#1 Seed Still A Possibility For Spartan Basketball

The road to a Big Ten championship isn’t going to be an easy one. Michigan State has surprised everyone by remaining perfect on the road in Big Ten play.Â

The road to a Big Ten championship isn’t going to be an easy one. Michigan State has surprised everyone by remaining perfect on the road in Big Ten play. Their 6-0 mark makes them the league's premier road warriors and leaves them firmly in a position to grab the Big Ten crown in early March.

 

Who would have believed that MSU would drop two Big Ten home games before the season started? Could anyone envision the Spartans road success thus far in the conference? I certainly didn’t. If you would have told me that MSU was going to drop home games against Northwestern and Penn State before the season started, than I would have told you that MSU would be long out of the title chase.  The fact is that they are firmly in command. The ball has bounced favorably for the Spartans on the road this year. They remain 2.5 games ahead of everyone else in the Big Ten standings. There is room for error for MSU down the stretch, but I think these Spartans could get a #1 seed in the tournament if they take care of business the rest of February and early March.

 

Realistically, there are two teams outside of MSU that mathematically have a chance to win or share the crown. Illinois and Purdue are stellar teams that both have home games against the Spartans. As I see it, MSU needs to split their road games between Illinois and Purdue, win their remaining games and win the Big Ten tournament championship to capture the #1 seed they would rightfully deserve.

 

The college basketball analysts are in love with the Big Least and ACC conferences. If you were to go purely on the analysis of the major college basketball gurus, the ACC would get two #1 seeds and the Big Least would get one. As teams beat up on each other in their respective conferences, MSU could sneak in the mix for a #1 seed.

 

Why shouldn’t the Spartans get a #1 seed if they take care of business? They play in the Big Ten Conference, which has the nation’s #2 RPI. They have a great resume in terms of posting quality wins. They do have some glaringly bad losses. The loss to Maryland in December could be pardoned due to the early injury of Goran Suton. The losses to NW and PSU at home could demote them all the way down to a #3 seed if the selection committee gets finicky. I still believe that State secures the #1 seed in the Midwest if they win out. That is a huge if considering their schedule. I believe they will still capture a #1 seed if they only lose one more game.

 

Here are my predictions for the Big Ten’s “big-three.” This is how I see the conference shaking out.

 

Michigan State: currently 20-4, 10-2 Big Ten

Prediction:           25-5, 15-3 Big Ten record, conference tourney champ, lone remaining loss @ Illinois.

 

Illinois: currently 19-5, 7-4 Big Ten

Prediction:           24-7, 12-6 Big Ten record, conference tourney runner-up, remaining losses @ OSU and @ PSU.

 

Purdue: currently 18-6, 7-4 Big Ten

Prediction:           23-8, 12-6 Big Ten record, early conference tourney loss, remaining losses home to MSU, @ MSU.