Hello boys and girls. There's been some absolutely incredible college basketball lately, and the Big Ten has been no exception. We saw the mighty Wisconsin Badgers fall last weekend to the up-and-coming Purdue Boilermakers, the Hoosiers suffered an upset against Connecticut and Northwestern actually scored more than 50 points in a game. Craziness, just craziness. Stay tuned, loyal Stormers - there's plenty more rough and tough Big Ten basketball to be played this year.
Team with the Best Week - Purdue. I've stressed the importance of the second-tier teams this season (Purdue, Ohio State, Minnesota, etc.) and how one of them needed to step up and establish themselves as a contender in the conference. It seems as though the Boilermakers have done just that. Winners of six straight - including a 60-56 win against Wisconsin on Jan. 26 - Purdue is playing great ball right now led by some of its youngest players. Robbie Hummel, E'Twaun Moore and Scott Martin could become a fierce trifecta in the Big Ten if they stick it out and stay in school. Boy would Matt Painter be proud.
Player of the Week - Jamar Butler, Ohio State. Butler knew heading into this season that he needed to take control of the Buckeyes squad, following the departures of Greg Oden and Mike Conley, Jr. The senior guard has done just that, and while Ohio State has struggled on the road this season, they've still managed to put together a 15-6, 6-2 record behind Butler's strong play. He's scored 27 and 20 in the last two games, respectively, and is averaging 15.2 on the year. That may not seem very impressive, but consider this: Butler averaged nearly seven less points last year, three less assists and has upped his percentage in all shooting categories - and he's playing just four more minutes a game. Oden and Conley may be gone, but Butler is keeping the Buckeyes in good standing.
Team with the Worst Week - Indiana. I know this may be picky, but the Hoosiers' loss to UConn last weekend spelt disaster for IU. Luckily for them, it wasn't a conference game and didn't affect their standings in the Big Ten. However, the Hoosiers have coasted through the season by enjoying a high school-quality non-conference schedule and by beating up on the weaklings of the Big Ten. They need to beat the man to be the man is the moral of the story - and even though UConn is nowhere near being "the man", they are certainly playing some great basketball right now. A win at Wisconsin would be all the proof that this blogger needs.
Bruce Weber Moment of the Week - The Illini lost last night...again. Though it came at the hands of the Michigan State Spartans, the Illini actually led at halftime - only to finish the contest with 17 points in the second half. In regards to his team's performance, our favorite coach gave the 'no shit' response of the week: "Obviously we're not an offensive juggernaut." No, that's true, Bruce - you're not. And you might not be on the Illinois bench much longer either.
Games to Watch - 1/31 Indiana @ Wisconsin
2/3 Wisconsin @ Minnesota
2/7 Indiana @ Illinois (aka the "He Hate Me" game, featuring Eric Gordon and Bruce Weber)
2 comments:
Although Purdue's victory over Wiscy was nice, it was not at (much less the emphasized "AT" in your blog entry) Wisconsin. It was at Purdue. Like I said, still a nice win, but a big difference between the two.
Haha, I noticed that as soon as I posted it. Good catch, anonymous.
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