Big Ten Tournament 2023: Schedule, Men's Bracket Predictions for Conference Tourney
Parity has been alive and well on the men's side of the Big Ten this year, which means the tournament is set to be as unpredictable as ever.
For example, Purdue clinched a share of the conference title by virtue of Maryland's win over Northwestern on Sunday, which came hours after the Boilermakers lost to Indiana.
Purdue's conference record moved to 13-5, and there's a four-way tie for second place.
Indiana, Maryland, Northwestern and Michigan all sit at 11-7 on the season and have a chance to catch the Boilermakers and force tie-breakers to sort out the final standings. Three teams—Illinois, Iowa and Rutgers—sit a game behind that group at 10-8.
It's a logjam that should sort itself out over the next week. The way those teams finish and how they do in the tournament is likely to make an impact on the NCAA tournament bracket.
Joe Lunardi's latest bracketology for ESPN has the Big 10 leading the way with nine teams in the tournament. Penn State is among his first four out.
Here's a look at the tournament schedule, bracket predictions and a few key games to watch over the next week.
Big Ten Men's Tournament Schedule
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First Round: March 8
Game 1: No. 12 seed vs. No. 13 seed, 6:30 p.m. ET (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 2: No. 11 seed vs. No. 14 seed, 25 minutes after Game 1 (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Second Round: March 9
Game 3: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed, 12:00 p.m. ET (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 4: No. 5 seed vs. Game 1 winner, 25 minutes after Game 1 (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 5: No. 7 seed vs. 10 seed, 6:30 p.m. ET (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 6: No. 6 seed vs. Game 2 winner, 25 minutes after Game 5 (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Quarterfinals: March 10
Game 7: No. 1 seed vs. Game 3 winner, 12:00 p.m. ET (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 8: No. 4 seed vs. Game 4 winner, 25 minutes after Game 7 (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 9: No. 2 seed vs. Game 5 winner, 6:30 p.m. ET (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Game 10: No. 3 seed vs. Game 6 winner, 25 minutes after Game 9 (BTN/Fox Sports App)
Semifinals: March 11
Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 1:00 p.m. ET (CBS/Paramount+)
Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 25 minutes after Game 11 (CBS/Paramount+)
Championship Game: March 12
Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 3:30 p.m. ET (CBS/Paramount+)
Bracket Predictions
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1. Purdue
2. Maryland
3. Northwestern
4. Indiana
5. Michigan
6. Michigan State
7. Iowa
8. Rutgers
9. Illinois
10. Wisconsin
11. Penn State
12. Nebraska
13. Ohio State
14. Minnesota
Key Games
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Iowa at Indiana, February 28
This will be the first domino to fall that will have a major impact on the current logjam. The Hoosiers are sitting at No. 2 as part of the group that is 11-7, while the Hawkeyes are just one game behind.
The question is which Iowa team will show up. Fran McCaffrey's side has been one of the most unpredictable in the conference. It beat Northwestern soundly on January 31 before getting dusted by the Wildcats 80-60 less than three weeks later.
The Hawkeyes' first matchup against Indiana on Jan. 5 was a turning point at the time. Coming into their game with the Hoosiers, they were 1-4 in their last five games including losses to Eastern Illinois, Nebraska and Penn State.
They snapped that cold streak with a 91-89 win over Indiana. The next three games included wins at Rutgers and at home against Michigan and Maryland.
If history repeats itself, Iowa could prove to be formidable.
Penn State at Northwestern, March 1
This is a huge game for both programs. For Northwestern, this is a key game to stopping its current slide after dropping two in a row against Illinois and Maryland.
While those two are likely tournament teams, Penn State is hanging on for dear life. As mentioned earlier, the Nittany Lions are in Joe Lunardi's first four out.
A win over Northwestern on the road would be a big feather in their cap. For a team looking to improve its resume and make the big dance, that's a big opportunity. It is 3-1 over its last four games and the loss was by three points to Rutgers.
If Penn State can get the road win, it throws even more chaos into the tourney.
Michigan at Illinois, March 2
Don't look now, but the Michigan Wolverines appear to be building up steam heading into March.
At the end of January, they were hovering right around .500 for the season and 5-5 in conference play. Since then, they have won six of their last eight games and are now in the four-way tie for second place.
Those wins haven't just come against the cellar-dwellers, either. They beat Rutgers 58-45 and kicked off the run with a double-digit victory over Northwestern.
Now, Michigan will have to navigate a two-game finale that will test its momentum on the road against Illinois and Indiana.
Two wins could see the Wolverines wind up with the No. 2 seed. Two losses could see them fall all the way to the ninth seed.
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