NOTE: There will not be a "Big Ten Projected Order Of Finish" this week, as things are pretty knotted up in the standings right now. It is tough to tell who will finish in front of who. After this week's games we will know a lot more about how the Big Ten should play out.
Week 11
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Purdue Boilermakers |
 1 |
| 2 | Syracuse Orange |
1 |
| 3 | Kansas Jayhawks |
1 |
| 4 | Pittsburgh Panthers |
1 |
| 5 | Duke Blue Devils |
 5 |
| 6 | Villanova Wildcats | -- |
| 7 | San Diego St. Aztecs | -- |
| 8 | Connecticut Huskies |
1 |
| 9 | Texas A&M Aggies |
5 |
| 10 | BYU Cougars | -- |
| 11 | Texas Longhorns |
2 |
| 12 | Kentucky Wildcats |
3 |
| 13 | Purdue Boilermakers |
5 |
| 14 | Missouri Tigers |
2 |
| 15 | Louisville Cardinals |
4 |
| 16 | Michigan St. Spartans |
8 |
| 17 | Wisconsin Badgers |
1 |
| 18 | Minnesota Golden Gophers |
7 |
| 19 | Illinois Fighting Illini |
8 |
| 20 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | -- |
| 21 | Washington Huskies |
4 |
| 22 | Georgetown Hoyas |
4 |
| 23 | Arizona Wildcats | NR |
| 24 | West Virginia Mountaineers | NR |
| 25 | Kansas St. Wildcats |
2 |
| Dropped Out: UNLV Runnin' Rebels and Central Florida Knights | ||
| Honorable Mention: Saint Mary's | ||
Analysis after the jump
Big Ten Ranked Teams:
#1 Ohio State (18-0) : Ohio State moves to number one this week. In both AP and Coaches polls they are number one, also. Ohio State has had some very close wins in Big Ten play. It will be interesting to see how long they can hold on to the number one spot, before falling. They play Iowa at home and then travel to Illinois this week.
#13 Purdue (15-3) : Purdue fell in both their games at Minnesota and at West Virginia this week. I see this as just a bump in the road for the Boilermakers. Let's not forget what they are capable of. 13 sounds about right for the Boilermakers. They face Penn State and Michigan State at home this week.
#16 Michigan State (12-5) : Michigan State won two close games in overtime this week. I don't know a lot about what to expect from Michigan State just yet. The game at Purdue this week, should tell us a lot. They face Illinois on the road before going to Purdue.
#17 Wisconsin (13-4) : Wisconsin had a minor setback against Michigan State in overtime, other than that, they beat a top ranked Illini team at home. Wisconsin continues to prove they could be a contender for the Big Ten title at the end of February. They face Indiana and Northwestern this week.
#18 Minnesota (14-4) : Minnesota had a wonderful week. They knocked off then number eight Purdue at home, before avenging Iowa. They look to be improving, even without Devoe Joesph. They face Michigan and Northwestern this week.
#19 Illinois (13-5) : Illinois has struggled this week, falling to Penn State and Wisconsin. They need to get back on track this week against Michigan State and Ohio State to stay in the Big Ten race. It won't be easy, but they are capable of a high scoring offense like we saw in the Northwestern game.
If you have any questions about why I put the non-Big Ten teams where I put them in the BT Powerhouse Top 25, feel free to leave your questions in the comments.