Power Ranking the Big Ten Basketball Teams as February Begins
The balance of power in the Big Ten shifted a bit over the past seven days as the Indiana Hoosiers and Iowa Hawkeyes dropped their first games of the conference season.
Indiana's road loss to the Wisconsin Badgers didn't do much to the top of the conference standings, but the Maryland Terrapins' victory over Iowa at the Xfinity Center brought everyone tighter atop the Big Ten.
Beneath the three teams at the top of our Big Ten weekly power rankings, very few results turned our heads. Due to the lack of eye-popping finals across the Midwest last week, most of the teams below the top three experienced little movement.
The next week should help us learn more about teams like the Purdue Boilermakers and Maryland, which could lead to a bigger shakeup next week. But for now, we're content with leaving most things as they were, except for the top three.
Continue reading to see who landed at the top of our weekly Big Ten power rankings.
Nos. 14-10: Rutgers-Illinois
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14. Rutgers (Record: 6-16, 0-9 Big Ten; Previous Ranking: 14)
We're sorry for continually beating up on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, but there is nothing going right for the program at the moment. Rutgers dropped the two games on its Michigan swing by a combined 45 points last week. The Scarlet Knights have a slight chance to pull off a win at home on Wednesday against the Illinois Fighting Illini, but even that will be a tall task.
13. Minnesota (6-16, 0-10; 13)
At least the Minnesota Golden Gophers aren't getting blown out in every game they've played in the Big Ten. Richard Pitino's squad dropped a pair of results to ranked teams by a combined 10 points over the past seven days. Sophomore guard Nate Mason scored 36 points combined in the losses to Purdue and Indiana. Mason has reached double digits in eight of the team's 10 conference matchups.
12. Northwestern (15-8, 3-7; 11)
The Northwestern Wildcats may have a better conference record than a few of the teams above them on this list, but they are trending downward. The Wildcats suffered a 31-point defeat at home to the Michigan State Spartans on Thursday before falling to Iowa by 14 on Sunday. The good news, if there is any for the team on a five-game losing skid, is Minnesota comes to town on Thursday.
11. Penn State (11-11, 2-7; 10)
The Penn State Nittany Lions dropped their third straight Big Ten game on Saturday at Madison Square Garden to the Michigan Wolverines. Brandon Taylor and Shep Garner combined for 46 of Penn State's 72 points in the team's seventh conference loss of the season. Things won't get easier for Penn State this week as Iowa and Indiana are ahead on the schedule.
10. Illinois (10-12, 2-7; 12)
Illinois moves ahead of Northwestern and Penn State because it has the most recent victory of the trio, albeit an overtime win over Minnesota on January 23. The Fighting Illini pushed the Ohio State Buckeyes to overtime on Thursday before falling by eight at home to Wisconsin. Illinois shot 32.1 percent in the loss to Ohio State and 36 percent in the defeat at the hands of Wisconsin.
9. Nebraska
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Record: 12-10, 4-5
Previous Ranking: 7
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The Nebraska Cornhuskers crashed back to Earth this week after stringing together five consecutive victories. The losses to Michigan and Purdue dropped Tim Miles' team below. 500 in league play for the first time since the middle of January. Nebraska should be able to get back to .500 and stay there for a bit with Rutgers ahead on Saturday and Penn State upcoming twice on the schedule in February.
By the numbers
Tai Webster impressed off the bench for the Cornhuskers against Michigan and Purdue. The junior guard, who averages 10.3 points per game, scored 12 points in the loss to Michigan and added 17 versus Purdue. The junior has found his way into double figures in his last four contests.
8. Ohio State
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Record: 14-9, 6-4
Previous Ranking: 8
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Ohio State went 1-1 last week as expected, but it had trouble getting past Illinois on the road on Thursday. The 68-63 overtime victory moved the Buckeyes into the top half of the conference standings before they lost to Maryland on Sunday. The next five games will be crucial for the Buckeyes. If they win three or four of their next five, the Buckeyes may have enough momentum to make waves in their final three contests, two of which come against Michigan State.
By the numbers
The Buckeyes have won their six conference games by a combined 77 points, but they have only beaten Illinois by a combined seven points in two meetings.
Jae'Sean Tate was the only player to score in double digits against Maryland. Tate recorded 16 points, while two of his teammates reached nine points each.
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7. Wisconsin
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Record: 13-9, 5-4
Previous Ranking: 9
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The Badgers improved their resume with a quality win over Indiana on Tuesday. Wisconsin followed that victory up with an eight-point win over Illinois on the road that extended its winning streak to four games.
Wisconsin has three wins over teams in the AP Top 25 and it has a chance to pick up a big win on the road against either Maryland, Michigan State or Iowa in February.
By the numbers
Nigel Hayes starred in the overtime win over Indiana with 31 points on Tuesday at the Kohl Center. The junior forward has scored at least 15 points in each of his last seven games. Hayes has shot 42.2 percent from the field during his recent hot streak.
Before settling for six points against Illinois, freshman forward Ethan Happ scored in double digits in seven straight games, including a 25-point performance against Indiana.
6. Purdue
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Record: 19-4, 7-3
Previous Ranking: 6
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Purdue beat the teams it was supposed to beat last week in order to set the tone for a good week of practice heading into Saturday's clash with Maryland. Although the Boilermakers only won by four over Minnesota on Wednesday, they still made it out of Minneapolis unscathed.
Nine of Purdue's 10 conference games have come against unranked opposition with the lone exception coming on January 24 against Iowa. The Boilermakers will get to prove to us just how good they can be over the next seven days as they play Maryland and Michigan State.
By the numbers
A.J. Hammons put in a terrific performance on Saturday as he scored 32 points and pulled down 11 rebounds against Nebraska. The senior center has scored at least 10 points in all but one of his 10 Big Ten contests. The lone outlier was the 50-point blowout win over Rutgers in which he scored six points.
5. Michigan
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Record: 17-5, 7-2
Previous Ranking: 5
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Michigan did nothing in the last week to make us question its spot in the rankings. No team below the Wolverines convinced us a ton either, so we kept John Beilein's team here after wins over Rutgers and Penn State.
The Wolverines are in the same boat as Purdue over the next two weeks as three of their next four games come against ranked teams, with the final game of that stretch coming against the Boilermakers at home on February 13.
By the numbers
Four different players scored in double digits in the victories over Rutgers and Penn State. Duncan Robinson led the way against Rutgers with 18 points, while Zak Irvin produced a team high 20 points at Madison Square Garden versus Penn State.
The Wolverines don't have a player in the top 20 on the Big Ten scoring chart. Robinson is the top Michigan player in 23rd with 12.5 points per game.
4. Michigan State
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Record: 19-4, 6-4
Previous Ranking: 4
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Michigan State carried the momentum it earned from the win over Maryland into last week as it beat Northwestern and Rutgers by a combined 65 points.
If the Spartans win their next three games against Michigan, Purdue and Indiana, they have the potential to run the table and challenge for a spot in the top two or three of the Big Ten standings.
By the numbers
Deyonta Davis was named co-Freshman of the Week in the Big Ten for his pair of 11-rebound performances against Northwestern and Rutgers. Davis shared the weekly honor with Ethan Happ of Wisconsin.
In Sunday's 96-62 trouncing of Rutgers, the Spartans shot 17-of-32 from beyond the arc. Denzel Valentine and Bryn Forbes both drained six three-pointers each, while Eron Harris made three shots from downtown.
3. Indiana
8 of 10
Record: 18-4, 8-1
Previous Ranking: 2
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Indiana wasn't expected to go undefeated in Big Ten play no matter how hot it got. Tuesday's loss to Wisconsin is nothing to frown about in the big scheme of things since the Hoosiers have plenty of other opportunities to secure key victories on the road.
With Michigan and Penn State up next on the schedule, the Hoosiers should have 10 conference wins by the time we sit down to write next week's power rankings.
By the numbers
Yogi Ferrell scored 30 of Indiana's 79 points in the overtime defeat to Wisconsin on Tuesday. The senior guard is averaging 19.4 points per game in conference play.
Not only do the Hoosiers have the fourth-best scorer in the conference, they lead the conference in team points per game and are the only team with a field-goal percentage over 50 percent.
2. Iowa
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Record: 17-4, 8-1
Previous Ranking: 1
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Iowa dropped its first conference game on Thursday as it fell to Maryland at the Xfinity Center. The loss moved Iowa's record against the AP Top 25 to 5-3. They are one of three Big Ten teams to have more than one victory against a ranked opponent this season. Michigan State and Wisconsin are the other two.
With Michigan State, Purdue and Maryland off the schedule, the only opportunities for the Hawkeyes to improve their record against the AP Top 25 come against Indiana on February 11 and March 1.
By the numbers
Thursday was a night to forget for Jarrod Uthoff, who scored nine points on 2-of-13 shooting against the Terrapins. The rest of the starting lineup shot 20-of-35 and scored 48 points in the 74-68 loss.
Uthoff and Peter Jok are the only two Iowa players who average over nine points per game. Uthoff leads Iowa with 18.6 points per contest, while Jok is second on the team with 15.3 points per game.
1. Maryland
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Record: 19-3, 8-2
Previous Ranking: 3
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Maryland finally secured a marquee victory on Thursday as it beat Iowa by six at home. The win was the first over a team in the AP Top 25 for the Terrapins this season.
The Terrapins currently have the same number of conference wins as league leaders Indiana and Iowa, but they have one extra Big Ten defeat. The games-played column will balance out at the end of February as Maryland plays once in the final week of the month.
By the numbers
Four starters recorded over 10 points in each of Maryland's two wins this week. Rasheed Sulaimon and Robert Carter led the Terrapins with 17 each versus Iowa, while Melo Trimble had the highest point total on Sunday in the win over Ohio State with 20.
Five Maryland players average at least 10 points per game with Trimble leading the way at 14.5 points per game. The balanced attack could be a big factor for Maryland down the stretch if teams decide to focus on the star guard.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.
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