It’s going to be an all-out war in the Big Ten tournament.
No. 10 Indiana, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 18 Maryland and No. 13 Purdue have all locked up the top four seeds to assure themselves double byes. That also pretty much makes them the hands-down favorites to win the conference title. But you can’t just count out the likes of Iowa, Wisconsin or any other lower-seeded teams from the race as almost every program here is capable enough to pull off some major shockers.
There’s really no telling what kind of ending awaits us. All we can do is to wait, watch and enjoy the ride. With that said, read on below for our quick breakdown of the Big Ten tournament.
Meanwhile, you can also check out our other tournament previews for: ACC, Conference USA and Big Sky.
March Madness News & Predictions
- 2016 March Madness Sleepers Predictions and Picks
- 2016 March Madness Longshots and Best Long Shots Picks and Predictions
- 2016 March Madness Preview
- 2016 NCAA March Madness Expert Picks
2016 Big Ten Conference Tournament Preview
Favorites
Michigan State Spartans
The Spartans (+125) are bursting with confidence right now after capping off their regular-season on a six-game winning streak. Denzel Valentine is a testament to this run, as the newly-crowned Big Ten Player of the Year is averaging 21.8 points and 9.6 dimes in that span.
Apart from him, Bryn Forbes has been a great second option for the team. He’s putting up 15.1 points and is shooting 50.5% from down town. His playmaking skills and long-range touch will play a key factor in the Spartan’s success in the tournament.
Indiana Hoosiers
The outright regular-season champions Indiana Hoosiers (+250) are looking like the real deal indeed. They enter this tournament as winners of their last five games. In that stretch, their best player in Yogi Ferrell has done a spectacular job in making plays for himself and for his teammates, averaging 18.6 points with 4.4 assists.
Besides him, Troy Williams and Thomas Bryant also deserve a lot of credit for their contributions this season. Both players are scoring in double-digits with 13.0 and 11.5 points, respectively.
Defense, though, remains to be the biggest question mark for the team. Yes, the Hoosiers are only giving up less than 70 points a game, but it’ll be interesting to see how they’ll hold up and react to the increased level of pressure especially during road games. Indiana is allowing 73.4 points on the road this season.
Maryland Terrapins
Maryland (+500) enters this tournament with barely any momentum. The Terps ended the regular season by losing four of their last six games. That includes a deflating setback to the Hoosiers, who defeated them last Sunday, 80-62.
In spite of this, the Terps are still one of the favorites to win the conference title. They have more than enough talent on their roster to lead them to victories. Melo Trimble is definitely one of those players, but he’ll need to really improve his play and find a way to get everyone going in order to carry Maryland all the way.
Fortunately, Trimble, who is posting team-highs of 14.4 points and 5.1 dimes, seems to be heating up just in the nick of time. The sophomore guard has scored 17 or more point in his last three games. He’s also dished out 13 assists in that stretch.
Sleeper
Wisconsin Badgers
Despite falling short in their regular-season finale opposite Purdue, the Badgers (+600) are going to be a team to watch out for. Their defense has been really solid this season, allowing just 64.4 points per contest. The same can be said of their offense as well.
The Badgers are only averaging 69.2 points as team, but that alone doesn’t completely define their true scoring potential. They have a handful of weapons on their side that relish playing under pressure. For one, there’s the pair of Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig, who are tallying 16.1 and 13.7 points, respectively.
Also, there’s Ethan Happ. He capped off the regular season on a strong note by posting 12.6 points on 55.3 percent shooting in his past five contests. If he and the rest of the Badgers continue to play solid, they’re bound to make a lot of noise in this tournament.
Long Shot
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota’s chance of taking home the conference title is almost zero to none. However, let’s not forget that the 13th-seeded Golden Gophers (+20,000) provided us one of the biggest upsets in the regular-season when they defeated then-No. 6 Maryland, 68-63, on February 18.
In that contest, it was the pair of Nate Mason and Jordan Murphy who led the way by combining for 35 points and 17 rebounds. Both are also Minnesota’s top point-getters this season with 13.8 and 11.7 points respectively. And if they can somehow find their rhythm offensively again, the Golden Gophers might just give us fans another shocker. Just maybe.
Writer’s Prediction
Valentine continues to shine and the Spartans (+125) win a ticket to the Big Dance.
Create a betting account now and start going crazy for college ball this March.
