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11/14 Big Ten Recap: Michigan Wrecks Villanova; Big Ten Dominates Big East

Recap the Big Ten’s action from Wednesday night, including a dominating win for Michigan

NCAA Basketball: Michigan at Villanova Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Big Ten had four games on Wednesday night and the conference ended up posting an impressive 4-0 record in those matchups. The highlight of the night was undoubtedly Michigan’s blowout victory on the road over Villanova.

Here’s a look at what happened on Wednesday

Game of the Day:

-Michigan Wolverines 73, Villanova Wildcats 46

When this game was originally announced, it projected to be one of the biggest non-conference matchups of the season. The two teams faced off in last year’s national championship game and, as such, it was easy to anticipate the hype and excitement that would surround a rematch just a few months later.

And with the game taking place in the Pavilion, most expected Villanova to win.

However, that didn’t end up happening. In fact, Michigan went on the road and destroyed Villanova. The Wolverines ended up winning by a final score of 73-46 that might not even encapsulate how much Michigan dominated. The Wildcats could do absolutely nothing offensively and finished with 17 points in the first half and 21 (!!!) turnovers overall.

The star for the Wolverines was true freshman Ignas Brazdeikis, who finished with 18 points on 11 attempts and seven rebounds. It was a breakout night for the freshman and could be a sign of things to come. Charlews Matthews also scored 19 points on the night.

There’s little debating the significance of this win. Villanova hadn’t lost by double-digits in more than 100 games and hasn’t had an offensive performance (or lack thereof) since 2013. Going on the road and doing that to the Wildcats was a major accomplishment.

Michigan will now head to Connecticut for the Hall of Fame Classic. The Wolverines will face George Washington on Saturday.

The Rest:

-Indiana Hoosiers 96, Marquette Golden Eagles 73

While KenPom had Indiana favored in this game, the spread was relatively close and the game was expected to be competitive. However, Indiana came out firing on all cylinders and ended up cruising to a 23-point win.

The leader for the Hoosiers was freshman Romeo Langford, who finished with 22 points, five rebounds, and two assists. By all accounts, he looked like the real deal. Indiana will now move on for a road matchup against Arkansas on Sunday.

-Michigan State Spartans 80, Louisiana Monroe Warhawks 59

After facing off against Kansas to open the season, Michigan State entered a three-game stretch where the team faced relatively underwhelming competition at home. This was the second game in that stretch after the Spartans beat Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday.

While this one was a little too close for comfortable early on, Michigan State found a way to pull away and grabbed an 80-59 victory. Cassius Winston led the team with 23 points, five rebounds and three assists. The Spartans will be back in action on Sunday against Tennessee Tech at home.

-Nebraska Cornhuskers 80, Seton Hall Pirates 57

This was another game that looked pretty challenging on paper heading into Wednesday night. Seton Hall was coming off a 22-win season and was ranked 40th on KenPom prior to its game with the Cornhuskers. Add in Nebraska’s struggles in the Gavitt Games and it looked like Tim Miles and his staff might have their work cut out.

However, Nebraska came out firing and never looked back, scoring an 80-57 win over the Pirates. The stars for Nebraska were James Palmer and Isaac Copeland, who combined for 47 points and 16 rebounds. The Huskers will now head to Kansas City to face Missouri State next Monday. It could be shaping up to be a special season in Lincoln.