The race for the regular season Big Ten title is shaping up to be a photo finish as Nebraska leads the conference with Michigan, Michigan State, Illinois and Purdue trailing only a half game behind.
The margin for error in the race for the Big Ten title is razor thin, as one loss could take a team out of contention.
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Nebraska 18-0 (7-0)
No. 7 ranked Nebraska is led by junior forward Pryce Sandfort (17 PPG, 4 REB) and senior forward Rienk Mast (15 PPG, 6 REB).
The Cornhuskers have enjoyed the luxury of a weak non-conference schedule. The only ranked opponents the Cornhuskers have played are No.10 Michigan State and No. 11 Illinois in which they escaped with narrow victories.
Nebraska’s remaining ranked opponents include Michigan, a rematch with Illinois and No.4 Purdue.
Michigan 17-1 (7-1)
No.3 ranked Michigan is led by senior forward Yaxel Lendeborg (14 PPG, 7 REB) and sophomore forward Morez Johnson (14 PPG, 7 REB).
Their non-conference schedule is highlighted by dominant wins against Auburn and Gonzaga at the Player Era Festival tournament.
The Wolverines were unbeaten and seemingly the favorite to win the conference title until their 91-88 loss to unranked Wisconsin on Jan. 10.
Michigan is still within striking distance and can control their own destiny, especially if they defeat Nebraska in their matchup on Jan. 27. However, Michigan faces a tough road beyond that including Purdue, Illinois and two matchups against Michigan State.
Purdue 17-2 (7-1)
No. 4 ranked Purdue, led by senior guards Braden Smith (14 PPG, 9 AST) and Fletcher Loyer (13 PPG) faced a tough non-conference schedule including an 87-80 win against Alabama, an 86-56 win against Texas Tech, an 81-58 loss against Iowa State and an 88-60 win against Auburn.
Purdue was 6-0 in conference before losing a 69-67 nailbiter to UCLA on Jan. 20.
Purdue’s remaining ranked opponents sit atop the Big Ten conference including, Illinois, Nebraska, Michigan and Michigan State. Purdue’s matchup against Nebraska gives them the potential to control their own destiny.
Michigan State 17-2 (6-1)
No. 10 ranked Michigan State, led by senior forward Jaxon Kohler (13 PPG, 10 REB) and sophomore Jeremy Fears (13 PPG, 8 AST) has faced a tough non-conference schedule including a 69-66 win against Arkansas, an 83-66 win against Kentucky, a 74-58 win against North Carolina and a 66-60 loss against Duke.
Michigan State lost 58-56 against the unbeaten Nebraska on Jan. 2. Since then, the Spartans have won four straight conference games.
The Spartans are currently not in control of their own destiny as they must depend on Nebraska losing a game against another conference opponent to bring them back within contention.
The Spartans also have to handle their own business as they still have two matchups with Michigan, Illinois, and Purdue on the schedule.
Illinois 16-3 (7-1)
No. 11 ranked Illinois, led by freshman guard Keaton Wagler (16 PPG, 4 AST) and senior guard Kylan Boswell (14 PPG, 3 AST) has endured one of the toughest non-conference schedules leading up to Big Ten play including an 81-77 win against Texas Tech, a 90-86 loss against Alabama, a 74-61 loss against UConn and a 75-62 win against Tennessee.
The Fighting Illini haven’t lost a game since their loss to Nebraska on Dec. 13. Through an eight-game win streak since then, Illinois beat Big Ten opponents Penn State, Rutgers, Iowa, Northwestern, Minnesota and Maryland.
Illinois still has a hard road ahead including Purdue, a Nebraska rematch, Michigan State and Michigan.
Even though ranked opponents are they marquee matchups for these top Big Ten teams, they can’t overlook any teams in the conference as evidenced with Michigan’s loss to Wisconsin and Purdue’s loss to UCLA.
The Big Ten is among the most competitive conferences in the NCAA with four teams ranked in the top 12. There are still 12 conference games remaining on the schedule and the landscape can change game-by-game due to the extremely slim margin for error.