:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/53532033/usa_today_9893999.0.jpg)
The Big Ten has operated more like the wild west than a major basketball conference this season, but it’s led to some intriguing and exciting results. It should also set things up nicely for the Big Ten Tournament, especially considering how unpredictable play has been for the league’s top teams.
In light of that, let's take a look at the Big Ten Tournament bracket.
The concept of the bracket is pretty simple. Each time, BTP will breakdown how the Big Ten Tournament projects as of that moment. For instance, today's bracket will be set as of the morning of Saturday, March 4, 2017. I have taken the liberty of looking at the Big Ten records and using the Big Ten tiebreaker scenarios to see where teams land. Things will certainly move, but it’s interesting to see as of this moment.
2017 Big Ten Tournament Bracket (3/4):
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8092373/3_4_17_BTT_Bracketology_copy.png)
Thoughts:
After a wild week of games, including an incredible finish in Evanston between Michigan and Northwestern and an upset win for Iowa on the road over Wisconsin, things look pretty wild across the Big Ten standings. And there’s really no telling how the games will unfold this week.
But this bracket does provide an interesting look at how things sit right now.
At the top, Purdue has locked up the top spot in the bracket. With A 13-4 record, no team can close the two-game margin this weekend. Behind the Boilermakers, Maryland, Minnesota, and Wisconsin are all tied at 11-6. Obviously, the road trip for Minnesota to Wisconsin on Sunday will have a huge say in how that tie shakes out.
The middle is also insanely close right now. Michigan State and Northwestern are tied in the standings and Iowa and Michigan are tied just a game behind those two. Illinois is also bringing some pressure, as the Illini sit just one game back from the Hawkeyes and Wolverines. As indicated in the seeding scenarios on Friday, most of these teams have a pretty wide set of scenarios they could see after the weekend’s games.
The bottom also remains interesting. Ohio State is one game ahead of Indiana, Nebraska, and Penn State, who are all tied at 6-11 in the standings. Needless to say, all of these teams need to win this weekend, if they want to avoid a Wednesday game.