Big Ten Conference Notebook
by John Sahly
Conference play is under way in the Big 10. The nation’s No. 1 team, Illinois, is already looking to establish dominance among the contenders, with Michigan, No. 12 Michigan State and Wisconsin all looking to make moves this week.
Badgers pass first test
Wisconsin Badgers fans must like shopping at Kohl’s. The 12-3 Badgers kept their 38-game home winning streak alive with its 62-59 victory over No. 12 Michigan State on Sunday. That streak is the longest in Division I. Wisconsin scored the final 11 points of the game and took the lead for good with 37.3 seconds left on a Kam Taylor bucket. Senior guard Clayton Hanson led the way with 15 points. Badgers head coach Bo Ryan is now 6-0 all-time against Spartans head coach Tom Izzo.
Illini still perfect
Illinois can put to bed one comparison to the 1989 “Flyin’ Illini” – that team didn’t start off 18-0, now the best start in school history.- The 18th straight victory came at the hands of Northwestern, 78-66, on Saturday. Senior guard Luther Head was hot from start to finish and put to bed his dismal performance in the Illini’s loss at Northwestern last year. Head had 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including four three pointers. Senior forward Roger Powell Jr. chipped in with 15 points and seven rebounds. In addition to revenge for last year’s game, many of the Illini players told reporters after the game the Wildcats’ fans crossed a line by ridiculing an overweight Illini student-manager, including throwing a slice of pizza out on the court.
A classic in West Lafayette
The way Indiana and Purdue played in Saturday’s two-overtime thriller; fans could have relapsed into thinking both teams had legitimate shots at winning the conference. But when it was all said and done, the Hoosiers came out on top 75-73, and Purdue head coach Gene Keady is still winless in his final Big 10 season. Junior guard Bracey Wright paced the Hoosiers (7-7) with 23 points while freshman forward D.J. White added 16 points and eight rebounds. After the game, Keady was not pleased with his last season. “We’re having a season from hell,” Keady told reporters. “We’re in a deep, deep hole. I haven’t been in a hole this deep in my career.”
Iowa finds way
No. 23 Iowa needed a victory over Minnesota on Saturday, especially with a trip to No. 1 Illinois later this week. It got its first victory in conference, but not without a fight from the Golden Gophers and some pretty ugly shooting by the Hawkeyes. Despite shooting 34 percent and going without a field goal for the last 10:46, Iowa held on 66-60. This victory came during a week of strife on the court as the Hawkeyes dropped their second conference game on the young season at Ohio State, 81-69. This win at least gives Iowa some momentum before its showdown with Illinois on Thursday.
Big 10 Player of the Week
Luther Head, Senior Guard, Illinois
Head is often the forgotten man in the Illini’s vaunted backcourt, but this week made his presence felt on the court in two victories. Head averaged 22.5 points and shot 61 percent in addition to adding three assists per game. After this week opponents should start to focus more on the Illini’s three-‘Head’ed backcourt.
Big 10 Rookie of the Week
Ronald Coleman, Freshman wing, Michigan
Coleman scored 12 points, all three-pointers, in the second half of the Wolverines 66-62 victory over Penn State on Saturday. He added two three-pointers and played 38 minutes in Michigan’s ten-point victory over Northwestern three days prior. While not always called upon to score, Coleman made big shots in a game when his team needed them the most.
Around the Big 10
Illinois
Illinois continued its torrid streak, stayed at No. 1 and has its eyes set on St. Louis for the Final Four. Amazingly, the Illini are still averaging more than 50 percent shooting from the field for the season – 50.7 percent – The Illini should get some rest as classes start up again and only one opponent is on the schedule this week.
Indiana
Mike Davis kept himself off the hotseat for another week and the Hoosiers are 2-1 in conference play, with Michigan coming to Bloomington on Wednesday. Indiana still needs to find a third scoring option though, as Bracey Wright and D.J. White are the only two players averaging double-figures.
Iowa
Junior guard Pierre Pierce has stepped up his game since conference play began, averaging 21.3 points per contest. However, the Hawkeyes need more than just Pierce, and they got good performances out of their other players in the win over Minnesota. One reason for the slow start in conference play: turnovers. Iowa is averaging 14 turnovers per game in Big 10 games.
Michigan
The only other unbeaten in the conference besides Illinois has squeaked by in each of its first three conference games. A four-point win over Penn State and winning by 10 at home over Northwestern is good enough now, but won’t hold up over the course of the season. Since returning from injury, junior guard Daniel Horton has been hot-and-cold, but hasn’t turned the ball over more than twice in one game. He only did that twice in the seven games before getting injured.
Michigan State
Despite losing to Wisconsin on Sunday the Spartans are still in good shape. Junior forward Paul Davis scored 20 points in the loss, and head coach Tom Izzo was in a joking mood. “Hey, look on the bright side,” Izzo told reporters. “Some shirt guy can now put 6 and make some money.” The Spartans have one of the highest-powered offensive attacks in the nation and six players are averaging double-digits in points.
Minnesota
The Golden Gophers are still shooting the lights out – 40 percent from three-point range – and will be tested again on Saturday when Michigan State visits. Minnesota still has a lot to prove though, as its two conference wins are over winless Penn State and Purdue.
Northwestern
It wasn’t a repeat of defeating Illinois at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Saturday, but the Wildcats proved they could hang with the best in the nation. Now, if they could only turn their effort into victories. A 1-3 start to conference play isn’t an easy challenge, but the schedule is favorable for the next three games until a trip to Wisconsin. It’s time for head coach Bill Carmody’s club to mature.
Ohio State
In the best game you might not have heard about, the Buckeyes lost a two-overtime game 113-101 to LSU on Sunday. Six Ohio State players finished in double-figures and the team shot 55 percent from the field. LSU put the game away from the free throw line, sinking 29-of-31 attempts and the Tigers added 10 steals on the defensive end. The Buckeyes hit an amazing 18 three-pointers to keep the game close, but couldn’t pull it out in the end. They return home to face Minnesota on Wednesday.
Penn State
Penn State has only been close in one game, a four-point home loss to Michigan. The other three losses it averaged a losing margin of nearly 24 points. The lone bright spot on the team is junior forward Aaron Johnson, who leads the league in rebounds per game with nearly 10.
Purdue
You have to feel sorry for Gene Keady, nobody wants to see him go out like this. The schedule doesn’t get any better, as the Boilermakers must travel to Michigan State and Iowa this week.
Wisconsin
The Badgers rebounded nicely from their loss at Indiana by taking care of business against Ohio State and upending Michigan State. Sophomore forward Alando Tucker is hitting 52 percent of his shots.
Four games to keep an eye on
1) Wisconsin at Michigan, Saturday
With a win over Michigan State already, the Badgers look to make it 2-0 over Michigan teams this week.
2) Iowa at Illinois, Thursday
The only game the Illini has on its schedule this week. With students back in session this week in Champaign, expect Assembly Hall to be rocking.
3) Ohio State at Michigan, Saturday
Alright, so this isn’t football, but this rivalry still has no love lost no matter what the sport is.
4) Michigan State at Minnesota, Saturday
This is the third game this week for the Spartans and Minnesota is never a fun place to play, especially in the dead of winter.
