Big 10 Tournament 2015: Predicting Bracket Before Sunday's Regular-Season Finale

Much of the Big Ten tournament bracket has already been determined, despite three regular-season contests remaining Sunday. Wisconsin already claimed the conference and the No. 1 seed, while Maryland locked up the second seed. Saturday saw the pecking order continue to develop.

Michigan State notched an impressive road win against Indiana, successfully clinching the No. 3 seed and a double-bye. Purdue outlasted Illinois, snapping a two-game skid and putting the Boilermakers in position to claim the No. 4 seed and a double-bye over Iowa and Ohio State.

Sunday's contests will put the finishing touches on the conference's pecking order and give us the official road each team must take to reach the tournament's final. Until then, here's a look at all 14 projected seeds and complete bracket predictions.

Projected Seeds

Seed	Team
1	Wisconsin
2	Maryland
3	Michigan State
4	Purdue
5	Iowa
6	Ohio State
7	Indiana
8	Illinois
9	Michigan
10	Minnesota
11	Northwestern
12	Nebraska
13	Penn State
14	Rutgers

Bracket Predictions

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Using the above projections as a guide, Round 1 kicks off with a contest between Nebraska and Penn State. The last time these teams met, the Nittany Lions pulled off a 13-point victory, beginning a seven-game slide for the Cornhuskers. Expect more of the same. In the other Round 1 game, Northwestern will make quick work against a Rutgers team that can't seem to get out of its own way.

A second-round battle between Michigan and Illinois should be intriguing, as these teams split the season series, each gaining an overtime win. Illinois is the most well-rounded squad, so it will take the tiebreaker. In a contest that won't be close, Iowa will take it to a Nebraska team it beat twice during the regular season by a combined margin of 39 points.

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The last time Indiana met Minnesota, the Hoosiers took it to the Golden Gophers, winning by 19 points thanks to three players scoring at least 19 points. Indiana is on a skid right now, but this favorable matchup should help the team bounce back. Ohio State is too good to be a No. 6 seed, but that's how the chips fell. Northwestern will find that to be true in Round 2.

Unfortunately for Illinois, it runs into Wisconsin in the quarterfinals. The Badgers held the Fighting Illini to just 49 points the last time they met, and Illinois hasn't done much lately to prove it will be any different this time around. Iowa finished the regular season looking strong, and while Purdue will prove to be a formidable opponent, the Hawkeyes have too much momentum to overcome.

Indiana may end its skid against Minnesota, but Maryland is absolutely on a roll, and the recent superb play of Dez Wells will help carry the Terrapins through to the semifinals. A quarterfinal showdown between Michigan State and Ohio State will give the Buckeyes a shot at redemption from a three-point regular-season loss. The sharpshooting D'Angelo Russell will ensure that happens.

Wisconsin meets Iowa in the first semifinal contest. To say the Badgers have the Hawkeyes' number would be putting it gently, as Wisconsin defeated Iowa twice during the regular season by a combined margin of 43 points. Another win for the Badgers seems inevitable here.

Maryland and Ohio State face off for the right to take on Wisconsin in the final. When these teams met during the regular season, the Buckeyes blew past the Terrapins, winning by 24 points. Maryland didn't have an answer for Russell, and considering the way the guard is playing right now, that will be the case once again as Ohio State moves along.

This sets up a final between Wisconsin and Ohio State. Interestingly enough, these teams have yet to meet this season, as they will face off Sunday. The Badgers have a great perimeter defense that should help in keeping Russell contained, and the duo of Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker has been electric lately. It's difficult to bet against Wisconsin in this scenario.

Predicted tournament winner: Wisconsin