Well. Have y’all caught your collective breath? Ohio State went all “Watch this little bit of end-game heroics,” and then Northwestern added a little “Hold my beer” the following night. Only to be kind of outdone, Iowa bumbled its way through an end-game offense before breaking badger hearts and putting itself back in bubble conversation.
We’ve got a lot more basketball coverage coming today, including BTT scenarios and Bracketology, but in the meantime, let’s take a moment and recap what the hell just happened.
#16 Purdue 86, Indiana 75
babaoreally: Purdue beat Indiana on Tuesday to win the B1G. It was a foul fest that wasn't much fun to watch, but a win is a win and a conference championship is a conference championship.
If the Boilers beat Northwestern on Sunday (or Wisconsin loses) then it will be an outright title, which would be cool.
Maryland 79, rutger 59
Maryland beat rutger by a lot. Congrats to any and all parties that performed well in this game, one of which I can assume is CJ Gettys.
DJ: Also, not convinced second half Maryland against rutger really shook off their funk because it's rutger and they're absolutely awful. That being said, Maryland distributed the ball well against rutger and it took until 70 points for a Terp to be in double figures. I'll take that.
With Sparty next, any confidence going into the game helps. Let's hope second half Maryland is what shows up against Sparty, otherwise we can pencil that L in now.
Zuzu: Oh man, I was really hoping this would be the THAT game for Rutgers... The athletics world shocker. It was not. I felt like maybe there was a chance with the solid shooting in the first half from from Gettys and Freeman, but oh man. Maryland came right out the gate in the second half. Rutgers should take notes because that’s how you start and FINISH a second half— something that has plagued us this entire season. But... at least we’re getting competitive. At this point all we can do is look to the future which seems pretty bright given the changes.
Ohio State 71, Penn State 70
Jaquan Lyle provided 17 points and 6 boards to lead the Buckeyes, but man, Jae’Sean Tate went and did this down 1 with just ticks remaining:
Coast-to-coast goes Jae'Sean Tate, for the @OhioStAthletics win. https://t.co/387HArmh6k
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 1, 2017
That’s a heartbreaker for Penn State, who likely will not have a postseason unless the CBI comes calling. Of some consolation might be the emergence of Tony Carr, the freshman guard who deserves a serious look for Freshman of the Year. His 21 points on 8/16 shooting marked his third consecutive game over 20 points.
Winners of two straight, Ohio State now heads home for Senior Day against a scuffling Indiana, where they can lock up that NIT bid.
Aaron Yorke: Penn State blew a seven-point halftime lead to Ohio State on Tuesday in a game that will probably cost the Lions a first-round bye in the Big Ten Tournament. Pat Chambers's team battled depth issues all night, with Payton Banks sitting out with an illness and Mike Watkins battling a leg injury. The latter proved especially costly on the final meaningful possession as Jae'Sean Tate hit the game-winning layup over backup center Julian Moore.
The silver lining is that Tony Carr continues to look like a future superstar for Penn State. He crushed a three-pointer with nine seconds to play that might have given the Lions their seventh Big Ten win. He's been the most consistent player on the team and will soon be a premier player in this conference.
The Miracle at McGaw: Northwestern 67, Michigan 65
Perfect pass from @NU_nate32.#BTNStandout finish from @dererk5.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 2, 2017
Monster win by @NUMensBball: https://t.co/oTN8CG8VIl
Graham Filler: Michigan and Northwestern. Legendary Midwestern schools, intrigue, wealth, academia of the highest regard...bubble teams. The "Battle of the Bubble" ended with a Hail Mary pass terribly defensed by Michigan that will shoehorn NW into the tourney.
Michigan did good things, like playing tough defense and making a hard-fought comeback in the 2nd half. It's not an overly athletic Michigan team, but they've improved on finding open, uncontested shots TENFOLD since midseason. I am guessing...9 seed in the Dance.
MNW: It was Gardner to Roundtree.
Dileo's slide and [redacted]'s illegal FG.
Ron Kellogg III to Jordan Westerkamp.
Except this time it was Student Body Right, Glen Mason squinting under the glare of the Metrodome lights. Zak Kustok rolls out. A tip, and Sam Simmons comes down with the ball in the End Zone.
This was Victory Right, 2017 Edition.
The 'Cats blew an 11-point lead while still managing to frustrate Flopping Whiner Moritz Wagner, taking contested shots down the stretch and allowing Derrick Walton, Jr to have his way with them as Stephen Bardo shot his load over Walton mean-mugging after every basket.
Michigan made one too many mistakes down the stretch, be it Walton starting to run into the lane when Wagner already had the ball for a free throw or DJ Wilson getting positively lost on the game-winner.
But that game-winner. Goddamn. Credit to Nathan Taphorn for getting past the Notre Dame debacle—which he was very up-front about having haunted him since it happened—and putting a perfect pass in Dererk Pardon's hands. In stride. [Take notes, Clayton.] Credit to Dererk Pardon for getting his feet under him, squaring up, and finishing high off the glass. Credit to AC Brian James for once again drawing up the perfect in-bounds play. The man is a fucking genius. Credit to Chris Collins for getting this team to keep its eye on the prize and not playing for overtime.
21 wins. First time ever.
A winning record in the Big Ten. First time in 49 years. The last time this happened LBJ was about to decline a second term [a fact like that felt obligatory].
I shouted. Might have cried a little. Spent the rest of the night holding onto the fiance's cat (not a euphemism, I swear) and drinking really good beer. That was stressful as hell.
Go 'Cats, beat Purdue.
Illinois 73, Michigan State 70
Andrew K: Stop me if you've heard this before, but MSU played like hot trash on the road and lost to a team that, well, they were there, sure. The Spartans' continuing inability to take care of the ball away from home, coupled with once again failing to properly track shooters, made it a case of deja vu in Champaign.
There's probably no danger of MSU falling on the wrong side of the bubble, but winning this game would have ended any doubts. MSU has been mostly bad on the road, so Saturday's visit to Maryland isn't likely to provide that win, and they now risk losing the double bye in the BTT as well.
A performance like this has stumbled on to the court every time MSU seems to have some things figured out; at this point, it's worth wondering if this is simply all this team is - a roller coaster with somewhat limited peaks and very defined valleys.
MNW: Thump did not respond well to my insinuation that Illinois was potentially dancing. I assume we’re just going to let him have this one.
Minnesota 88, Nebraska 73
BigRedTwice stopped by briefly to comment on the attractiveness of Glynn Watson Jr., but it’s probably for the best that she didn’t watch all of this one.
WhiteSpeedReceiver: 88-73 is actually quite flattering to Nebraska. Nate Mason scored 25, Jordan Murphy continues his resurgence with 20 and 11, and Reggie Lynch had a pedestrian 11 points 6 boards 6 blocks and only 3 fouls. Dupree McBrayer also got in on the fun with 16 points and some amazing passes.
We're clicking on all cylinders right now just in time for the trip to the Clearance Rack on Sunday to get jobbed by the refs.
Iowa 59, #22 wisconsin 57
Stew: There is no cohesion to these thoughts.
Iowa became the only team to come from behind in the last 5 minutes against wisconsin all year.
Fuck wisconsin.
Jordan Fucking Bohannon. This is his team now, even if Jok is still the best player.
Flopsconsin flops a lot.
wisconsin basketball fans== Iowa state basketball fans.
Tyler Cook is great, but without him, Iowa really struggles.
Fuck the clearance rack. Only there can a flop result in a flagrant initiated by a review between free throws.
Is Iowa passing their way onto the bubble???
These kids are a ton of fun to watch.
Fuck wisconsin and their sport killing style.
Go Iowa awesome!
There was also this, from Iowa’s ESPN favorite Chris Hassel:
Final moments of @IowaHoops win at Wisc with Dad @DonHassel pic.twitter.com/fTUkE1bcJ3
— Chris Hassel (@hasselESPN) March 3, 2017
You should try having more than one insider at ESPN, Hawks. It’s super gratifying.
Look for Big Ten Tournament scenarios and Big Ten Bracketology to follow later in the day. In the meantime, let us know your favorite moment of the week and why it was the Wonder at Welsh-Ryan.
Thanks for making OTE your home for Big Ten basketball chat!
-MNWildcat, DJ Carver, and the OTE Shootyhoops Team