Big Ten Tournament 2022: Bracket, Schedule and Championship Odds
All Wisconsin had to do Sunday to clinch the No. 1 seed in the 2022 Big Ten tournament was notch a home victory against Nebraska, which entered the day in last place in the conference. However, the Badgers couldn't get the job done.
Nebraska handed Wisconsin a 74-73 loss, opening the door for Illinois to share the Big Ten regular-season championship and to capture the No. 1 seed for the conference tourney. The Fighting Illini capitalized on the opportunity by beating Iowa 74-72, so they will be at the top of the bracket for the Big Ten tournament, which begins Wednesday.
Will Illinois keep its momentum going and win the tournament title? Can Wisconsin bounce back and make a championship run? Or will one of the other 12 teams secure the Big Ten's automatic bid to the men's NCAA tournament? Whatever happens, it should be entertaining to watch as the action unfolds at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Here's the schedule for this year's Big Ten tourney, followed by odds for the event and more.
2022 Big Ten Tournament Schedule
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1st Round (Wednesday)
Game 1: No. 12 Northwestern vs. No. 13 Nebraska, 6 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network
Game 2: No. 11 Penn State vs. No. 14 Minnesota, 25 minutes after Game 1, Big Ten Network
2nd Round (Thursday)
Game 3: No. 8 Michigan vs. No. 9 Indiana, 11:30 a.m. ET, Big Ten Network
Game 4: No. 5 Iowa vs. Game 1 winner, 25 minutes after Game 3, Big Ten Network
Game 5: No. 7 Michigan State vs. No. 10 Maryland, 6:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network
Game 6: No. 6 Ohio State vs. Game 2 winner, 25 minutes after Game 5, Big Ten Network
Quarterfinals (Friday)
Game 7: No. 1 Illinois vs. Game 3 winner, 11:30 a.m. ET, Big Ten Network
Game 8: No. 4 Rutgers vs. Game 4 winner, 25 minutes after Game 7, Big Ten Network
Game 9: No. 2 Wisconsin vs. Game 5 winner, 6:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network
Game 10: No. 3 Purdue vs. Game 6 winner, 25 minutes after Game 9, Big Ten Network
Semifinals (Saturday)
Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 1 p.m. ET, CBS
Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 25 minutes after Game 11, CBS
Championship (Sunday)
Game 13: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
Odds to Win Big Ten Tournament Title
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Purdue: +220 (bet $100 to win $220)
Illinois: +370
Iowa: +400
Wisconsin: +750
Ohio State: +1000
Michigan: +1200
Rutgers: +1300
Michigan State: +2500
Indiana: +2500
Maryland: +10000
Northwestern: +15000
Penn State: +20000
Nebraska: +50000
Minnesota: +50000
Tournament Preview
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Last year, Illinois won the Big Ten tournament for only the third time in program history. It was the first time the Fighting Illini had been victorious at the event since 2005, and they will be looking to be the first team since Michigan (2017 and 2018) to win the tourney in back-to-back years.
Illinois ended the regular season with three consecutive wins, and it has one of the best big men in the country to help power the team to success. Junior center Kofi Cockburn is averaging 21 points and 10.6 rebounds per game for the Fighting Illini, who are capable of making a run to the Big Ten tourney title.
It's not going to be an easy path for Illinois, though, with several teams likely to be strong contenders.
Whether or not Wisconsin can bounce back from Sunday's loss to Nebraska could depend on the health of sophomore guard Johnny Davis, the team's leading scorer this season. Davis exited the regular-season finale with a lower-body injury, and the Badgers went on to lose without him.
"I'm optimistic that he's going to be fine," Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard said, per Jim Hoehn of the Associated Press.
The Badgers could be in trouble in Indianapolis if Davis can't play considering he's averaging 20 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Wisconsin is aiming to win its first Big Ten tournament title since 2015.
Although Illinois and Wisconsin shared the Big Ten regular-season championship, No. 3-seeded Purdue is the betting favorite to win the conference tournament. And the Boilermakers may need to get some revenge against the Badgers if that's going to happen.
There's a decent chance that Purdue and Wisconsin will face off in the semifinals. The Boilermakers lost to the Badgers twice during the regular season, including a 70-67 defeat on Tuesday. That was Purdue's second straight loss before it bounced back with a win over Indiana in its regular-season finale.
The Boilermakers have only won the Big Ten tournament once (2009). They rank second in the conference in points per game (80.7) and are shooting a Big Ten-best 49.7 percent from the field, so their offense may be tough to stop in this tourney.
Iowa, the No. 5 seed, could also be a team to watch in the tournament. The Hawkeyes didn't get a double bye, so they will have to play a second-round matchup, but they had won eight of nine games before losing to Illinois in their regular-season finale.
Sophomore forward Keegan Murray, who ranks fourth in the nation with 23.3 points per game, will be looking to lead Iowa to its first Big Ten tournament title since 2006.
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