boilers put up a good fight, but fall down the stretch.
#3 Michigan State 77, #6 Iowa 62
Some people like Michigan State to win this conference tournament and it just may if guard Keith Appling plays up to his ability. Tom Izzo’s club has a lot to like about it, including the terrific inside-outside threat of Gary Harris and Adreian Payne.
Semifinals
#1 Indiana 75, #5 Michigan 72
This is the rematch everyone wants. As if the thriller in Ann Arbor wasn’t enough, you had the postgame fireworks involving Tom Crean and Jeff Meyer.
Just sit back, relax and enjoy what should be a great college basketball game that features a ton of NBA talent.
#2 Ohio State 59, #3 Michigan State 56
Assuming Aaron Craft continues scoring like he did down the stretch, the Buckeyes will punch their ticket for Sunday. This rubber match of the season will be decided by Big Ten-leading scorer Deshaun Thomas. The Fort Wayne native will deliver OSU to its fifth straight Big Ten Tournament championship game.
Finals
#1 Indiana 71, #2 Ohio State 66
The Hoosiers are the best team in this field position-by-position and will showcase that against the Buckeyes, who won’t be able to repeat their feat from a little over a week ago in Assembly Hall.
Victor Oladipo is arguably the best player in college basketball and certainly Zeller is right there, too. As long as Zeller gets his touches, the Hoosiers will be cutting down the nets in the UC. Shortly after celebrating their first Big Ten tourney title ever, they’ll find out their road to the Final Four goes through Dayton and Indy. Can you say Final Four?
Also:
Hammons’ freshman season one of best ever at Purdue
Painter did solid job with young team
Crean actions after Michigan game classless
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