Michigan Wolverines basketball stands alone atop the Big Ten standings and is No. 1 in this week’s power rankings. Here’s our rankings of every conference team, 1-18.
1. Michigan (22-1 overall, 12-1 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 1st (—)
Last week: vs. Penn State (W, 110-69), at Ohio State (W, 82-61)
This week: at Northwestern (Wednesday), vs. UCLA (Saturday)
Michigan keeps on cruising. The Wolverines dominated both opponents last week, coming off two top-10 victories the prior. The Wolverines rank No. 1 in the nation on KenPom and are picking up steam.
2. Illinois (20-4 overall, 11-2 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 2nd (—)
Last week: vs. Northwestern (W, 78-69), at Michigan State (L, 85-82 in OT)
This week: vs. Wisconsin (Tuesday), vs. Indiana (Sunday)
Illinois dominated Northwestern every which way, winning by 40 points, and was called the “juggernauts of all juggernauts” by Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo. Well, the three-pointers didn’t fall for the Fighting Illini in East Lansing Saturday night, and head coach Brad Underwood‘s team fell in overtime. They are mortal, after all.
The Fighting Illini do a lot well, but their fate depends quite a bit on three-point success. They’re 13-0 when shooting 35-plus percent from deep and 7-4 when failing to hit that mark. They made only 10 of their 36 tries from long range against the Spartans (27.8 percent).
3. Nebraska (21-2 overall, 10-2 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 3rd (—)
Last week: at Rutgers (W, 80-68)
This week: vs. Purdue (Tuesday), vs. Northwestern (Saturday)
Nebraska had some time off last week, with six days between games, allowing it to get healthier. Big man Rienk Mast wasn’t at 100 percent in the Feb. 1 loss to Illinois but returned to form with 26 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists with no turnovers in the win over Rutgers. It’s still a seven-man rotation, sparking concern that the Cornhuskers will run out of gas late in games and down the stretch of the season, but the situation was dire against Michigan, without Mast and forward Braden Frager.
4. Michigan State (20-4 overall, 10-3 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 4th (—)
Last week: at Minnesota (Wednesday), vs. Illinois (W, 85-82 in OT)
This week: at Wisconsin (Friday)
Much of the conversation surrounding Michigan State has resolved around point guard Jeremy Fears Jr.‘s dirty plays, which continued with a trip in Saturday’s win over Illinois. But he’s producing all the while, producing 37.1 of the Spartans’ 79.1 points per game between scoring and assisting, presumably a big reason why Izzo decided against suspending him.
Michigan State lost at Minnesota earlier in the week but hung on to notch a big home victory over the Fighting Illini over the weekend. Shooting guard Divine Ugochukwu is out for the season with a foot injury suffered in Minneapolis, but the Spartans are still one of the top teams in the league.
5. Purdue (19-4 overall, 9-3 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 5th (—)
Last week: vs. Oregon (W, 68-64)
This week: at Nebraska (Tuesday), at Iowa (Saturday)
Purdue is in a bit of a funk, and nearly lost to Oregon — which has only one Big Ten win — Saturday at Mackey Arena. Since Jan. 20, the day the Boilermakers’ three-game losing skid began (UCLA, Illinois, Indiana), they’ve played like the 21st-most efficient team in the country, ranking a lowly 80th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, per T-Rank. Purdue has bounced back with wins over Maryland and Oregon, but the game against the Ducks was too close for comfort.
6. Iowa (18-5 overall, 8-4 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 6th (—)
Last week: at Washington (W, 84-74), vs. Northwestern (W, 76-70)
This week: at Maryland (Wednesday), vs. Purdue (Saturday)
Iowa has won six-straight games amidst a very manageable portion of its schedule. The Hawkeyes have some big challenges coming up, but they’re firmly No. 6 on this list, having beaten seventh-ranked Indiana in Bloomington. The only black mark on the resumé is the loss to Minnesota at the beginning of January.
7. Indiana (16-8 overall, 7-6 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 7th (—)
Last week: at USC (L, 81-75), vs. Wisconsin (W, 78-77 in OT)
This week: vs. Oregon (Monday), at Illinois (Sunday)
Indiana was on the right end of two controversial calls late in the game against Wisconsin, and has now won four of its last five games. The Hoosiers look like an NCAA Tournament team at this point.
8. Wisconsin (16-7 overall, 8-4 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 8th (—)
Last week: at Indiana (L, 78-77 in OT)
This week: at Illinois (Tuesday), vs. Michigan State (Friday)
Wisconsin’s recent success, outside of a win at Michigan Jan. 10, is mostly a product of its schedule. The Badgers have struggled mightily for large parts of their recent wins, and then fell to Indiana in Bloomington Saturday. Wisconsin has a tougher stretch coming up (at Illinois, vs. MSU, at OSU, vs. Iowa), and we’ll really learn more about them then.
9. UCLA (17-7 overall, 9-4 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 9th (—)
Last week: vs. Rutgers (W, 98-66), vs. Washington (W, 77-73)
This week: at Michigan (Saturday)
A consistent theme in our write-ups for UCLA is about how it hasn’t proven it can win with consistency away from the Pacific time zone, a requisite for being a first- or second-tier Big Ten team. Well, opportunities (big challenges) are coming up, at Michigan and Michigan State in the next two games. The Bruins handled business at home last week, and guard Trent Perry has really turned a corner lately. He scored 23 points in the win over Washington.
10. Washington (12-12 overall, 4-9 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 10th (—)
Last week: vs. Iowa (L, 84-74), at UCLA (L, 77-73)
This week: vs. Penn State (Wednesday), vs. Minnesota (Saturday)
For the most part, Washington has been losing to the top half of the Big Ten and beating the bottom half. The Huskies have a lot of talent but have been plagued by injuries and don’t have good outside shooting, really limiting their upside.
11. USC (18-6 overall, 7-6 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 12th (+1)
Last week: vs. Indiana (W, 81-75), at Penn State (W, 77-75)
This week: at Ohio State (Wednesday)
USC is improving, and freshman guard Alijah Arenas‘ emergence is a big reason why. He’s scored 29 (Indiana) and 24 (Penn State) points in the last two games, the fifth and sixth of his college career after beginning the year sidelined due to injury. He hit the game-winner versus the Nittany Lions Sunday.
12. Ohio State (15-8 overall, 7-6 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 11th (-1)
Last week: at Maryland (W, 82-62), vs. Michigan (L, 82-61)
This week: vs. USC (Wednesday), vs. Virginia (Saturday in Nashville)
Ohio State is much like Washington in that it hasn’t had much success against the top half of the Big Ten. The Buckeyes had to beat Maryland Thursday and did, but are still in search of a marquee victory to prove themselves as an NCAA Tournament team. Bracket Matrix has the Buckeyes as the last No. 11 seed right now.
13. Minnesota (11-13 overall, 4-9 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 14th (+1)
Last week: vs. Michigan State (W, 76-73), vs. Maryland (L, 67-62)
This week: at Washington (Saturday)
Oh, the ups and downs of the Big Ten season. Minnesota knocked off Michigan State and then, days later, lost to lowly Maryland. The Golden Gophers are well-coached under first-year head man Niko Medved but lack consistency on both ends of the floor. They splashed 14 threes but still lost to the Terrapins.
14. Rutgers (9-15 overall, 2-11 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 13th (-1)
Last week: at UCLA (L, 98-66), vs. Nebraska (L, 80-68)
This week: vs. Maryland (Sunday)
Rutgers has dropped seven-consecutive games but shown some life at different moments, with four of those losses coming by single digits. The Scarlet Knights are brutal on the defensive glass and allow a lot of open looks.
15. Oregon (8-15 overall, 1-11 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 15th (—)
Last week: at Purdue (L, 68-64)
This week: at Indiana (Monday), vs. Penn State (Saturday)
It’s amazing what having one of your best players healthy and available can do. Seven-foot big man Nate Bittle returned from a foot injury and posted 23 points in the loss to Purdue. He added 5 boards and 2 assists. The Ducks are getting healthier and may be a tough out when they have all their arsenal at their disposal.
16. Northwestern (10-14 overall, 2-11 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 16th (—)
Last week: at Illinois (L, 84-44), at Iowa (L, 76-70)
This week: vs. Michigan (Wednesday), at Nebraska (Saturday)
Nick Martinelli is the nation’s fifth-leading scorer with 22.8 points per game, but he has no help. The Wildcats aren’t doing much well on either end of the floor.
17. Maryland (9-14 overall, 2-10 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 18th (+1)
Last week: vs. Ohio State (L, 82-62), at Minnesota (W, 67-62)
This week: vs. Iowa (Wednesday), at Rutgers (Sunday)
Well, Maryland beat Minnesota at The Barn, not easy to do this season. The Terrapins didn’t even do it with hot three-point shooting (29.2 percent), instead making 70.8 percent of their two-point attempts and finding success on the offensive glass.
18. Penn State (10-14 overall, 1-12 Big Ten)
Previous ranking: 17th (-1)
Last week: at Michigan (L, 110-69), vs. USC (L, 77-75)
This week: at Washington (Wednesday), at Oregon (Saturday)
Penn State is in serious trouble with injuries but got big man Ivan Juric and others back against USC, hanging in before losing on a game-winning shot. The Nittany Lions were uncompetitive at Michigan — but that’s a tough one regardless.
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