Rush The Court

Deepak is a writer for the Big Ten microsite of Rush The Court. Follow him on Twitter for more about B1G hoops at @dee_b1g.

If you weren’t already convinced that the Big Ten is the most competitive conference in college hoops, the games in February should have showed you enough to change your opinion. The games featured buzzer-beaters, multiple overtimes and quite a few upsets over the past 28 days, but March could take it to another level. The obvious questions for each team in March will revolve around its performance in the postseason tournaments, but there are more intriguing questions on our minds about the next month. Let’s address five specific questions that that we will track about some of the best Big Ten teams in March.

1. Can Trey Burke get back into the conversation for NPOY? Burke is still considered the top guard in the nation and hasn’t fallen out of the conversation for NPOY, but it feels like he has flown under the radar a little bit during February – partly because the Wolverines have had some tough losses on the road to Wisconsin, Michigan State and (yeesh) Penn State, and it also didn’t help his case that Indiana’s Victor Oladipo has repeatedly proven that he may be the best player in the Big Ten. Burke’s scoring average hasn’t dropped but he has taken more shots than he would prefer to keep his team competitive on the road. Burke will have two big opportunities in Ann Arbor soon – against Michigan State and Indiana – to again showcase his game in the national spotlight and prove that he is ready to lead the Wolverines to a Final Four.
   
2. Who is Michigan State’s go-to guy in March? We have seen flashes of brilliance from Adreian Payne and Gary Harris over the past two weeks but can Tom Izzo rely on a forward who hasn’t consistently looked for his offense and a freshman guard during the clutch this postseason? If Payne wants to be that guy, he needs to demand the ball during the final minutes but he hasn’t been that assertive this year. Izzo would love to have Keith Appling be that guy because he already has the ball in his hands during the final moments and can create his own shot off the dribble. The junior guard had an off-night against Indiana (six points) and Ohio State (three points) but the Spartans need him to score 15 PPG in order to make it to the third weekend of the NCAA Tournament.
3. Which Illini team will we see this month: the January or February version? No team has been more confusing in 2013 than the Illini and John Groce can only hope that his team can maintain some consistency. Illinois from January was lethargic on defense and gave up on moving the ball around on the offensive end, but D.J.Richardson and Tyler Griffey in February instilled some energy back into the team. Reliance on the long-range shot will not change at this point of the season but Brandon Paul can be smarter with his shot selection and not try to force  shots because Richardson is already playing at a high level. The Illini finish the regular season with tough road games at Iowa and Ohio State, two teams that could beat them on their home floor. The Big Ten Tournament will be a wildcard because, as we have seen, any team in the conference can win regardless of their seed, so it is very much possible that the Illini could lose in the first round in Chicago. Bottom line: If the Illini are not active on both ends of the floor, they could easily end a promising season with a thud.
4. Can the Badgers produce enough offense on a neutral court against tough competition? Bo Ryan’s team will defend and hustle to win games but whether the Badgers can muster up enough points to win away from Madison remains to be seen. Their road win at Bloomington was impressive but it was a result of a great defensive game plan. Every team will step up their defense in March and the Badgers can’t afford to go into an offensive funk for six to seven minutes during a game. Their match-up against the Spartans in East Lansing will give us an idea of whether this trend could change, but if it doesn’t, the Badgers could still enjoy postseason success without the ability to beat a top seed in their region.
5. What else can Aaron Craft do to help Deshaun Thomas? Certain trends won’t change after four months of basketball and the Buckeyes won’t all of a sudden likely find a great second scoring option. Their win against Michigan State last week showed that Craft holds the key to their performance against top teams. Teams will double-team Thomas and force Craft to be smart with his shot selection while limiting his shots from beyond the arc. It can’t be easy for Craft to lock up the best guard defensively and still be active on the other end of the floor, but the Buckeyes seem to have officially exhausted every other offensive option so far. It’s probably going to fall on the junior’s shoulders.