Things are heating up in the Big Ten as many conference contenders are trying to maintain their place at the top of the standings. Michigan State looked at its best in a win over Illinois, trying to prove they are one of the best teams in the country, too. The Bruins and the Hoosiers both got victories that keep them in the battle to make the tournament. The margin of error is small for both teams, and each game is a must-win moving forward.
Here are the scores and the rest of my analysis from Saturday in Big Ten basketball:
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Indiana 78-77 vs Wisconsin
Lamar Wilkerson leads the Hoosiers past the Badgers in a thrilling overtime win with his 25 points. The Badgers continued their same trend of yet another slow start, but this time, they could not execute a winning comeback. They came back, but the Hoosiers had enough late down the stretch to pull out the victory. With not much left in the season, the Badgers need to play more complete basketball; banging on a comeback and winning games late could cost them a tourney berth. The Badgers, after going on a run winning the majority of their schedule games, suffer another very winnable loss, just like their loss to USC. Indiana gets back on the right track with a win.
No. 9 Nebraska 80-68 vs Rutgers
After losing two straight big games, the Cornhuskers find their groove back and get a much-needed victory over Rutgers. Rienk Mast led the Cornhuskers to victory with his 26 points and 8 rebounds. The Cornhuskers also had 3 of their other starters reach double figures and be highly productive. The Cornhuskers did exactly what they were supposed to do: roll against a bad team and get ready for a matchup against Purdue on Tuesday.
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No. 12 Purdue 68-64 vs Oregon
The Oregon Ducks take Purdue to the brink of an upset, and the Boilermakers give great reason for concern. If it were not for Fletcher Loyer’s late three-pointer, this would be a totally different story for Purdue. This very well could have been a statement win for the Ducks, yet they could not finish the job and ultimately gave this game over to Purdue late. The Ducks had Nate Bittle return to the starting lineup, and he was huge in this game with 23 points. Purdue’s biggest faults in this game were not being able to drain the 3 at a consistent level and having 10 costly turnovers. Late in the game, they cleaned up their act and got zoined in defensively. Once it was time to win the game with a 3, Loyer did not miss. It is hard to give Purdue much credit for this win because they were not supposed to be in this position to start with.
No. 10 Michigan State 85-82 vs No. 5 Illinois
The Spartans caught the red-hot Illinois Fighting Illini. The Fighting Illini were playing as well as any team in the country, and haven’t lost a game since December 13th. The Spartans were at their best, as Jeremy DFears led them with 26 points and 15 assists. Each team kept responding with a lead of their own; the Spartans weren’t able to secure a comfortable lead at any point. This, however, was the best game the Spartans have played, truly displaying that they can beat anyone in college basketball. Even with the 3-point shot not hitting the net at a consistent rate, the Spartans outrebounded Illinois 47-36. The Spartans were on their A game, and that resulted in what was quoted as an impressive win over Illinois in overtime.
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UCLA 77-73 vs Washington
UCLA gets another victory in the win column against a tough Huskie team. Bruins coach Mike Cronin got his team fired up after a poor officiating call, which led him to step to the referees and let them know his frustration. The team played inspired basketball after their, and they made their coach proud. After the foul, the Bruins outscored Washington 13-5 in the second half, propelling them to victory. Trent Perry was also great in this game as he chipped in 23 points, while Tyler Bilodeau was right behind him with 19 points.
Sunday — USC 77-75 at Penn State
Alijah Arenas made the biggest shots of the game to help USC avoid what would have been a wrenching loss. The Trojans took an important step toward the NCAA Tournament.
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Maryland 67-62 at Minnesota
The Terrapins closed with a late 11-2 run to shock the Gophers in a Sunday upset.
Iowa 76-70 vs Northwestern
The Hawkeyes avoided a bad loss and stayed on course for the NCAA Tournament.
No. 2 Michigan 82-61 at Ohio State
Michigan stayed on course for the Big Ten championship with a convincing win in Columbus. UM swept the season series against the Buckeyes, having won earlier in the season in Ann Arbor.
Overview
The Big Ten delivered many competitive games on Saturday night, some of which could very well decide how things play out at the end of the season. Indiana pulled off a huge win in overtime over the Badgers to keep themselves in the race. Michigan State gets its stay in the win vs one of the best teams in basketball. The Bruins also keep themselves in the fight with a hard-fought win inspired by their coach.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Biggest winners and losers for February 8 in Big Ten men’s hoops
