Big 10 as of 2/26/2024
Locks: Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois
Probably in: Michigan St, Northwestern, Nebraska
Work To Do: Nebraska, Iowa
Probably Out: Ohio St
No Shot: Indiana, Minnesota, Maryland, Penn St, Rutgers, Michigan
Northwestern is safe. For now. They need to notch a couple more victories down the stretch to become a lock. That Ty Berry injury lowers their ceiling.
Nebraska got a road win at Indiana and followed it up with a win over Minnesota at home. The Huskers feel pretty safe right now barring a colossal collapse down the stretch. The remaining schedule is very manageable.
Michigan State had an absolute nightmare week. Got beat soundly by Iowa in the Breslin Center and then let Ohio State hang around only to lose on a buzzer beater. They maintain great metrics but the losses are adding up. A trip to West Lafayette looms with the potential to extend this slide to 3 games and really start to make things interesting for Sparty. One of Izzo's worst coaching jobs.
Iowa did what they needed to last week and split their road tests against NCAA tourney teams. The bubble having a bad day Saturday also helps their cause. The formula for the Hoks seems pretty simple - Win 2 of their remaining 3 games (Penn St, @ Northwestern, Illinois) and then 2 games in Minneapolis. Anything short of that probably isn't good enough. However, they have a much better shot than the CF consensus realizes.
Ohio State's two key wins since firing Holtmann give them a very faint shot. They need to finish 3-0 against Nebraska, Michigan, and at Rutgers and then win 2 in the Big Ten tourney. Unlikely to happen but the talented roster has at least showed signs of life under interim Jon Diebler.