Big Ten Tournament 2026 Men's Bracketology Predictions Before Final Games

The Michigan Wolverines will attempt to achieve the rare regular-season-tournament double in the Big Ten next week in Chicago.

Michigan already locked up the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament through its 18-1 league record. It owns a three-game edge over the Michigan State Spartans.

Michigan State, the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Illinois Fighting Illini will likely round out the top four seeds in Chicago.

That's important because five of the last six Big Ten tournament winners were top-four seeds. The top four teams earn byes into the quarterfinal round.

Big Ten Tournament Schedule

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Tuesday, March 10

First Round (5 & 7:30 p.m. ET, Peacock/NBCSN)

Wednesday, March 11

Second Round (Noon, 2:30, 6:30, 9:00 p.m. ET, Peacock/NBCSN)

Thursday, March 12

Third Round (Noon, 2:30, 6:30, 9:00 p.m. ET, BTN)

Friday, March 13

Quarterfinals (Noon, 2:30, 6:30, 9:00 p.m. ET, BTN)

Saturday, March 14

Semifinals (1:00 & 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS)

Sunday, March 15

Championship Game (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS)

Big Ten Tournament Bracket Prediction

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No. 1 Michigan

No. 2 Nebraska

No. 3 Michigan State

No. 4 Illinois

No. 5 Purdue

No. 6 Wisconsin

No. 7 UCLA

No. 8 Ohio State

No. 9 Iowa

No. 10 Indiana

No. 11 Washington

No. 12 Minnesota

No. 13 USC

No. 14 Rutgers

No. 15 Northwestern

No. 16 Oregon

No. 17 Maryland

No. 18 Penn State

Michigan can play a big role in what the seeding looks like beneath it in Chicago.

The Wolverines host Michigan State on Sunday. If Michigan wins, it could shake up the top four seeds because Michigan State, Nebraska and Illinois would likely end up with the same league record.

Nebraska owns a head-to-head win over both Michigan State and Illinois, so it needs to beat the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday and a Michigan State loss to claim the No. 2 seed.

The top eight spots in the Big Ten standings might not change a lot after the results on Saturday and Sunday.

The biggest potential swing could come from the Purdue Boilermakers-Wisconsin Badgers matchup.

Both teams are 13-6 in league play. Purdue beat Wisconsin once already in league play by 16 points, so the expectation is for another Boilermakers win.

With a loss to Nebraska, Iowa will be the No. 9 seed. The Hawkeyes can't drop to the No. 10 seed, which is already confirmed to be the Indiana Hoosiers.