Big Ten Tournament 2015: Quarterfinals Scores, Semifinals Bracket and Schedule

The Big Ten is one of the deepest and most competitive college basketball conferences in the country, which makes Friday's slate of conference tournament quarterfinals one of the most exciting sets of games this season.  

With top teams like Wisconsin and Maryland in action, the Big Ten tourney provides high-level basketball and a look at some squads with a great opportunity to make a deep run in the 2015 NCAA tournament.

As the Big Ten's elite squads continue to vie for a conference title, here is a rundown of Friday's results, as well as a look ahead to Saturday's semifinal schedule.

Quarterfinals Scores

Game	Team 1	Team 2	Score
Game 1	Wisconsin	Michigan	71-60, Wisconsin
Game 2	Purdue	Penn State	64-59, Purdue
Game 3	Maryland	Indiana	75-69, Maryland
Game 4	Michigan State	Ohio State	76-67, Michigan State

Bracket (Courtesy of Big Ten Network on Twitter)

Semifinals Schedule

Date	Time (ET)	Team 1	Team 2	Watch
Saturday, March 14	1 p.m.	Wisconsin	Purdue	CBS
Saturday, March 14	3:30 p.m.	Maryland	Michigan State	CBS

Quarterfinals Recap

Wisconsin vs. Michigan

Michigan provided a stiff challenge in Friday's quarterfinal tilt with top-seeded Wisconsin, but the Badgers were ultimately able to pull away late and advance to the semifinals by virtue of a 71-60 victory.

The first half of the game was closely contested, but it looked as though the Wolverines might enter halftime with the lead. They held a 22-13 lead at one point, but the Badgers were able to erase that with an 18-4 run to close the half, according to ESPN College Basketball:

"

HALFTIME: No. 6 Wisconsin 31, Michigan 26 Badgers close the half on an 18-4 run. pic.twitter.com/pU7h06ZaM8

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) March 13, 2015"

Wisconsin superstar forward Frank Kaminsky didn't necessarily have his best game, as he put up 16 points and 12 rebounds, but his importance to the Badgers' success was undeniable.

Per ESPN Stats & Info, Wisconsin was far more efficient offensively in the first half when the Naismith College Player of the Year Award candidate got a touch:

The Badgers seemed to be in control of the game during the second half, but Michigan seized the lead with under 13 minutes remaining by virtue of some sloppy passing by Wisconsin, according to Jim Polzin of The Wisconsin State Journal:

Wisconsin was able to tie it back up soon after, though, and it separated itself from the Wolverines over the final few minutes of the game.

A big factor in the Badgers' success was the fact that Michigan incredibly didn't attempt a free throw until there were just seconds remaining in the contest, per Michigan Basketball on Twitter:

The Wolverines got a huge performance from swingman Zak Irvin; however, he didn't receive much support from his teammates, according to Rod Beard of The Detroit News:

Irvin scored more than one-third of Michigan's points, while the Badgers' production was more evenly spread out, as six players scored seven or more points.

Wisconsin needed overtime to beat the Wolverines earlier in the season, and it was once again pushed to the limit.

It wasn't an ideal performance by the Badgers, but winning a tough contest should help them moving forward in the Big Ten tournament as well as the NCAA tourney.

Purdue vs. Penn State

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

The clock struck midnight Friday on the Big Ten’s version of Cinderella.

Penn State advanced to the quarterfinals as the No. 13 seed with victories over No. 12 Nebraska and No. 5 Iowa, but it fell short against No. 4 Purdue. The Boilermakers won 64-59 and advanced to Saturday’s semifinals.

Superstar center A.J. Hammons led the way with 23 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, while senior D.J. Newbill spearheaded the Penn State attack with 19 points.

It looked for some time like the underdog story would continue, especially after Penn State seized a 37-32 lead at the half. ESPN College Basketball noted that the Nittany Lions were making some highlights along the way:

"

Penn State's Ross Travis drives the lane and dunks over a Purdue defender. http://t.co/Q3r608QPih

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) March 13, 2015"

Penn State had a double-digit lead at one point, but Purdue’s 6-0 run to end the first 20 minutes foreshadowed the second half.

The Boilermakers chipped away at the lead and eventually overtook Penn State, but the game settled into a back-and-forth pattern with lead changes and short momentum bursts in the middle of the second half.

With the game tied at 50, Purdue went on a decisive 7-0 run that proved to be the difference. The Boilermakers’ last nine points of the game actually came at the free-throw line, which was a testament to their ability to come through in the clutch. 

Tom Coomes of ABC 57 in South Bend commented on the successful formula for the Boilermakers:

While Friday’s result was certainly disappointing for Nittany Lions fans, it was still an impressive run in the conference tournament.

Head coach Patrick Chambers discussed his team’s time in Chicago, via Sean Merriman of BTN.com: “I was hoping we would be playing our best in January. I was hoping it would be February. Well, it just so happens to be March. And I’ll take it.”

As for Purdue, next up is a Saturday date in the semifinals with mighty Wisconsin.

The Boilermakers only played the Badgers once this season in Madison, and they competed for the majority of the game. Wisconsin eventually won 62-55, but that was in one of the most difficult places to play in the conference and country. Saturday’s game will be on a neutral floor for a Purdue squad that just gutted out a difficult win Friday.

An upset over the Badgers would be a monumental boost for Purdue’s postseason resume and eventual seed in the NCAA tournament.

Maryland vs. Indiana

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

If the Big Ten didn’t know before, it certainly does now—Maryland is dangerous.

The Terrapins knocked off traditional Big Ten power Indiana, 75-69, to advance to the semifinals of the league tournament in their first year in the conference. Dez Wells led the way with 22 points, while Melo Trimble added 17 points. That backcourt duo could take Maryland far in March. 

Maryland’s fans seem to be enjoying their time in the new conference as well with all this winning, via Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com:

Fatigue didn’t seem to be a problem out of the gates for an Indiana team that just played a game Thursday. The two squads raced up and down the floor at a breakneck pace, and the Terrapins took a 42-40 lead into intermission.

The speed didn’t slow in the second half. Both backcourts pushed the tempo any chance they got, and the result was a back-and-forth contest that came down to the final minutes.

Maryland seemed to have control for most of the second half and continued to open up leads between four and six points, but the Hoosiers never let the contest get away. Despite being well within striking distance, though, Indiana never got the lead in the entire second half.

Things got interesting late when Indiana trimmed the lead to 68-66 with 39 seconds remaining. However, Indiana missed multiple three-pointers in the closing possessions, and Maryland put the game away on the free-throw line. 

Alex Kirshner of SB Nation had an intriguing thought for Terrapins fans heading into the NCAA tournament:

"

Maryland has plenty of flaws, but it also has Dez Wells and Melo Trimble. Sometimes, that's all you need.

— Alex Kirshner (@alex_kirshner) March 13, 2015"

This result was more important for Indiana than it was Maryland, even though the Terrapins walked away with the victory. The Hoosiers are still squarely on the bubble, and a loss is never a great thing heading into Selection Sunday. At least they can take comfort knowing it came against one of the best teams in the country and probably won’t cost them too much.

As for Maryland, it is two wins away from a Big Ten tournament title in its first year in the league. That’s not a bad way to start.

Michigan State vs. Ohio State

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

The Big Ten tournament is the all-chalk tournament as it heads to the semifinals.

No. 3 Michigan State handled No. 6 Ohio State, 76-67, to set up a final four with the top four seeds. Fans in Chicago will certainly be treated to a thrilling weekend of games between some of the best teams in the country.

Ohio State technically hung around for the entire game and only trailed by eight at the half, but the contest was never really in doubt. In fact, the Buckeyes didn’t lead for a single second.

That’s not how it usually is when these two teams take the floor, as Tim Shoemaker of Eleven Warriors pointed out:

Denzel Valentine led the way for the Spartans and finished with 23 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals, but it was Travis Trice who put the game out of reach in the second half with eight consecutive points on three possessions to open up a 14-point lead. Shoemaker commented on the spurt:

To Ohio State’s credit, it went on an extended run late in the game and cut the deficit all the way to five points with just more than three minutes remaining. It was the first time all game that it played with any urgency, but Michigan State made enough plays in the last couple of minutes to eventually pull away again down the stretch. 

Branden Dawson put the game on ice, via Michigan State on BTN:

Matt Brown of SB Nation pointed out that this was an all too familiar pattern for the Buckeyes this season:

"

Oh look at that, Ohio State came back from a big deficit, only to be unable to close, and fell behind again. That never happens. Weird.

— Matt Brown (@MattSBN) March 14, 2015"

Part of the problem for the Buckeyes was a lackluster showing from superstar freshman D'Angelo Russell who appeared visibly frustrated with Michigan State’s physical style of defense for most of the game.

Next up for Michigan State is a semifinals showdown with Maryland. The Spartans and Terrapins played one of the best games of the entire Big Ten season in their first matchup when Maryland went into East Lansing and walked away with a double-overtime victory.

Maryland then handled Michigan State by 16 points in the rematch.

Beating a team three different times in a season is no easy task, especially a quality one like the Spartans. Both teams are solidly in the NCAA tournament field but could use a quality victory for the resume for seeding purposes.

The opportunity will be there Saturday.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.