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Big Ten Men's Basketball Blog
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Note: The Big Ten Men's Basketball Blog is typically updated by 1 p.m. ET each day, though additional updates and changes to that schedule may be dictated by events taking place around the conference.
March 21, 2009 The Road to the Final Four
We hope you're enjoying the NCAA Tournament and coverage on both CBS and the Big Ten Network. Continue checking www.bigten.org, www.bigtennetwork.com, and www.ncaa.com for further updates and be sure to tune into your local CBS affiliate as Big Ten teams continue to make their run to Detroit!
March 11, 2009 Let the Madness Begin We will be blogging live at bigten.org during each tournament game beginning at 12 p.m. ET on Thursday. Stay tuned both here and on bigtennetwork.com, along with television partners CBS, ESPN and Big Ten Network for continued coverage of the tournament!
March 9, 2009 Championship Week... Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament Schedule: Thursday: (8) Minnesota vs. (9) Northwestern (12 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Thursday: (7) Michigan vs. (10) Iowa (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2) Thursday: (6) Penn State vs. (11) Indiana (5 p.m. ET, ESPN2) Friday: (1) Michigan State vs. Winner of (8) Minn / (9) NU (12 p.m. ET, ESPN) Friday: (4) Wisconsin vs. (5) Ohio State (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) Friday: (2) Illinois vs. Winner of (7) Mich / (10) Iowa (6:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Friday: (3) Purdue vs. Winner of (6) PSU / (11) Ind (9 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Saturday: Semifinal #1 (1:40 p.m. ET, CBS) Saturday: Semifinal #2 (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS) Sunday: Championship (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS) Key Sites to Check This Week:
Weekend Scores: Michigan 67, Minnesota 64: Michigan improved to .500 in the conference with the road win. Minnesota also finishes .500, but gets the #8 seed as a result of their 0-2 head-to-head record vs. Michigan. Iowa 75, Penn State 67 (2 OT): Thriller on Senior Day in Iowa City. Penn State finishes 10-8 in the conference, but lost the three-way tiebreaker with Ohio State and Wisconsin and will need to play Thursday vs. Indiana. Michigan State 62, Purdue 51: Michigan State raised a banner, honored their seniors, and finished four games up on second place teams Purdue and Illinois. Ohio State 52, Northwestern 47: Northwestern made a second half run at the Buckeyes, but came up short. Ohio State finished 10-8. Wisconsin 85, Indiana 61: Wisconsin finished 10-8 in conference as well with the home win. Big Ten Men's Basketball on TV: Big Ten Network will unveil the conference's all-Big Ten teams at 7 p.m. ET Monday night. Monday, Mar. 9 Tuesday, Mar. 10
March 7, 2009 Good Saturday Morning There are tiebreaker scenarios abound for the Big Ten Tournament. Stay tuned for seeding updates!
Hitting the Links ... Dave Revsine spent some time with CollegeRPI.com's Jerry Palm discussing which Big Ten teams are looking at NCAA Tournament bids come next weekend. ... Michigan head coach John Beilein hopes that the six-day lay-off will pay off for Michigan. ... Northwestern guard Michael Thompson sat down with the Big Ten Network for a one-on-one ... Northwestern is clawing at the door of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. ... Purdue forward JaJuan Johnson was among a few Big Ten players named to the NABC Division I All-District team. This Weekend's Games Michigan (18-12, 8-9 Big Ten; KPI #46) at Minnesota (21-8, 9-8 Big Ten; KPI #35) (Sat. 12 p.m. ET, ESPN) Michigan Game Notes Minnesota Game Notes It's Senior Day in Minneapolis for an early start at Williams Arena. Key Matchup: Blake Hoffarber and Zack Novak -- the young, lefty shooters provide the wildcards for both. Big Key: Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims need to score points, rebound the ball and carry the Wolverines to pull the road win. What's on the Line?: Both teams need wins as they pursue NCAA Tournament bids on the final weekend. UM is trying to get to .500 in conference play. Penn State (21-9, 10-7 Big Ten; KPI #44) at Iowa (14-16, 4-13 Big Ten; KPI #104) (Sat. 2 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Penn State Game Notes Iowa Game Notes It's Senior Day in Iowa City as well. Key Matchup: Talor Battle and Jake Kelly -- both have emerged as their respective team leaders with recent big games. Battle needs to shoot well to help Penn State pull the road win. Remember, it took a late Nittany Lion comeback to beat the Hawkeyes in State College 63-59 on January 24. Big Key: Jamelle Cornley's health ... their heart and glue guy injured his shoulder late in the Illinois game Thursday. What's on the Line?: Penn State has put themselves in a great position to make the tournament now, but an 11th conference win would wrap it up. Iowa needs wins to help enhance their postseason resume as well. #19/20 Purdue (22-8, 11-6 Big Ten; KPI #22) at #8/8 Michigan State (24-5, 14-3 Big Ten; KPI #2) (Sun. 12 p.m. ET, CBS) Purdue Game Notes Michigan State Game Notes It's Senior Day in East Lansing as well -- they will honor their four seniors (Idong Ibok, Marquise Gray, Goran Suton and Travis Walton) and four managers (Sean Dwyer, Nick Hendon, Ryan Linhart and Reed Schuitema) after the game at the Breslin Center. Key Matchup: Robbie Hummel and Raymar Morgan -- the two preseason Player of the Year candidates have missed a lot of time in conference play, but are both recovering and starting to get their groove back. Big Key: Michigan State's answer to Purdue's pressure defense. The Spartans struggled with it the first go-around (a loss in West Lafayette). What's on the Line?: Michigan State has clinched the conference and the #1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, but need to win to maintain position for a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Purdue needs a win to keep hope alive for a #2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Northwestern (17-11, 8-9 Big Ten; KPI #56) at Ohio State (19-9, 9-8 Big Ten; KPI #33) (Sun. 5 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Northwestern Game Notes Ohio State Game Notes Northwestern tries to pull off another major road win and creep closer to the NCAA Tournament in Columbus Sunday evening. Key Matchup: Craig Moore and Jon Diebler -- both teams' sharp shooters will need sharp shooting against the opposition's zone. Big Key: Battle on the boards -- Ohio State has more size, but the Wildcats have been better on the boards. What's on the Line?: Northwestern needs wins to keep their dream season alive. The Buckeyes are closer to clinching a bid than NU, but need a win or two to close the deal. Indiana (6-23, 1-16 Big Ten; KPI #204) at Wisconsin (18-11, 9-8 Big Ten; KPI #38) (Sun 7 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) Indiana Game Notes Wisconsin Game Notes The final game of the season will take place Sunday night at the Kohl Center on Senior Night in Madison. Key Matchup: Marcus Landry and Joe Krabbenhoft -- I know, I know. They are on the same team! It's their final game at the Kohl Center, though after an incredible career for both. Big Key: Indiana needs to make 3's to pull the upset on the road. What's on the Line?: Wisconsin has to have this one to keep their NCAA bid. Thursday's Game Penn State 64 (KPI Value = +.48), #23/23 Illinois 63 (KPI Value = -.04) Game Story Box Score Big Ten Network Highlights Talor Battle hit a game-winning runner off glass as the Nittany Lions added another win over a ranked team to their resume with an impressive rally. Penn State finished the game on a 14-3 run to erase a 60-50 deficit and scored the final nine points of the game. Stanley Pringle led PSU with 20 points while Battle finished with 15 points. Demetri McCamey led Illinois with 16 points in the Fighting Illini's final conference game of the regular season. KEY STAT: Illinois finished 2-for-7 (29%) from the foul line, including two misses on the front ends of 1-and-1's. REVISITING THE BIG KEY: This matchup was far different than the 38-33 first meeting. Illinois shot 48% from the field while Penn State shot 43%. WHAT IT MEANS: Penn State probably needs one more win somewhere to be sure of a bid, but their quick turn-around in Iowa City Saturday is important to finish 11-7 and maybe as high as the #2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Illinois finishes the conference season at 11-7 and will wait until games this weekend to find out whether they are the #2, #3 or #4 seed in Indianapolis. Big Ten Men's Basketball on TV: Saturday, Mar. 7 Sunday, Mar. 8
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