Big Ten Tournament 2019: Semifinals Scores, Championship Bracket and Schedule
March 16, 2019
Championship-game berths were on the line Saturday in the 2019 Big Ten men's basketball tournament with the semifinal round at the United Center in Chicago.
Although three of the top four seeds were still standing, including the top-seeded Michigan State Spartans, the No. 7 seed Minnesota Golden Gophers were looking to play the role of spoiler after upsetting the regular-season co-champion Purdue Boilermakers in the quarters.
Let's check out all of the important information for the semifinals and Sunday's title game. That's followed by a recap of the action.
Saturday's Semifinal Scores
Game 11: No. 1 Michigan State 67, No. 4 Wisconsin 55
Game 12: No. 3 Michigan 76, No. 7 Minnesota 49
Sunday's Championship Schedule
Game 13: No. 1 Michigan State vs. No. 3 Michigan (3:30 p.m. ET)
Tournament Bracket
Michigan State Spartans 67, Wisconsin Badgers 55
Michigan State scored the game's first eight points and never relinquished the lead to further bolster its case for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Leading scorer Cassius Winston paced the Spartans' offense once again with 21 points. Kenny Goins chipped in a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Xavier Tillman added 17 points, seven boards and four assists for MSU, which received just two points of bench production.
Michigan State likely needs to win the Big Ten tourney to have a chance to leap the likes of the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Kentucky Wildcats in the race for a top seed in the Big Dance.
Ethan Happ stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, six rebounds, four blocks, three assists and two steals for Wisconsin, which is an NCAA tournament lock despite the loss. The Badgers should be a No. 4 or No. 5 seed when the bracket is revealed on Selection Sunday.
The Badgers defense is strong enough to make a deep March Madness run, but hitting enough shots in clutch moments will be key. They entered Saturday ranked 47th in adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom.
Michigan Wolverines 76, Minnesota Golden Gophers 49
Michigan ended Minnesota's Cinderella run in dominant fashion to set up a meeting with rival Michigan State for the Big Ten championship.
Isaiah Livers shined off the bench for the Wolverines with four three-pointers en route to a season-high 21 points. Zavier Simpson added 15 points and nine assists for Michigan, which shot 52.5 percent from the field, including 38.5 percent from beyond the arc.
Minnesota, which defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions in the second round before its upset of Purdue, should be safely in the NCAA tournament despite the semifinal loss.
Amir Coffey (14 points) and Jordan Murphy (10) were the only Gophers players to reach double figures in scoring as they struggled to create open looks against one of the nation's top defenses.
Along with winning the title, Michigan will be looking to exact some revenge on Michigan State in the final after dropping both rivalry games during the regular season.