Checking in on… the Big Ten
Posted by Brian Goodman on January 3rd, 2011
John Templon of Chicago College Basketball is the RTC correspondent for the Big Ten Conference.
A Look Back
Conference play has finally started in the Big Ten and it came with some surprises – like Indiana losing at home to Penn State and Minnesota being 0-2, but mostly it’s business as usual here in the deepest conference in America.
Team of the Week: Illinois. The Fighting Illini are 2-0 in conference with a victory over Iowa in Iowa City and a win at home against Wisconsin. That’s good enough to get the award this week. Demetri McCamey leads his team against Northwestern on Thursday at home in an in-state rivalry game.
Player of the Week: E’Twaun Moore, G, Purdue. Moore averaged 26.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game in two wins for the Boilermakers last week. He started the game against Northwestern, shooting 5-6 from three-point range as Purdue built an early advantage.
Newcomer of the Week: Jared Sullinger, F, Ohio State. Sullinger won the Big Ten’s official Freshman of the Week award for the seventh time this season by averaging 18.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game against overmatched Tennessee-Martin and Indiana front court players. His numbers will just keep getting better as Thad Matta is forced to play him more in Ohio State’s closer conference games.
Power Rankings
- 1. Ohio State (14-0, 1-0) – The Buckeye express continues to roll along. Early season slip-ups by Minnesota mean that Ohio State might not play a real tough conference game until January 22 against Illinois.
- 2. Purdue (13-1, 2-0) – The Boilermakers went to Ann Arbor and handled Michigan with ease to start conference play. Northwestern tried to give them a game, but E’Twaun Moore was just too much for the Wildcats to handle.
- 3. Michigan State (9-4, 1-0) – Big game for Michigan State on Monday night at Northwestern. Can Tom Izzo’s team turn it on in conference play? Friday’s victory over Minnesota sure was a good start.
- 4. Illinois (10-3, 2-0) – See the “Team of the Week” section above.
- 5. Wisconsin (11-3, 1-1) – Playing at Illinois is a tough second game of conference play, but the Badgers return home to the Kohl Center to take on Michigan this week for a bit of a breather.
- 6. Minnesota (11-3, 0-2) – No team in the country has a harder conference schedule to start out with games at Wisconsin, at Michigan State and then at Ohio State as the Golden Gophers’ first three Big Ten games. Thus Tubby Smith has to find a way to get a victory over a reeling Indiana on Tuesday.
- 7. Michigan (11-3, 1-1) – Don’t look now, but the Wolverines are starting to sneak into the NCAA bubble territory and are one of Joe Lunardi’s first four out. A murderous next three games at Wisconsin, home versus Kansas and Ohio State, gives Darius Morris and company three chances to get that marquee win the resume is currently lacking.
- 8. Northwestern (9-2, 0-1) – If Minnesota doesn’t have the hardest schedule to start conference play, than Northwestern probably does. The Wildcats started at Purdue – and lost – and now play Michigan State and at Illinois this week.
- 9. Penn State (8-5, 1-1) – Winning at Indiana boosts this team up a bit in the rankings.
- 10. Iowa (7-6, 0-1) – The Hawkeyes have to be looking at Northwestern’s trip to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on January 12 as the team’s next possible victory. Unfortunately, they go to Ohio State and Purdue comes to town before that game.
- 11. Indiana (9-6, 0-2) – The Hoosiers lost the battle for last place to Penn State in the first game of the season, 69-60.
A Look Ahead (all times EST)
While every game is big in conference play, here are the key match-ups to keep an eye on in the upcoming week. It also includes one special non-conference CBS Sunday afternoon treat.
- 1/3 – Michigan State at Northwestern, 7:30 p.m., Big Ten Network
- 1/5 – Michigan at Wisconsin, 8:30 p.m., Big Ten Network
- 1/6 – Northwestern at Illinois, 9 p.m., ESPN2
- 1/9 – Minnesota at Ohio State, 2 p.m., Big Ten Network
- 1/9 – Kansas at Michigan, 4:30 p.m., CBS
Fun with Efficiency Margin and KenPom: While most Big Ten teams have only played one or two games there is in-conference efficiency margin data available! Here are some fun nuggets from the first few games.
- Best Offense: Ohio State – 1.308 points per possession
- Best Defense: Michigan State and Purdue – 0.969 points per possession
- Luckiest: Michigan – 0.57 games ahead of expected
- Unluckiest: Minnesota – 0.36 games behind expected
Ohio State and Purdue are currently at the top of the conference. With Northwestern and Indiana bringing up the rear. You can see more about these at Chicago College Basketball.
Brian Goodman a Big 12 microsite writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BSGoodman.
