Two out of the top three teams lost this week with Purdue taking control in their win against Michigan State, to send the Spartans home with their first Big Ten loss of the year. The shocker of the week may have been in Madison Square Garden on Saturday where bottom-dweller Illinois took down third place Maryland. Iowa lost twice last week to Michigan State and Minnesota this week to put themselves back in the middle of the standings. Nebraska is becoming one of the more disappointing teams in the Big Ten, losing four straight and have only won two games in 2019 and now lost their second leading scorer to an ACL injury.
Games of the Week
#1 Minnesota @ #17 Purdue (12:00 E.T. BTN)
Sunday, February 3
Players to Watch:
Minnesota: Amir Coffey (15.8 PPG), Jordan Murphy (15.1 PPG, 12.0 RPG)
Purdue: Carsen Edwards (24.2 PPG), Matt Haarms (7.9 PPG)
We thought Purdue was going to go away. After losing six games before the turn of the new year, the Boilermakers have rattled off eight of their last nine and look to be one of the best teams in the Big Ten, especially at home. It helps when you have the league’s leading scorer in Carsen Edwards. Minnesota is not going to back down tho. They just took down Iowa, and Michigan needed a buzzer beater to beat the Gophers at home. Amir Coffey can get hot at anytime, and Jordan Murphy is a walking double-double. The Gophers are scary but going into Mackey Arena is no small feat.
Minnesota 65 Purdue 72
#2 #21 Maryland @ #24 Wisconsin (9:00 E.T. FS1)
Friday, February 1
Players to Watch:
Maryland: Anthony Cowan Jr. (17.4 PPG), Bruno Fernando (14.6 PPG, 10.3 RPG)
Wisconsin: Ethan Happ (18.9 PPG, 10.4 RPG), D’Mitrik Trice (14.2 PPG)
Here come the Badgers. Wisconsin is on a four game winning streak which started with an upset win over Michigan. Maryland got back on track Tuesday night with a win over Northwestern after two straight losses to Michigan State and Illinois. These teams have already met with the Terrapins squeaking out a 64-60 win in College Park. This is going to be your old school grind it out game with two of the best post players in the nation facing off. It is not often your center leads the team in points, rebounds and assists, but that is exactly what Ethan Happ does. I am sure Bruno Fernando will not back down from the challenge. Wisconsin needs to keep this game in the 50’s or 60’s again if they want a chance.
Maryland 54 Wisconsin 58
Team of the Week: Purdue
Matt Painter has his guys rolling, and I would not be surprised to see the Boilers make their case for first place very soon. There is no more Michigan or Michigan State on the rest of the schedule. Their toughest game may be next week when they travel to take on Maryland. The way the Boilermakers played on Sunday against Michigan State gives me no doubt they can soar their way to the number one seed in the Big Ten Tournament.
Player of the Week: Jordan Murphy (Minnesota)
We usually celebrate when a player scores 1,000 career points. The Gophers were celebrating Jordan Murphy and reaching 1,000 career REBOUNDS on Sunday. Murphy put up 15 points and 11 rebounds in their loss against Michigan, and followed up with a 23 point, 11 rebound performance against Iowa. He will have a big assignment this week against 7’3 Matt Haarms from Purdue and will need to have another spectacular game if the Gophers want to waltz into Mackey Arena an steal a win from Purdue
Sleeper Team: Penn State
I bet you didn’t think I was going to pick these guys did you? Yes, Penn State has lost seven straight. Yes, Penn State has not won a single Big Ten game. The Nittany Lions have had an absolute brutal schedule having already played, Michigan, Michigan State, Maryland, Iowa and Wisconsin. Four out of their last seven losses have been by single digits. The luck has to turn eventually and there’s no time like the present. They get Purdue at home this week and maybe Pat Chambers can get a win to turn this season around.
My Power Rankings.
- Michigan
- Michigan State
- Purdue
- Wisconsin
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Ohio State
- Northwestern
- Iowa
- Nebraska
- Indiana
- Rutgers
- Illinois
- Penn State
