Dane Massey is a second-year Digital Sports Production major and writes for The Daily News. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the newspaper.
This tournament might be one of the most unpredictable as there have been so many wild moments throughout the regular season, but hey; crazy moments are in the recipe for a great tournament.
Both tournaments pack an exciting punch but there are two things to tune into for both the men’s and women’s tournaments. With the men’s tournament, the question is can Purdue continue its hype train going into the postseason? The Boilermakers produced one of its strongest seasons in school history and are pushing in its chips this year to make a run, but can Purdue find a way to dominate the Big Ten like everyone is saying they should? The answer to this question will depend on how they do in the NCAA tournament as well.
As for the women’s tournament, this one will be a fun one to watch as it features three teams in the top 10 and two more in the top 15. If that is not exciting enough, at least half of the field in the Big Ten has a legit shot at competing for the Big Ten crown. That’s really all you can ask for in a tournament; some good, stiff competition.
Where are the tournaments taking place?
The men’s tournament make a return to the Windy City for the first time since 2019 to play in the United Center in Chicago while the women’s tournament will take place up north in the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, marking the first time the state of Minnesota will host the Big Ten women’s tournament and also the first time that the tournament will not be held in Illinois or Indiana since 2003. The two tournaments will reunite in one location next season when they both will take place in Minneapolis.
Who won the Regular Season title and holds the number one seed?
Purdue swept its way through the Big Ten this year on their way to securing its first No. 1 overall seed since 2019. You can just hear Purdue fans saying that this is their year to finally get over the hump after years of postseason disappointment and with how they have played this season, there is a certainty that they can do it, but here’s the catch. They are one of the most unpredictable tournaments in the nation.
Man, this women’s bracket in the Big Ten is loaded with talent. At the top of the bracket is Indiana which secured its first No. 1 overall seed for the first time in 40 years. The Hoosiers can’t let the championship hangover get to them as they have some stiff competition to worry about as Maryland, Iowa, and Ohio State, among others, look just as scary as Indiana.
Big Ten Tournament Brackets:
Men’s Bracket
Round 1 (March 8)
Game 1: No. 12 seed vs. No. 13 seed at 6:30 p.m.
Game 2: No. 11 seed vs. No. 14 seed – 25 minutes after Game 1
Second Round (March 9)
Game 3: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed at 12 p.m.
Game 4: No. 5 seed vs. Winner of Game 1 – 25 minutes following Game 3
Game 5: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 seed at 6:30 p.m.
Game 6: No. 6 Seed vs. Winner of Game 2 – 25 minutes following Game 5
Quarterfinals (March 10)
Game 7: No. 1 seed vs. Winner of Game 3 at 12 p.m.
Game 8: No. 4 seed vs. Winner of Game 4 – 25 minutes following Game 7
Game 9: No. 2 seed vs. Winner of Game 5 at 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 3 vs. Winner of Game 6 – 25 minutes following Game 9
Semifinals (March 11)
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8 at 12 p.m.
Game 12: Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10 – 25 minutes following Game 11
Championship (March 5)
Game 13: Winner of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 12 at 3:30 p.m.
Women’s Bracket
First Round (March 1)
Game 1: No. 12 Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. No. 13 Penn State Lady Lions at 2 p.m.
Game 2: No. 11 Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs. No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats – 25 minutes after Game 1
Second Round (March 2)
Game 3: No. 8 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. No. 9 Michigan State Spartans at 12:30 p.m.
Game 4: No. 5 Michigan Wolverines vs. Winner of Game 1 – 25 minutes following Game 3
Game 5: No. 7 Purdue Boilermakers vs. No. 10 Wisconsin Badgers at 6:30 p.m.
Game 6: No. 6 Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Winner of Game 2 – 25 minutes following Game 5
Quarterfinals (March 3)
Game 7: No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers vs. Winner of Game 3 at 12:30 p.m.
Game 8: No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Winner of Game 4 – 25 minutes following Game 7
Game 9: No. 2 Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Winner of Game 5 at 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 3 Maryland Terrapins vs. Winner of Game 6 – 25 minutes following Game 9
Semifinals (March 4)
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8 at 2:30 p.m.
Game 12: Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10 – 25 minutes following Game 11
Championship (March 5)
Game 13: Winner of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 12 at 5 p.m.
Predictions for Big Ten Tournaments:
Men’s Tournament: Northwestern Wildcats
Why is Purdue not the clear pick to win the Big Ten? Well, it’s simple, Northwestern has the best road record besides Purdue, they will have home-court advantage despite being at a neutral venue in Chicago, just 30 minutes down the road from their home campus, and the Wildcats beat the Boilermakers in Evanston, Ill. It is really hard to believe in Purdue’s hype especially after seeing them underachieve in the postseason over the last couple of years. Until Purdue shows that they truly are the bonafide pick to win the Big Ten, go with the Wildcats and their home-court advantage.
Women’s Tournament: Indiana Hoosiers
This tournament will be the fun one to watch for the women’s tournaments as it features three teams in the top ten. If that is not exciting enough, at least half of the field in the Big Ten has a legit shot at competing for the Big Ten crown. Indiana sits atop the conference standings looking to avenge what happened a season ago when they lost in the finals to Iowa. Speaking of the Hawkeyes they are looking to repeat as champions and win their third title in five years with the help of their leading scorer who sits atop the rankings in points per game in the nation in Caitlin Clark. This year seems like the year to do so as the Hoosiers sit comfortably atop the Big Ten standings and there is plenty to believe in the hype of this team and their incredible balance of offense and defense. The hype also says that this team could run to the National Title this year if they wanted to, and it’s a hype worth buying into.
Contact Dane Massey with comments at dtmassey@bsu.edu or on Twitter @danemassey22.
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