Big Ten Tournament 2020: Bracket Seeds, Odds, Matchups and Predictions

Championship week is here, and it should be spectacular.

That's true for many conferences, but it's extra accurate around the upcoming Big Ten Tournament. This field is absurdly stacked. Six different squads take Top 25 rankings into the tournament. Ten teams might be celebrating March Madness berths come Selection Sunday. Oh, and Iowa's Luka Garza could be the national player of the year.

So...yeah, this tournament is kind of a big deal. Let's dive into it, then, with scheduling, seeding, odds (courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook) and three fully guaranteed* predictions.

*Predictions not at all guaranteed.

Big Ten Tournament 2020

When: March 11-15, 2020

Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind.

TV: Big Ten Network and CBS

Tournament Schedule, Matchups

Wednesday, March 11

Game 1 (6 p.m. ET): No. 12 Minnesota vs. No. 13 Northwestern on BTN

Game 2 (25 min. after): No. 11 Indiana vs. No. 14 Nebraska on BTN

Thursday, March 12

Game 3 (12 p.m. ET): No. 8 Rutgers vs. No. 9 Michigan on BTN

Game 4 (25 min. after): No. 5 Iowa vs. Game 1 winner on BTN

Game 5 (6:30 p.m. ET): No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Purdue on BTN

Game 6 (25 min. after): No. 6 Penn State vs. Game 2 winner on BTN

Friday, March 13

Game 7 (12 p.m. ET): No. 1 Wisconsin vs. Game 3 winner on BTN

Game 8 (25 min. after): No. 4 Illinois vs. Game 4 winner on BTN

Game 9 (6:30 p.m. ET): No. 2 Michigan State vs. Game 5 winner on BTN

Game 10 (25 min. after): No. 3 Maryland vs. Game 6 winner on BTN

Saturday, March 14

Game 11 (1 p.m. ET): Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner on CBS

Game 12 (25 min. after): Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner on CBS

Sunday, March 15

Game 13 (3:30 p.m. ET): Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner on CBS

Big Ten Tournament Champion Odds

Michigan State +225

Maryland +325

Wisconsin +700

Ohio State +900

Illinois +1000

Michigan +1000

Iowa +1200

Penn State +1600

Purdue +2200

Minnesota +2500

Indiana +6000

Northwestern +100000

Nebraska +250000

Rutgers N/A

Predictions

Penn State Drops Its Opener

It was all good just a couple of weeks ago.

At one point, the Nittany Lions looked like they might roar to the top of the conference. Between Dec. 10 and Feb. 15, the team reeled off a 13-3 stretch and knocked off nearly all of the other Big Ten powers in the process.

But everything went off track late in the season. Starting with a 62-56 home loss to Illinois on Feb. 18, Penn State dropped five of its final six contests. That stretch was lowlighted by Sunday's 80-69 loss at Northwestern against a Wildcats team that went just 3-17 in conference play (two wins over last-place Nebraska, one over Penn State and none against everyone else).

"We look weary, mentally and physically," coach Patrick Chambers told reporters. "We need a couple days off. Let's reboot."

Rebooting against a double-digit seed might sound like a welcome break, but this is the Big Ten. That double-digit seed could (and should) be an Indiana team that went 9-11 in conference play and knocked off a number of ranked opponents, including this same Penn State squad in late February.

The Hoosiers are talented and hungry. They might not have a ticket to the Big Dance just yet, and handling the Huskers would only do so much. Indiana probably needs two wins to feel good about securing its spot, and Penn State looks as vulnerable as any beyond the bottom-feeders.

Iowa Reaches the Finals

The Hawkeyes don't count depth among their strengths. Their defense can disappear at any time.

But doesn't having the top player in the conference (and maybe the country) matter? Garza is a 6'11", 260-pound bulldozer—with a 35.8 percent three-point shot in his back pocket. He's basically unguardable at this level. If that sounds hyperbolic, consider that the last time he didn't score 20-plus points was Jan. 7.

"He's got to be at the top of [national player of the year] conversations," Illinois coach Brad Underwood told reporters. "He's probably at the forefront of our league as well, and when you're the best player in the best league in the country, I would think he'd be right there."

Garza gives the Hawkeyes a puncher's chance against anyone. His nightly contributions include 23.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 1.2 assists. He converts 54.2 percent of his field-goal attempts. He's equally comfortable powering his way through the low post or tickling the twine from distance.

Iowa's offense is electric (sixth in adjusted efficiency, per KenPom.com), and while Garza drives a lot of that success, it's not all about him. If the Hawkeyes squeeze enough perimeter production out of Joe Wieskamp, CJ Fredrick and Joe Toussaint, they can score their way to three straight wins.

Michigan State Wins It All

Let's take nothing away from the Wisconsin Badgers, who sprinted to the No. 1 seed with eight consecutive victories in league play. But no matter what the seed lines say, the Spartans are the most complete team in this conference.

KenPom has Michigan State seventh in the country and first in the Big Ten. Tom Izzo's team combines the conference's second-best offense (10th nationally) with its third-best defense (13th). No one else is matching that two-way balance.

The Spartans were the conference's only club to play better than .500 away from home (7-4). They also tied for the Big Ten lead with seven wins over ranked opponents. Oh, they're surging down the stretch, too, having won five straight—each of the last four against a ranked opponent.

If you want to talk intangibles, the Spartans win that conversation, too. Senior point guard Cassius Winston is a winner, and he's learned many of those successful ways from legendary skipper Tom Izzo.

"There is nothing in the entire world I like more than hanging banners," Izzo said. "These are memory makers, footprints in the sand. Somebody this building will crumble but those banners will move to another building and they ain't forgetting us. I'll make sure of that."

This field is so deep it shouldn't feel this easy to pick a champion, but the Spartans seem a half-step (or better) above the rest.