The Big Ten Belongs To The Buckeyes: Ohio State Rolls, 90-61

Ohio State Wins Record 3rd Big Ten Tournament Title

It took a near miracle on Friday and double overtime Saturday, but Sunday was much kinder to Ohio State fans. the Buckeyes used a dominant second half performance to cruise to a 90-61 victory over a tired Minnesota team in Indianapolis. The win was the most anti-climactic game of the weekend after a pair of overtime games and one half-court buzzer beater. Ohio State led 33-30 at the half, but blew the game open with a 58 point performance out of hte break.

The Golden Gophers will have a short wait to see their fate on the NCAA bubble. Minnesota made a great case for inclusion into the NCAA Tournament by beating Penn State, Michigan State, and Purdue, but they were unable to become the second team in Big Ten Tournament history to win for games in four days to get the automatic bid. With wins over conference co-champs Michigan State and Purdue, however, they have done all they could short of winning the automatic bid.

Ohio State got incredible balance from its iron five, placing four players in double figures. Tournament MVP Evan Turner once again wowed the crowd with 31 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists. Jon Diebler also had possibly his best game of the tournament with 19 points, while David Lighty had 20. Ohio State made its case for a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but will face a tough challenge from West Virginia and Duke for that spot.

Minnesota Shocks Purdue, Advances To Big Ten Tournament Final

On a weekend that was filled with close games, Purdue’s effort against the Golden Gopher broke the trend. The 69-42 blowout that Minnesota was by far the most lopsided of the weekend, and by taking down their second top 15 opponent in as many days, Minnesota has kept their once unlikely tournament hopes alive.

From the start Minnesota seemed much more prepared than Purdue, and locked down on defense in a way that apparently the Boilermakers were completely unprepared for. It was, to say the least a surprisingly poor offensive first half for Purdue, scoring only 11 points, 2 of which came from a last second JaJuan Johnson tip in. At half, Purdue trailed by an astonishing 26 points.

Johnson was the only bright spot for the Boilers, as the rest of the starting line up combined for 2-23 shooting. To make matters worse, both E’Twaun Moore and Lewis Jackson both left the floor with injuries, with Jackson not returning.

Minnesota, for their part once again relied on quality play from its two big men, Colton Iverson and Ralph Sampson III, who combined for 24 points and 11 rebounds.

The Gophers advance to their first Big Ten Tournament final, and in doing so have collected a pair of wins against highly ranked teams, with #5 Ohio State coming tomorrow. While it is unclear if today’s win has gotten them in or not, a win tomorrow would give the Gophers the Big Ten’s automatic bid, which would surely make a lot of bubble teams very nervous come tomorrow night.

Ohio State Survives Illinois, Advances To Big Ten Tournament Final

There is a reason they call him The Villain. For the second striaght day Evan Turner may have ruined the postseason dreams of a Big Ten foe. Illinois will now have a long wait over the next 24 hours or so until the field of 65 is revealed as Turner scored 31 points, pulled down 10 rebounds, and dished out six assists to move Ohio State into the Big Ten Championship game with an 88-81 double overtime win.

The game was the first multiple overtime game in Big Ten Tournament history and the Fighting Illini very nearly kept the dream alive at the end of regulation and the first overtime. Both times Illinois had the ball for the final shot, but they were unable to get one off before time expired. Mike Davis had an open look at a layup at the end of regulation, but he missed from point blank range and the shot was likely late anyway.

John Diebler then gave Ohio State the lead for good with a 3-pointer from the top of the key just 12 seconds into the second overtime. Turner then scored on drives on Ohio State’s next two possessions before fouling out with one minute remaining. Illinois trailed 84-80 at that point, but were unable to take advantage of his absence.

Illinois placed five players in double figures with Demetri McCamey scoring 22. Illinois will now have to hope its Friday win over Wisconsin is enough to move it into the field of 65.

Minnesota Upsets Michigan State, Advances To Big Ten Semis

Devoe Joseph answered the call for Minensota in overtime, and in the process he may have shot the Golden Gophers into the field of 65. On Friday’s only overtime game in Indianapolis Joseph hit a pair of clutch 3-pointers in the extra session to give Minnesota a 72-67 upset win over Michigan State. The Spartans had won both regular season meetings with Minensota, but The Gophers got hte job done at the most critical time.

“We haven’t had much luck against them, but we were finally able to pull out a win,” said Minnesota coach Tubby Smith.

Michigan State was the opposite of clutch, missing four of its first five free throws in overtime and shooting only 18 of 34 from the line for the game. They were also without the suspended Chris Allen, who sat out for disciplinary reasons. Raymar Morgan added 23 points for the Spartans, but it was turnover with 3.9 seconds in regulation that cost Michigan State a chance to win in regulation.

“I wasn’t really thinking too much, I was just playing basketball,” said Joseph of his shots in overtime. “I guess I was just in the zone.”

Minnesota now will face another team that it lost a pair of games to during the regular season. Purdue won easily in West Lafayette while Keaton Grant’s late jumper gave Purdue a 59-58 win in Minneapolis on the night Robbie Hummel was injured.

Purdue grinds past Northwestern into Big Ten Tournament Semi-finals

It was like a Big Ten game of old as Purdue and Northwestern met in a physical quarterfinal matchup, but Purdue’s defense and foul shooting was enough to move the Boilermakers past Northwestern and into the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis. Both teams combined to commit 52 fouls, there were a pair of technical fouls, and the teams shot 66 combined free throws. Purdue hit enough of those free throws, going 29 of 39 from the free throw line in a 69-61 win.

E’Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson stepped up, however, in the absence of Robbie Hummel. Moore finished with 28 points while Johnson had 22 points and eight rebounds. Purdue proved to be the tougher team after trailing 34-30 at the half. Johnson and Keaton Grant each converted old-fashioned 3-point plays to start the second half and Purdue never trailed again.

“I felt it was a hard fought game and that is what you expect when you play Northwestern,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter. "Our guys did a great job in the second half of getting on the glass and our effort was a major difference.

Northwestern wasn’t done though, as John Shurna finished with 16 in a big second half. Drew Crawford and Michael Thompson also kept things close with six 3-pointers combined. Northwestern led by 11 in the first half, but couldn’t put the Boilers away. This was Purdue’s first win over Northwestern this season, as the Wildcats won the only meeting in Evanston on January 16th.

Illini Outlast Wisconsin's Late Surge, Advance To Big Ten Semifinals

For the first 38 minutes of the game the Fighting Illini had a win solidly in hand. Wisconsin suffered one of its worst shooting days and had only amassed 38 points to the Illini’s 50 as the final minutes slowly ticked away. Then came Trevon Hughes.

From the 1:44 point onward, Hughes would score 12 of his final 14 points, all from 3. Combined with another 3 from Keaton Nankovil and a a free throw from Jon Leuer, the Badgers outscored the Illini 16-8 in the final two minutes.
Sadly for the Badgers it was not enough. Mike Tisdale recorded 21 points shooting 8-10 in easily his best and most important performance of the year. The Illini keep their NCAA hopes alive for another day by recording their first win since February 23rd. This is the fifth top 25 win of the year for the Illini, and if predictions are to be believed, the Big Ten will be a five bid league as a result of the Illini’s success.

VIDEO: Ohio State's Evan Turner Hits 40-Foot Buzzer-Beater, For The Win

The situation: Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. Michigan's Manny Harris has just hit a fade-away jumper to put the Wolverines up two with 2.2 seconds left. Ohio State calls timeout. They inbound the ball the Evan Turner, who takes it past halfcourt and does this:

And there's your National Player of the Year.

(Also: Still unclear what Thad Matta was going crazy about at the end of the clip, but it was almost as entertaining as the shot itself.)

Evan Turner Shoots Down Michigan, Ohio State Advances

Evan Turner now has a highlight real shot to add to his National Player of the Year Resume. The Ohio State junior took an inbounds pass with 2.2 seconds left and hit a shot just inside the halfcourt line to give Ohio State a thrilling 69-68 win over rival Michigan in Friday’s opening quarterfinal of the Big Ten Tournament. Turner finished with 18 points as top-seeded Ohio State survived a furious late rally by the Wolverines.

Michigan trailed for most of the second half, but rallied to take a pair of two point leads in the final minute. Manny Harris hit a short jumper with 30 seconds left to give Michigan a 66-64 lead. David Lighty tied it for Ohio State with 14 seconds left, but Harris answered again. His 15 footer with 2.2 seconds remaining appeared to send Michigan through with a major upset, but the Wolverines didn’t respect Turner.

After a timeout, Turner collected the inbounds pass and dribbled to the right side of the floor. His shot hit nothing but net and the celebration was on as the Buckeyes mobbed him at half court. A short review confirmed the shot came well in in advance of the buzzer.

Turner’s theatrics stole the show from Harris, who may have played the game of the tournament in the loss. Harris finished with 26 points, scoring 22 in the second half. It was also a game filled with drama that was lacking on the first day of the tournament. Ohio State's dream of a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament is still alive, but barely heading into Saturday's semifinal against either Wisconsin or Illinois.

Minnesota Crushes Penn State To Advance In Big Ten Tournament

There was little drama in the final game of the Big Ten Tournament's opening day, as Minnesota cruised to an easy 76-55 win over Penn State. Devoe Joseph scored 15 for the Golden Gophers, who improved their precarious bubble position and set up a rematch with Michigan State. The Spartans won each of the previous meetings with the Gophers this season, but prevailed by only a point in Minneapolis.

Penn State’s recent run of good play against the conference heavyweights proved to be more of a fluke, as they were never in this one from the start. David Jackson, Taylor Battle, Chris Babb, and Andrew Jones each had 10 points for the Nittany Lions, but Penn State trailed by double digits for most of the game.

Minnesota’s 47-point effort in the second half proved to be the big difference in this one as the Gophers took control early. Colton Iverson had a big game off the bench with 12 points for the Gophers, who will likely need to beat Michigan State tomorrow in order to have a better chance at an at large bid.

Big Ten Tournament: Northwestern Beats Indiana, Will Face Purdue

In game two in Indianapolis Northwestern achieved a new school milestone in beating Indiana 73-58. The Wildcats will finish the 2009-10 season with at least 20 wins, which is the first time Northwestern has reached that plateau in a single season in school history. They have earned a date tomorrow with second seeded Purdue and their hopes for a first ever NCAA Tournament berth are still alive. The Wildcats defeated the Boilermakers back in January during the teams’ only meeting.

Indiana led by three at halftime but Northwestern received superb play from Michael Thompson in the win. Thompson had 13 second half points and finished with a game high 16 for the Wildcats. Northwestern lived and died by the 3-pointer, attempting 31 shots from long range, but hitting only seven. John Shurna added 14 and Jeremy Nash had 13 as Northwestern had a 46-28 edge in second half scoring.

For Indiana, the story was much the same as it has been all season for the Hoosiers. Indiana turned the ball over 19 times and could not get consistent offense in the post. Verdell Jones III had 20 points, but it took 5 of 12 shooting from the field to reach that mark. The loss capped a long two-year stretch for the Indiana program, which has gone just 16-45 in two years under coach Tom Crean.

Northwestern’s second round game presents an interesting matchup with Purdue. The Wildcats beat the Boilermakers 72-64 on January 16th and Purdue has lost just once since. Purdue did lose that game with star forward Robbie Hummel in the lineup, however. Hummel was lost for the season with a torn ACL against Minnesota on February 24th, so Purdue will have to adjust against Northwestern’s 1-3-1 zone without Hummel. Northwestern also has a two game winning streak against the Boilermakers, making them the only team in the conference with an active winning streak over Purdue that is longer than one.

Michigan Tops Iowa In Big Ten Tourney Opener

The Big Ten Tournament’s first game is in the books as Michigan knocked off Iowa 59-52 in Thursday opening game. The Wolverines survived a late rally by the Hawkeyes, who cut a big lead down to five with a minute to go. Iowa’s Cully Payne scored nearly half of hte Hawkeyes’ points with 25 points on 5 of 10 shooting from long range.

The Hawkeyes could never get over the hump, however. Michigan led this game throughout and got 22 points from Manny Harris and 14 points from DeShawn Sims. Michigan led by as many as 16 in the first half and held a 16 point lead with four minutes left before Iowa came storming back. Matt Gatens had five points during an 11-0 run to cut it to 57-52 with a minute to go. Iowa then had the ball and a chance to get closer, but missed four shots on one possession and couldn’t seal the deal.

While Payne was hot for the Hawkeyes, he received little help from his teammates. Iowa struggled to shoot the ball with any consistency from the field and missed several easy baskets in the paint. Coach Todd Lickliter also continued to face questions about his future in Iowa City. He had no immediate answers, but did state that any coaching change would not be based on his decision.

Michigan now moves on to face top seeded Ohio State at noon tomorrow in Indianapolis.

Big Ten Tournament Preview: Top Teams Look To Separate After Three-Way Regular Season Title

For the first time in 31 years, there is a three way tie for the Big Ten regular season championship. While Purdue, Ohio State, and Michigan State all took home a share of the crown, each team has to feel like it would have won the title alone if not for injuries to key players.

For Michigan State, a sprained ankle suffered by Kalin Lucas cost him a full game and severely limited him in two more. The Spartans lost all three games and a nearly insurmountable lead in the process.

For Ohio State, National Player of the Year candidate Evan Turner missed six games with a broken back. Ohio State started 1-3 in conference play without him, but stormed back to finish on a 13-1 kick.

Purdue missed Lewis Jackson for almost half the Big Ten season, then lost Robbie Hummel to a torn ACL with three games to play. When Hummel went down, few teams were playing as well as the Boilermakers.

All that makes the Big Ten Tournament very interesting. Among the three co-champions, no team beat any of the others on its home floor. Purdue won in East Lansing and Columbus, but lost at home to the Spartans and Buckeyes. Michigan State and Ohio State met only once, but Ohio State won in East Lansing. On paper, Michigan State had no bad losses in conference play, losing all four of its games to teams in the top five of the standings. Purdue had one bad loss at Northwestern, but became the first team in Big Ten history to win at Indiana, Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan State, and Minnesota in one season. Ohio State's record is the biggest mystery as losses to Michigan and Minnesota came while Turner was injured. The Buckeyes and Wisconsin had the best home records in league play, each finishing 8-1. 

The Stakes

Barring a number of upsets, the Big Ten appears to be pretty set as far as NCAA Tournament berths go. Purdue, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Wisconsin are the top four seeds and certain locks for the NCAA's. Illinois is the team that has the most to gain and they are sitting squarely on the bubble at 18-13. They have lost five of six coming into the tournament, and four of those five losses were by double digits. The Fighting Illini will likely have to reach the championship round in order to feel safe, and even then they had better win it. Fortunately, they do have a first round bye and will play Wisconsin Friday afternoon.

If you're looking for a surprise team to win the event and steal the automatic bid, look for the late game on Thursday evening. Sixth-seeded Minnesota has the horses to make a run and win four games in four days. Minnesota still has an outside chance at an at-large bid, but they likely need to make it to Sunday to have any chance. They must first get past 11-seed Penn State and Talor Battle. Penn State finished with the league's worst record, but had close calls with all three regular season champions in their final four games. Penn State struggled in close games all year, so if the Nittany Lions can finally figure out how to close the deal, they will be dangerous.

Purdue and Ohio State each have an outside chance at grabbing a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State likely needs to win the event and the committee would have to overlook seven regular season losses, while if Purdue wins the event it would prove they are still worthy despite the loss of Hummel.

Names You Should Know

Evan Turner, Ohio State - Turner is only one of the front-runners for the National Player of the Year Award. Ohio State is a completely different team with him: he averages 19.5 points per game, 9.4 rebounds, and 5.8 assists.

E'Twaun Moore, Purdue - Of Purdue's big three, Moore may receive the least amount of press. He also may be the best scorer of them. Moore leads the Boilermakers with 16.7 points per game and is one of their few players that can create his own shot. However, with only nine points at Penn State in the regular season finale, he broke a streak of 28 straight games in double figures

Talor Battle, Penn State - One of the nation's best players on a bad team, Battle would be one of the biggest names in the country if he played on a better team. The 6' junior guard has had big night after big night this year, topping 30 points four times. He gives Penn State at least a chance against everyone.

Kalin Lucas, Michigan State - One of the best team leaders in the country, Lucas is talented and tested as a point guard for Michigan State. Few players in college basketball have his postseason chops.

Demetri McCamey, Illinois - If Illinois is going to make a big run in Indianapolis, it needs McCamey to have three big games. McCamey leads the conference in assists at 6.9 per game and is one of the deadliest 3-point shooters.

Manny Harris, Michigan - Though Michigan has struggled all year, Harris and his running mate DeShawn Sims give the Wolverines a formidable one-two punch. If both are hot, Michigan can be a very dangerous team.

Mark Titus, Ohio State - The author of the famous Club Trillion may have had shoulder surgery to end his season, but Mr. Rainmaker will be the best cheerleader from the bench in the entire tournament. He is easily the league's MVP in high comedy.

Tournament Outlook

Over the history of the tournament, it has not meant good things if you begin playing on Thursday. Only Iowa in 2001 has won the tournament while having to win four games in four days. They were the last seed lower than No. 3 to win the event as well.

Purdue is the defending champion, but the Boilermakers will be hard pressed to repeat without Hummel. Hummel was last year's most outstanding player of the tournament as the Boilermakers defeated Ohio State 65-61.

Picking Ohio State, Wisconsin, Michigan State, or Purdue are the safest bets. These four teams have separated themselves from the rest of the conference lately. They will be favored to win Friday's four games to set up a Wisconsin-Ohio State and Purdue-Michigan State pair of semifinals. Wisconsin has the defensive ability to shut down Turner, and they only lost by nine in Columbus. Their depth also gives them an advantage over Ohio State, so I will pick the Badgers in an upset.

Michigan State defeated Purdue in West Lafayette on February 28, but that was the Boilermakers' first game without Hummel. Purdue was held to a season low 44 points, but forced 23 turnovers. Since then, however, they have played much better basketball in wins over Indiana and Penn State. Most people will pick Michigan State, but Purdue has something to prove to the selection committee - that they are still worthy of a high seed without Hummel. With better rebounding and slightly better shooting, that would have been a Purdue victory. I'll go with the Boilermakers to set up a Wisconsin-Purdue final.

In that final, I like Wisconsin. Their defensive ability is more than enough to stymie the Hummel-less Boilermakers and take the title. Wisconsin was also without guard Jon Leuer in their close loss to Purdue at Mackey Arena.

The Bracket

Thursday, March 11
#8 Michigan (14-16, 7-11) vs. #9 Iowa (10-21, 4-14) - 2:30pm ET, ESPN2

#7 Northwestern (19-12, 7-11) vs. #10 Indiana (10-20, 4-14) - 25 minutes after game 1, ESPN2

#6 Minnesota (18-12, 9-9) vs. #11 Penn State (11-19, 3-15) - 25 minutes after game 2, Big Ten Network

Friday, March 12
#1 Ohio State (24-7, 14-4) vs. Michigan-Iowa winner - Noon ET, ESPN

#4 Wisconsin (23-7, 13-5) vs. #5 Illinois (18-13, 10-8) - 25 minutes after previous game, ESPN

#2 Purdue (26-4, 14-4) vs. Northwestern-Indiana winner - 6:30pm ET, Big Ten Network

#3 Michigan State (24-7, 14-4) vs. Minnesota-Penn State winner - 25 minutes after previous game, Big Ten Network

Saturday, March 13
Semifinal #1 (1/8/9 vs. 4/5) - 1:40pm ET, CBS

Semifinal #2 (2/7/10 vs. 3/6/11) - 25 minutes after previous game, CBS

Sunday, March 14
Championship - 3:30 pm ET, CBS