Big Ten Roundup: Huge Showdown in Rematch

The visiting teams won two of the three games on Thursday with Penn State and Michigan picking up victories at Ohio State and Rutgers, respectively.

Purdue is fifth in the latest NCAA NET rankings. The Boilermakers’ 9-3 mark in Quad 1 games has them very much in play for a No. 1 seed in the March Madness bracket.

Indiana is 20th and Maryland is 25th. Illinois jumped up four spots after the win against Northwestern.

Purdue dropped two spots to No. 5 in both national polls. Indiana is 17th in both the Associated Press and coaches’ polls while Northwestern broke into the national rankings this week, coming in at No. 21 in the AP poll and 22nd in the coaches poll.

According to the March Madness odds, Purdue (+1000) is fourth in the odds to win the national championship. Next up among Big Ten teams is Indiana, which is tied for 13th at +3300.

Keep on reading for more on the upcoming games in the Big Ten.

Let’s check the latest college basketball picks, stats, injury reports, and NCAAB predictions. We’ve got plenty of NCAAB expert picks for you to consider.

Game of the Week

Indiana vs Purdue

• Date, time (TV): Saturday, Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m. ET (FOX)

Indiana is in a three-way tie for third place in the Big Ten standings after dropping two of its last three games. However, the Hoosiers can go for a sweep of the two games against Big Ten-leading Purdue and that would be rather beneficial when it comes time for the March Madness bracket to be finalized.

Purdue’s Zach Edey and Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis are the front-runners in the Big Ten Player of the Year race. However, this game could be determined by the success of the perimeter players.

Indiana (19-9, 10-7 Big Ten) is close to getting third-leading scorer Xavier Johnson back so that will be a huge boost as the postseason is right around the corner.

Indiana upset the Boilermakers earlier this month as Purdue’s Edey and Indiana’s Jackson-Davis accounted for 58 points, 25 rebounds and eight blocked shots.

This game could help Purdue (24-4, 13-4) in its quest to earn a No. 1 seed in the March Madness bracket while Indiana is hoping to be among the top 16 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

Purdue has won 10 of the last 12 meetings. However, Indiana has taken two of the last three. Both teams shot over 50% from the field in the first meeting of the season.

Other Games to Watch

Michigan State vs Iowa

• Date, time (TV): Saturday, Feb. 25, Noon ET (ESPN)

Michigan State had an emotional win the last time out, topping Indiana in the first home game since the shooting that rocked the Michigan State campus. Will there be a letdown when the Spartans head to face Iowa? This won’t be an easy matchup facing the top-scoring team in the Big Ten.

Michigan State (17-10, 9-7) is just 3-6 on the road while 13 of Iowa’s 17 wins have come at home.

Kris Murray is averaging 22.9 points while shooting 57% from the field and 41% on 3-pointers in home games for the Hawkeyes (17-11, 9-8).

Tyson Walker drained five 3-pointers in the win against Indiana.

Michigan State is 35th and Iowa 44th in the NCAA NET rankings so this is a huge game for both teams as they try to improve their chances of receiving an at-large bid into the March Madness bracket.

Michigan State snapped a three-game losing streak to Iowa with a 63-61 win in East Lansing on Jan. 26. However, the Hawkeyes covered as 2½-point underdogs.

Iowa has covered in each of the last three meetings with all three games going under the total.

Minnesota vs Nebraska

• Date, time (TV): Saturday, Feb. 25, 3:30 p.m. ET (Big Ten Network)

Both these teams are just playing things out as Nebraska is 12th and Minnesota 14th in the Big Ten standings.

Nebraska (14-14, 7-10) has won three games in a row and can move over the .500 mark. Derrick Walker is averaging 19 points while shooting 66% during those three games. He has been flirting with triple-doubles in three of the last five games.

Minnesota (7-19, 1-15) is coming off a game when it allowed Maryland to shoot 68% from the field and 74% inside the 3-point line, so it is safe to say the defense is not a strong suit of this Golden Gophers’ team.

Jamison Battle had 31 points as Minnesota threw a scare into Illinois on Monday. He will need more of that on Saturday.

Nebraska’s 81-79 overtime win on Jan. 7 was the third straight against Minnesota. That ended a run of six straight wins in the series by the home team. Walker had 22 points in the victory.

Minnesota has covered five of the last seven games in the series.

Northwestern vs Maryland

• Date, time (TV): Sunday, Feb. 26, Noon ET (Big Ten Network)

Northwestern’s five-game winning streak came to an end as the Wildcats shot 35% in a four-point loss to Illinois. Boo Buie had 35 points and had six 3-pointers. However, he did not have enough support from his teammates as the other four starters were 5 of 26 from the field.

Maryland is 15-1 at home and has won 10 in a row on its home court. That includes three victories against ranked teams. Jahmir Young is putting up 17.1 points per game at home and is connecting on 86% of his free throws for the Terrapins (19-9, 10-7).

Northwestern (20-8, 11-6) leads the Big Ten in turnover margin with Buie leading the way with 123 assists and 71 turnovers.

The teams might have had a hard time matching the scoring output in the last meeting. Maryland won 94-87 when listed by the sportsbook as 5½-point underdogs on the road. It was the fourth time in the last seven games to be won by the visiting team.

Each of the last four games was decided by single digits.

Northwestern and Maryland lead the Big Ten with 18-10 records against the college basketball betting lines.

Illinois vs Ohio State

• Date, time (TV): Sunday, Feb. 26, Noon ET (CBS)

Illinois is coming off a key win against nationally-ranked Northwestern. Terrence Shannon scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half as he came back from a concussion after missing the previous two games for the Fighting Illini (19-9, 10-7).

Ohio State (11-17, 3-14) has lost nine straight games. Freshman Brice Sensabaugh has back-to-back 20-point games and he was 5 of 10 from 3-point range in losses to Purdue and Penn State.

Four of five games between Ohio State and Illinois finished under the total before the teams fell well short of the 147½-point total on Jan. 24 when Illinois won 69-60.

Each of the last seven games has been decided by nine points or less.

The Fighting Illini won two of the previous three games played in Columbus.

Wisconsin vs Michigan

• Date, time (TV): Sunday, Feb. 26, 2:00 p.m. ET (CBS)

With back-to-back wins over Michigan State and Rutgers, the Wolverines are trying to make things interesting when the March Madness selection committee takes a look at Michigan’s body of work.

Freshman Dug McDaniel has 34 points, eight rebounds, six assists and only one turnover in those two games for Michigan. Classmate Jett Howard, the Wolverines’ No. 2 scorer, missed the Rutgers game with a leg injury. McDaniel and Kobe Bufkin combined for eight steals in the win.

Swiped! 🥷

The steal from Bufkin ends up in two points on the other end!

〽️🏀 | #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/3dd2yA22Fg

— Michigan Men’s Basketball (@umichbball) February 24, 2023

Speaking of freshmen, Wisconsin’s Connor Essegian had a season-high 23 points in a win over Michigan.

Wisconsin (16-11, 8-9) has won the last two games against Michigan (16-12, 10-7) and that includes a 64-59 win at home on Feb. 14 as a 1½-point favorite.

The home team has won five of the last seven games between the Wolverines and Badgers. Five of those matchups finished under the total.

Rutgers vs Penn State

• Date, time (TV): Sunday, Feb. 26, 6:30 p.m. ET (Big Ten Network)

Penn State takes a three-game winning streak into the game while Rutgers is coming off a loss to Michigan.

Rutgers is one of the best defensive teams in the country and the Scarlet Knights could have their hands full against Penn State’s Jalen Pickett. Pickett is averaging 32 points per game during the winning streak. He is scoring in a variety of ways with 11 3-pointers and is 17 of 18 from the foul line. Pickett also has 20 assists and five turnovers during that span for Penn State (17-11, 8-9).

Cam Spencer has been a bright spot for Rutgers with 33 points and seven 3-pointers over the last two games.

Rutgers (17-11, 9-8) is looking to sweep the season series against Penn State for the first time since joining the Big Ten.

The Scarlet Knights rolled to a 65-45 home win as a 6½-point favorite on Jan. 24. It was the ninth straight game in the series to finish under the total.

Penn State has won the last three times that Rutgers came to town.

The Nittany Lions lead the conference with 17 of their games going over the Las Vegas college basketball odds total.