Updated Big Ten Tournament Seeding Predictions and NCAA Tournament Resumes

Fuck Purdue.  Those ugly, mouth-breathing, illiterate (yet tall) bastards came into Assembly Hall last night and managed to completely take IU out of its game (for the second time this year), upsetting the Hoosiers 67-63.  I don't handle losing to Purdue very well, especially at home, and especially when IU is a better team (which it is this year, last night notwithstanding).  It ruins my night and much of the next day.  I'm despondent.  I just want to punch something.  A fraternity brother of mine used to be so distraught after losses to Purdue that he kicked sizeable dents into a metal file cabinet and destroyed many a pint glass -– and with good reason.  It's just not a good thing when Purdue wins.  I shudder to think of all of the overweight, sun-starved thighs and midsections in West Lafayette sloppily and noisily slapping against each other last night in celebration of Purdue's win, the smell of onion rings on their clothes and in their hair too powerful to resist.  With the loss, IU can do no better than 12-6 in league play (and, so help me God, they better end up 12-6), which, based on my predictions, would drop the Hoosiers from a projected 3-seed in the Big Ten Tournament to a projected 6-seed.

In the other games, Maryland barely held off Nebraska at home and Iowa rebounded (basketball pun intended, motherfuckers!) from two losses in a row by crushing Rutgers in Iowa City.

On the slate this weekend:

Saturday

-Minnesota at Wisconsin (12:00 p.m. EST, ESPN)

-Penn State at Northwestern (3:00 p.m. EST, ESPNU)

Sunday

-Ohio State at Michigan (1:00 p.m. EST, CBS)

-Iowa at Nebraska (3:00 p.m. EST, BTN)

-Indiana at Rutgers (5:15 p.m. EST, BTN)

-Michigan State at Illinois (7:30 p.m. EST, BTN)

Current Standings

Here are the current standings, with the conference record, each team's remaining games, and my predictions.  I will try to update these after every day or every couple days of games.

1.  Wisconsin (12-1):  Minnesota (W), at Maryland (L), MSU (W), at Minnesota (W), at OSU (L)

2 (tie).  Maryland (10-4):  Wisconsin (W), Michigan (W), at Rutgers (W), at Nebraska (W)

2 (tie).  Purdue (10-4):  Rutgers (W), at OSU (L), at MSU (L), Illinois (W)

4.  Michigan State (9-4):  at Illinois (W), Minnesota (W), at Wisconsin (L), Purdue (W), at IU (L)

5.  Ohio State (8-5):  at Michigan (L), Nebraska (W), Purdue (W), at PSU (W), Wisconsin (W)

6.  Indiana (8-6):  at Rutgers (W), at Northwestern (W), Iowa (W), MSU (W)

7.  Illinois (7-6):  MSU (L), at Iowa (L), Northwestern (W), Nebraska (W), at Purdue (L)

8.  Iowa (7-6):  at Nebraska (L), Illinois (W), at PSU (W), at IU (L), Northwestern (W)

9.  Michigan (6-8):  OSU (W), at Maryland (L), at Northwestern (W), Rutgers (W)

10.  Nebraska (5-9):  Iowa (W), at OSU (L), at Illinois (L), Maryland (L)

11.  Minnesota (5-9):  at Wisconsin (L), at MSU (L), Wisconsin (L), PSU (W)

12.  Northwestern (3-10):  PSU (W), IU (L), at Illinois (L), Michigan (L), at Iowa (L)

13.  Penn State (3-11):  at Northwestern (L), Iowa (L), OSU (L), at Minnesota (L)

14.  Rutgers (2-12):  IU (L), at Purdue (L), Maryland (L), at Michigan (L)

Projected Big Ten Tournament Seeding

Given my predictions and Big Ten tiebreaking rules, here is how the Big Ten Tournament seeds should fall into place:

1.  Wisconsin (15-3)

2.  Maryland (14-4)

3.  Michigan State (12-6) (MSU would have tiebreaker over Purdue, OSU, and IU based 3-1 vs. other schools, while Purdue would have 3-2 record, OSU would have 2-3 record, and IU would have 2-4 record vs. other three schools)

4.  Purdue (12-6)

5.  Ohio State (12-6)

6.  Indiana (12-6)

7.  Iowa (10-8)

8.  Illinois (9-9) (would have tiebreaker over Michigan based on better record vs. Maryland)

9.  Michigan (9-9)

10.  Nebraska (6-12) (would have tiebreaker over Minnesota based on better combined record vs. MSU and OSU than Minnesota)

11.  Minnesota (6-12)

12.  Northwestern (4-14)

13.  Penn State (3-15)

14.  Rutgers (2-16)

Big Ten Tournament Schecule

Here are the dates/times/TV schedule for the Big Ten Tournament (and a link to the bracket), which will be in Chicago.  All times are Central.

Wednesday March 11 – First Round

(12) vs. (13) (3:30 p.m. ESPN2)

(11) vs. (14) (6 p.m. BTN)

Thursday March 12 – Second Round

(8) vs. (9) (11 a.m., BTN)

(5) vs. (12)/(13) (1:30 p.m., BTN)

(7) vs. (10) (5:30 p.m., ESPN2)

(6) vs. (11)/(14) (8 p.m., ESPN2)

Friday March 13 – Quarterfinals

(1) vs. (8)/(9) (11 a.m., ESPN)

(4) vs. (5)/(12)/(13) (1:30 p.m., ESPN)

(2) vs. (7)/(10) (5:30 p.m., BTN)

(3) vs. (6)/(11)/(14) (8 p.m., BTN)

Saturday March 14 – Semifinals

(1)/(8)/(9) vs. (4)/(5)/(12)/(13) (12 p.m., CBS)

(2)/(7)/(10) vs. (3)/(6)/(11)/(14) (2:30 p.m., CBS)

Sunday March 15 – Finals

(1)/(4)/(5)/(8)/(9)/(12)/(13) vs. (2)/(3)/(6)/(7)/(10)/(11)/(14) (2:30 p.m., CBS)

NCAA Tournament Resumes for All 14 Big Ten Teams

Here is each Big Ten team's updated NCAA Tournament resume.  From top to bottom, I will list each team's RPI (based on ESPN's daily RPI), "good" wins (wins against RPI Top 50 teams or, if none, the team's best win), "bad" losses (losses against teams with an RPI of 101+ or, if none, the team's worst loss).  An * means the game was played on a neutral court, and for the "good" wins and "bad" losses, the team's current RPI is identified.  Also, I have categorized the teams by "In," "Bubble," or "Out," which is my best guess, based on what I know right now, as to whether each team is a lock for the NCAA Tournament, is on the bubble, or is out.

In

1.  Wisconsin

RPI:  6

Overall record:  24-2

Good wins:  6 (Oklahoma* (15), Georgetown* (20), Indiana (34), Boise State (39), Illinois (42), Green Bay (46))

Bad losses: 1 (at Rutgers (138))

2.  Maryland

RPI:  10

Overall record:  22-5

Good wins:  5 (Iowa State* (11), at Oklahoma State (28), Michigan State (31), at Michigan State (31), Indiana (34))

Bad losses:  None (at Iowa (57))

3.  Michigan State

RPI:  31

Overall record:  18-8

Good wins:  2 (Indiana (34), Ohio State (36))

Bad losses:  2 (at Nebraska (109), Texas Southern (158))

4.  Indiana

RPI:  34

Overall record:  18-9

Good wins:  6 (Maryland (10), SMU (18), Butler* (24), Ohio State (36), at Illinois (42), Pittsburgh (44))

Bad losses:  None (Eastern Washington (76))

5.  Ohio State

RPI:  36

Overall record:  19-7

Good wins:  3 (Maryland (10), Indiana (34), Illinois (42))

Bad losses:  None (at Purdue (58))

Bubble

6.  Illinois

RPI:  42

Overall record:  17-9

Good wins:  3 (Maryland (10), Baylor* (13), at Michigan State (31))

Bad losses:  1 (at Minnesota (102), at Nebraska (109))

7.  Iowa

RPI:  57

Overall record:  16-10

Good wins:  4 (Maryland (10), at North Carolina (12), at Ohio State (36), Ohio State (36))

Bad losses:  2 (Minnesota (102), at Northwestern (125))

8.  Purdue

RPI:  58

Overall record:  18-9

Good wins:  4 (Indiana (34), at Indiana (34), Ohio State (36), NC State (43))

Bad losses:  4 (at Minnesota (102), at Vanderbilt (108), Gardner-Webb (164), North Florida (188))

Out

9.  Michigan

RPI:  90

Overall record:  12-13

Good wins:  1 (Illinois (42))

Bad losses:  2 (Eastern Michigan (167), NJIT (174))

10.  Penn State

RPI:  99

Overall record:  15-12

Good wins:  None (George Washington (83))

Bad losses:  2 (at Rutgers (138), Charlotte* (187))

11.  Minnesota

RPI:  102

Overall record:  15-11

Good wins:  2 (Georgia* (41), Illinois (42))

Bad losses:  2 (at Nebraska (109), Northwestern (125))

12.  Nebraska

RPI:  109

Overall record:  13-13

Good wins:  2 (Michigan State (31), Illinois (42))

Bad losses:  4 (at Minnesota (102), Creighton (128), Incarnate Word (162), at Hawaii (175))

13.  Northwestern

RPI:  125

Overall record:  12-14

Good wins:  None (Iowa (57))

Bad losses:  2 (Georgia Tech (104), at Nebraska (109))

14.  Rutgers

RPI:  138

Overall record:  10-17

Good wins:  1 (Wisconsin (6))

Bad losses:  5 (at Minnesota (102), at Nebraska (109), Northwestern (125), St. Francis (PA) (201), St. Peter's (236))