Feb. 7, 2005

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Six Big Ten Teams with 15 or More Wins: The Big Ten is one of only two leagues in the nation with six teams that have posted 15 or more victories this year. Conference USA also has six programs with 15 or more triumphs, followed by the Big 12 (5), Big East (4), Missouri Valley (4) and SEC (4). Illinois leads the Conference with a 23-0 mark, followed by Minnesota (16-6), Ohio State (16-7), Michigan State (15-4), Wisconsin (15-5) and Iowa (15-6). Last year at this time, the Big Ten had only three teams with 16 or more wins.

Illinois' Record-Setting Season: Illinois remains undefeated with a 9-0 mark in Big Ten play and is off to its best start in League action since the 1955-56 season when the Illini opened with a 10-0 mark. It also marks the best start by a Big Ten squad in League play since Indiana posted a 13-0 start during the 1993 Conference slate. The Illini have set a school record, notching 19 consecutive victories in Big Ten play, breaking the previous mark of 17 games set during the 1914-1915 season. It is the longest streak in Conference play since Michigan also won 19 consecutive League games from Jan. 12 1985 to Jan. 16, 1986 and is tied for the fifth longest streak in Big Ten annals. The Illini are also just two wins away from tying the school record for consecutive victories in all games as Illinois won 25 straight games over parts of three seasons from 1914 through 1916.

More on Illinois' Perfect Record: With a 23-0 record, Illinois now has the fourth-best start in Big Ten history. The Fighting Illini have already set a school record, breaking the previous mark of 17-0 set by the 1988-89 squad. Illinois' run also marks the best start by a Big Ten squad since Indiana, which holds the Conference record after finishing the 1975-76 season with a 32-0 mark and winning the national title. The Hoosiers are the last squad in the nation to go undefeated in a season.

Big Ten Turnaround: While Illinois may be the story of the Conference season, Minnesota is looking to take some of the spotlight away from the Illini. Despite losing the League's leading scorer and rebounder from a year ago, the Golden Gophers have posted a 6-3 Big Ten mark, doubling their win total from a year ago after finishing the 2004 Conference season with a 3-13 record. Minnesota is on pace to finish above .500 for the first time in League action since the 2001-02 season when the team posted a 9-7 Big Ten mark and 18-13 overall record. The Gophers have won 16 of their first 22 games for the first time since the 1989-90 campaign, when the program opened at 16-5 and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight.

RPI Success: In the latest RPI report, the Big Ten is one of only three conferences in the nation with four teams ranked in the Top 30 of the team standings. The Big East and the Big 12 also have four teams. The League contingent includes three ranked in the top 20 with Illinois at No. 4, Wisconsin ranked 18th and Michigan State at No. 19, followed by No. 33 Minnesota. The Big Ten continues to lead with a No.1 ranking in non-conference RPI rankings, while facing the nation's toughest schedule in non-conference play.

Three in a Row: With the Conference season at the halfway point, Illinois' Deron Williams is looking to become only the second player in League history to lead the Big Ten in assists for three consecutive seasons. He currently ranks first in Big Ten play with 7.89 assists per game, which would break the Big Ten record of 7.8 assists per game established by Michigan State's Eric Snow in 1995 and matched by the Spartans' Mateen Cleaves in 1998 and 2000. Cleaves was the first player in the Conference to rank first in assists for three straight seasons from 1998-2000. He finished his senior season as the Big Ten's all-time assists leader with 816 career dishes. Williams is only the third Illinois standout to lead the Conference in assists as Tony Wysinger ranked first in 1987 with 6.1 assists per game, while Bruce Douglas led the Big Ten during three different seasons (1983, 1984 and 1986).

Other Mid-season Leaders: In other Conference game only categories, Iowa's Erek Hansen is aiming to repeat as the statistical leader in blocked shots, while Purdue's Carl Landry currently ranks first in scoring and Penn State's Aaron Johnson leads the Big Ten in rebounding. Hansen is averaging 2.62 rejections this season after ranking first with 2.46 blocks per game a year ago, which would make him the third player in the last seven years to repeat as the blocked shot leader along with Ohio State's Ken Johnson (2000-01) and Penn State's Calvin Booth (1996-99). Hansen would be the first Hawkeye to accomplish that feat since Acie Earl in 1991 and 1992. With an average of 19.1 points per game this season, Landry would become the first Boilermaker to rank first in scoring since former Purdue All-American Glenn Robinson ranked first in the Conference in scoring for two consecutive seasons (1993-94). Johnson is leading the Big Ten with 10.2 caroms per outing which would make him the second PSU player to finish first in that category and the first since Jarrett Stephens led the way in 2000.

The 1,000 Point Milestone: Illinois' Roger Powell (1,003) became the latest Big Ten standout to reach 1,000 career points after tallying 10 against Indiana. He becomes the 10th active member of the 1,000-point club, joining teammates Luther Head (1,155) and Dee Brown (1,121), Michigan's Daniel Horton (1,033), Michigan State's Kelvin Torbert (1,022) and Wisconsin's Sharif Chambliss (1,029). Four Conference players entered the 2004-05 campaign with more than 1,000 career points in Indiana's Bracey Wright (1,374), Michigan State's Chris Hill (1,422), Ohio State's Tony Stockman (1,422) and Wisconsin's Mike Wilkinson (1,323).

Scoring Explosion: Big Ten standouts continue to post top performances during Conference play as four different players have tallied 30 or more points in a game. Most recently, Minnesota's Vincent Grier scored a career-high 32 against Wisconsin, the most points of any player in a non-overtime game this season in League play. Northwestern's Vedran Vukusic also produced a career-best 32 points in an overtime victory over Iowa on January 26, while Purdue's Carl Landry notched 31 points against Michigan State on January 18. Indiana's Bracey Wright tallied 30 points against Wisconsin on January 8 for the fifth 30-plus point outing by a League player in the last month. Prior to January 8, Conference student-athletes had scored 30 or more points on only two occasions, led by Penn State's Marlon Smith, who tallied a season-high 33 points against Long Island in December, while Wright posted 31 versus Kentucky.

Attendance Hits 1.5 Million: The Big Ten broke the 1.5 million mark in total attendance last week, as 1,597,853 fans have flocked to Conference arenas for 133 games. Last season, the Big Ten led the country in total attendance for the 28th-straight season with 2,122,586 total patrons (including the Big Ten Tournament), as the League has broken the two million mark in total attendance in each of the last 12 seasons.