BTPowerhouse's 2/6 Big Ten Tournament Bracketology: Purdue On The Rise

The Big Ten had a bit of a quieter week with some of the top teams around the conference facing off against some of the lower teams around the conference, but it was still an important one for the bubble teams and for teams trying to get position in the Big Ten standings.  Let's take a look at the current seeding of this year's Big Ten Tournament.

The concept is pretty simple. Each week, BTP will be taking a look at how the Big Ten Tournament projects as of that morning. For instance, today's bracket will be set as of Friday, January 30, 2015 morning. I have taken the liberty of looking at the Big Ten records and using the Big Ten tiebreaker scenarios to see where teams will land. Things will certainly move, but it is still interesting to see as of this moment. Let's take a look.

2015 B1G Tournament Bracket (2/6):

Thoughts

Unlike last week where things were, as I phrased it then, "a mess," this bracket is finally starting to separate and you really are starting to see tiers develop.  Wisconsin has a strong hold on that #1 spot and we are starting to see the serious contenders for the #2 through #4 seeds emerge.  Along with that, we are seeing the middle group separate from the bottom four teams, even if that division might be slim.  Thing will undoubtedly change by next week, but it's at least starting to become easier to do these brackets without going through multiple tie-breaker scenarios.

In the middle group, one interesting note was Ohio State at #6.  The way the Buckeyes have been playing recently - Purdue loss aside - it's kind of surprising to think that the Buckeyes are actually considering a team right around the middle of the Big Ten standings right now.  Things should get easier for Ohio State with Penn State and Rutgers ahead, but if they want to make a serious challenge for a top seed, they definitely have their work cut out.

At the bottom, I said this last week, but we are starting to see the bottom four teams separate from the conference.  We actually did our podcast this week on the bottom four teams in the conference standings right now, but staying out of that first day of games is going to be big for any team and to see that every team is at least 2 games back from the #10 seed has to be a bit concerning if you are a fan of one of those teams.