Big Ten Weekly Men's Basketball Central - February 17-23
BIG TEN MEN'S BASKETBALL
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BIG TEN STATISTICS
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NCAA STATISTICS
BIG TEN SCHEDULE & RESULTS
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BIG TEN STANDINGS
NCAA AP TOP 25 POLL
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NCAA USA TODAY TOP 25 POLL
Big Ten. Big News.
- Entering tonight’s games, Michigan was at the top of the B1G standings at 14-1, followed by Illinois in second at 12-3, then Purdue and Nebraska in a tie for third at 11-3, Wisconsin and Michigan State in a tie for fifth at 10-4, UCLA in seventh at 9-5, and Iowa and Ohio State in a tie for eighth at 8-6. All 18 teams had recorded at least two league victories so far.
- The Big Ten will close its nonconference slate on Saturday, as No. 1 Michigan faces No. 3 Duke at the Edward Jones Capital showcase at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. Tip is slated for 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Entering the game, the Big Ten owns a nonconference record of 157-40, the second-best win percentage (.797) of any conference, behind only the Big 12 (.806). Big Ten teams have defended home court to the tune of an 118-4 (.967) record in non-conference home games, the highest non-conference home winning percentage of any D-I conference.
- Entering Tuesday’s games, Big Ten teams have combined to win 51 Quad 1 games, with 15 teams scoring at least one Quad 1 win, and 63 Quad 2 victories. At 9-0, Michigan joins Arizona (9-2) and Duke (10-2) as the only teams with nine Quad 1 wins, while the Wolverines join Illinois, Michigan State, and Purdue in a group of 16 teams with at least six Quad 1 wins. The Big Ten also boasts four teams in a group of 23 nationally with at least 10 Quad 1 and 2 wins: Michigan (18-1), Nebraska (11-3), Illinois (11-5), Purdue (10-4), and Michigan State (10-5).
- Through games on Monday, Feb. 16, the Big Ten boasts 12 teams in the top 75 spots in the NET Rankings, including three in the top 10 and 11 in the top 50. Michigan leads the Big Ten tops the list at No. 1, followed by No. 4 Illinois, No. 8 Purdue, No. 11 Nebraska, and No. 15 Michigan State. Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio State, UCLA, and USC also claimed spots in the top 50. No other conference in the country has more teams in the top 10 (Big 12 - 3) or top 50 (SEC – 10).
- The Big Ten currently ranks second in today’s Kenpom conference rankings (+18.12), behind only the SEC (+19.42). Twelve of the Big Ten’s 18 teams are ranked in the top 75 of the Kenpom rankings after Mondays’ games, including six in the top 25 and 11 in the top 50. Michigan tops the list at No. 1, followed by No. 6 Illinois, No. 8 Purdue, No. 10 Michigan State, No. 11 Nebraska, and No. 25 Iowa. No other conference has more teams in the top 10 (Big 12 - 3), top 25 (Big 12 - 6), or top 50 (SEC - 10).
- Seven Big Ten teams were ranked or received votes in this week’s AP and USA Today Coaches Top 25 polls released on Monday, Feb. 16, including five ranked in the top 15. Michigan tops both polls, followed by No. 7 Purdue, No. 9 Nebraska, No. 10 Illinois, and No. 15 Michigan State, while Wisconsin sits at No. 24 on the AP list and No. 25 in the coaches’ poll. Iowa also received votes in the coaches’ ranking.
- Wisconsin senior guard Nick Boyd was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday. Boyd claimed his second such honor after averaging 27.0 points per game and 4.5 assists per game while leading Wisconsin to a pair of top 10 wins. The senior guard scored 25 points to go with five assists and no turnovers in the Badgers’ 92-90 overtime win at Illinois, becoming the only Badger since at least 2004-05 to have 25 points, five assists, and no turnovers against a top 10 team on the road. Boyd then connected on 10-of-17 field goal attempts, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, for 29 points in a 92-71 victory over Michigan State. Boyd now has seven straight games with at least 20 points, the longest such streak by a Badger since Alando Tucker had seven consecutive games with at least 20 points during the 2006-07 season.
- Illinois guard Keaton Wagler was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the sixth time this season on Monday. Wagler averaged 26.0 points, 5.0 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals in a pair of games last week on 50% shooting from the field, including 43% from 3-point range. The Shawnee, Kansas native scored a game-high 34 points with seven assists in a 92-90 overtime loss to Wisconsin, the third-best scoring performance ever by an Illini freshman, and second among all Big Ten freshmen this season behind his record 46 at Purdue. Wagler closed the week with 18 points, six rebounds, three assists, and three steals in a 71-51 win over Indiana.
- Milestone Watch... Congratulations to Purdue head coach Matt Painter, who recently claimed his 250th Big Ten Conference victory, joining Tom Izzo, Gene Keady, and Bobby Knight in the exclusive club... With 980 career assists, Purdue’s Braden Smith enters tonight’s game ranked sixth on the NCAA Div. I all-time assists list. Only four players have collected 1,000 career assists, including NCAA record holder Bobby Hurley (1,076)... Ohio State’s Bruce Thornton sits just 22 points shy of becoming the sixth active Division I player with 2,000 career points... With 17 rebounds, Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg will become the fourth active player to secure 1,000 career rebounds... USC’s Gabe Dynes stands just six blocked shots from becoming the fourth active Division I player in the country with 200 career blocked shots. … Rutgers head coach Steve Pikiell enters this week’s action with 348 career wins, while Illinois head coach Brad Underwood owns 295 career victories.
- The 29th annual TIAA Big Ten Tournament will be played at the United Center in Chicago, March 10th – 15th, 2026. For the first time, all 18 Big Ten teams will compete for the tournament title. The tournament will open with a pair of games on Tuesday, March 10 and culminate with championship on Sunday March 15.