Big Ten Tournament 2024: Bracket Predictions Before Final Men's Regular-Season Games

Big Ten men's basketball teams have one final chance to improve their standing ahead of the upcoming conference tournament.

Minnesota and Northwestern will close out their respective campaigns Saturday, and then Sunday's six-game slate will finish out the regular season. Given how bunched-up the standings have become—half the league has between 11 and nine conference wins—several shake-ups could be in the works.

After plotting out the tournament schedule, we'll predict how the final standings will look before spotlighting the bubble teams in this conference.

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Big Ten Tournament Schedule

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WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - MARCH 02: The B1G Logo on display during a mens college basketball game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Purdue Boilermakers on March 02, 2024 at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, IN. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Wednesday, March 13

Game 1: No. 12 seed vs. No. 13 seed, 5:30 p.m. CT

Game 2: No. 11 seed vs. No. 14 seed, 25 minutes after Game 1

Thursday, March 14

Game 3: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed, 11 a.m. CT

Game 4: No. 5 seed vs. Game 1 winner, 25 minutes after Game 3

Game 5: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 seed, 5:30 p.m. CT

Game 6: No. 6 seed vs. Game 2 winner, 25 minutes after Game 5

Friday, March 15

Game 7: No. 1 seed vs. Game 3 winner, 11 a.m. CT

Game 8: No. 4 seed vs. Game 4 winner, 25 minutes after Game 7

Game 9: No. 2 seed vs. Game 5 winner, 5:30 p.m. CT

Game 10: No. 3 seed vs. Game 6 winner, 25 minutes after Game 9

Saturday, March 16

Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, Noon CT

Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 25 minutes after Game 11

Sunday, March 17

Championship, 2:30 p.m. CT

Projected Final Standings

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CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS - MARCH 05: Coleman Hawkins #33 of the Illinois Fighting Illini knocks the ball away from Zach Edey #15 of the Purdue Boilermakers during the first half at State Farm Center on March 05, 2024 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

1. Purdue

2. Illinois

3. Nebraska

4. Northwestern

5. Wisconsin

6. Michigan State

7. Iowa

8. Indiana

9. Penn State

10. Minnesota

11. Ohio State

12. Maryland

13. Rutgers

14. Michigan

Bubble Watch

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EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - MARCH 6: Boo Buie #0 of the Northwestern Wildcats looks to break free from Tre Holloman #5 of the Michigan State Spartans during the first half of the game at Breslin Center on March 6, 2024 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

Iowa

The Hawkeyes have the most work to do among the Big Ten bubble teams. ESPN's Joe Lunardi has Iowa among his "First Four Out," meaning the resume isn't quite strong enough to secure a Big Dance ticket just yet.

Winning over Illinois on Sunday would be a massive boost, but it'd also be an upset. These teams tussled just a couple weeks back, and the Hawks were handed a double-digit loss. If this game follows a similar script, Iowa might need multiple conference tournament wins to feel better about its NCAA Tournament chances.

Michigan State

Tom Izzo's team typically heats up at the right time, but it's been a grind for the Spartans of late. They'll head into their season finale at Indiana having lost three of their last four games, including home defeats against Iowa and Ohio State.

Still, Michigan State has done enough heavy lifting to not have to sweat out Selection Sunday too much. The Spartans, who knocked off a pair of top-10 teams (Baylor in December, Illinois in early February), hold a No. 8 seed on Lunardi's bracket.

Nebraska

Fred Hoiberg's fifth season at helm could produce the Huskers' first NCAA Tournament berth since 2014. They've won five of their last six games and have a great chance to get another during Sunday's road tilt in Michigan.

As far as signature wins go, Nebraska, a No. 9 seed for Lunardi, has more quality than quantity. The Huskers are just 3-7 against Quad 1 teams, but those victories included a January triumph over then-top-ranked Purdue and a February overtime win over then-No. 6 Wisconsin.

Northwestern

The Wildcats could be sitting pretty right now had the last week gone according to plan. Instead, consecutive losses against Iowa and Michigan State have pushed Northwestern closer to the bubble heading into Saturday's home tussle with Minnesota.

The Wildcats are still in decent shape, as their five Quad 1 wins—including victories over Purdue and Wisconsin—are tied for the second-most in the conference. Lunardi has Northwestern as a No. 8 seed.