It was another great week of action across the Big Ten. Most of the top teams took care of business, but there was some drama in the middle-tier. Of course, it all led to a shakeup in these Rankings.
So, let’s jump into this week’s Power Rankings.
Big Ten Week 11 Power Rankings
#1 – Purdue Boilermakers (—)
The Boilermakers had a great week of playing, beating Iowa at home on Wednesday and knocking off USC on the road on Saturday evening. The wins pushed Purdue to 17-1 overall and 7-0 in Big Ten play. Notably, the team has now won nine straight since falling
to Iowa State on December 6th. Purdue also remains undefeated against teams outside the top 10 on KenPom this season.
Generally speaking, all is well in West Lafayette. The team is rolling and sitting atop the Big Ten standings. Michigan and Michigan State’s losses earlier in the month also give the Boilermakers a bit of breathing room with some of the other top title contenders. Nebraska is certainly a factor as well, but Boiler fans would certainly prefer a two-team race to a four or five-team battle. The results to date have been encouraging in that effort.
However, there have been a few whispers over the last few weeks about Purdue. While the team is still winning, the margins are starting to evaporate. Each of Purdue’s last four wins have come by single-digits, which isn’t too significant by itself, but gains increased relevance when one considers three of the games were at home and one of those was against a struggling Penn State squad. Fans are hoping it has more to do with a January lull than anything about the team’s long-term prospects. We’ll have to wait and see on that.
Purdue will get two massive games this week, with UCLA on the road on Tuesday and Illinois at home on Saturday. The latter is shaping up to be the team’s biggest game of the season to date.
#2 – Nebraska Cornhuskers (—)
The Huskers scored two more impressive wins last week, blasting Oregon at home on Tuesday and beating Northwestern on the road by 19 points on Saturday. The wins pushed Nebraska to 18-0 overall and 7-0 in Big Ten play. The team has now won 22 straight games stretching back to last season. It’s been an incredible run.
Nebraska enters this week as just one of three remaining unbeatens (the other two are Arizona and Miami (OH)) and with a real chance to stretch its record to 20-0. The Huskers will get Washington at home on Wednesday and Minnesota on the road on Saturday. KenPom has Nebraska as a significant favorite in both games. The Gophers have shown the ability to get up for opponents at home so far, but these should be wins.
If Nebraska can take care of business against the Huskies and Gophers, it would set up a colossal matchup with Michigan on January 27th in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines will have to hold up their end as well (detailed below), but we could easily be talking about a top five matchup in late January that includes an undefeated Nebraska. That’s not something anyone would have predicted before the season.
#3 – Michigan Wolverines (—)
The Wolverines got back on their feet last week, beating Washington on the road on Wednesday and Oregon on the road on Saturday on the team’s trip out west. The wins left Michigan sitting at 16-1 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play. As a result, Michigan now has 13 wins by 10 points or more so far this season.
While Michigan fans are happy with the team bouncing back from its loss to Wisconsin earlier this month, especially on the road, it’s hard to feel as confident about the Wolverines as many did a few weeks ago. The team continues to show some real vulnerabilities, particularly on the defensive end of the floor and it’s leading to closer games than Michigan experienced for much of the season. Dusty May has clearly made some adjustments, and the team is bringing more perimeter pressure, but one has to wonder if there are still more to be made, as the team hasn’t dominated an opponent in more than two weeks.
For perspective on Michigan’s slide, look no further than TRank’s ratings. Michigan entered 2026 firmly as the nation’s top analytic team and seemed destined to be an all-time squad. However, since January 3rd, Michigan has only been the 26th most efficient team in the country, well behind other Big Ten powers like Michigan State, Nebraska, and Illinois. Even if it’s a limited data set, it’s not exactly an encouraging projection.
Michigan will now get an interesting slate of games, with Indiana at home on Tuesday and arch-rival Ohio State at home on Friday. These are games the Wolverines should win, but both opponents are more than capable of pulling an upset if Michigan continues to play down to teams.
#4 – Illinois Fighting Illini (—)
The Illini raced through two more opponents last week, beating Northwestern on the road on Wednesday and Minnesota at home on Saturday. Both wins came by double-digits. Illinois improved to 15-3 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play with the wins. The team has now won seven straight dating back to December 13th.
At this point, nobody in the country is more underrated than Illinois. While the team is barely getting mentioned in the Big Ten title race or in the national discussion, Illinois keeps winning. The group is up to fifth nationally on KenPom and has yet to lose to an opponent outside the top 20 on KenPom. This is a really good team that has a chance to accomplish some massive things in March and it’s bewildering that nobody is discussing it.
The good news is Illinois will have a chance to get plenty of attention this week, with Maryland at home on Wednesday and Purdue on the road on Saturday. If Illinois can find a way to beat the Boilers, it would immediately jump into the heart of the Big Ten title race.
#5 – Michigan State Spartans (—)
The Spartans scored two impressive wins last week, blowing out Indiana at home on Tuesday and beating Washington on the road on Saturday by 17 points. The wins left Michigan State sitting at 16-2 overall and 6-1 in Big Ten play. The team has now won four straight, dating back to that tight loss at Nebraska.
If Illinois is the nation’s most underrated squad, Michigan State isn’t too far behind. The Spartans are far from a perfect team, but the group is playing exceptional defense and continues to pick up momentum. Jeremy Fears is also a star in the backcourt, which generally fits the blueprint of Tom Izzo’s best teams, i.e., great defense and an elite guard to score in the clutch. This squad is absolutely good enough to win the Big Ten.
Michigan State will get two winnable games this week, with a short-handed Oregon on the road on Tuesday and Maryland at home on Saturday. KenPom gives the Spartans at least 80 percent odds in both games.
#6 – Wisconsin Badgers (+2)
The Badgers kept things rolling this week, with a win at arch-rival Minnesota on Tuesday and a followup win against Rutgers at home on Saturday. However, while they were both wins, the results couldn’t have been much different. The former came by way of some late game heroics, while the latter was a complete blowout of the Scarlet Knights that was never as close as the final score. Nonetheless, the wins left Wisconsin sitting at 13-5 overall and 5-2 in Big Ten play.
We never want to read too much into a game or two, but Badger fans have to be feeling great about where things are heading. The team clearly has some momentum going, having won four straight, including road wins at Michigan and Minnesota. In fact, Wisconsin is 6-1 over its last seven games, with the only loss coming against a top five Purdue team. The Badgers are also up seven spots on KenPom over the span, which certainly makes things look far more favorable moving forward.
Naturally, the only question now is whether Wisconsin can keep up that level of play. We’ll see with two winnable, but tricky games this week. The Badgers get Penn State on the road on Thursday and USC at home on Sunday. KenPom favors Wisconsin in both games.
#7 – Iowa Hawkeyes (—)
The Hawkeyes split the team’s games last week, falling to Purdue on the road on Wednesday, but bouncing back against Indiana on the road on Saturday. The latter was a particularly impressive result, as Iowa scored a 17-point road win over the Hoosiers. The win left Iowa sitting at 13-5 overall and 3-4 in Big Ten play.
Iowa only gets one game this week, which will come at home against Rutgers on Tuesday. KenPom gives the Hawkeyes a 96 percent chance to win that one.
#8 – Ohio State Buckeyes (+3)
The Buckeyes won the team’s only game last week, beating UCLA by double-digits at home on Saturday. The win pushed Ohio State to 12-5 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten play. Notably, it was enough to put the Bucks on the right side of many NCAA projections. TRank now has Ohio State in the field, though only with a 56.4 percent chance of making the cut on Selection Sunday.
Ohio State will get a crucial slate of games this week, with Minnesota at home on Tuesday and arch-rival Michigan on the road on Friday. The game against the Gophers is a must win — Ohio State simply can’t afford to lose to an opponent like that at home if it wants an at-large bid. And the second is a “can’t lose” opportunity. Most of the projections expect the Buckeyes to fall, so if the team can shock the world and pull off an upset, it would be a massive boost to its postseason hopes.
#9 – Indiana Hoosiers (-3)
The Hoosiers had a rough week, falling to Michigan State on the road on Tuesday and to Iowa at home on Saturday. The losses dropped Indiana to 12-6 overall and 3-4 in Big Ten play. Notably, the group has now lost three straight overall and remains winless against top 50 opponents so far this season, which is an incredible thing to say heading into late January.
Indiana still remains on the right side of most NCAA Tournament projections, but the margin continues to shrink. TRank only gives the Hoosiers a 78.8 percent chance to make the field right now and currently places Indiana as one of the last four byes. The biggest issue is clearly Indiana’s lack of marquee wins. If Darian DeVries is going to get the Hoosiers into the field, it’s got to start winning some of its big games.
Unfortunately, this projects as a pretty tough week, with Michigan on the road on Tuesday and Rutgers on the road on Friday. The first game figures to be an uphill climb and the second game has virtually no upside with how poorly the Scarlet Knights have played to date.
#10 – USC Trojans (-1)
The Trojans split the team’s games last week, beating Maryland at home on Tuesday, but falling to Purdue at home on Saturday. The loss ended up being by just a few points in a back-and-forth affair. The mixed results left USC sitting at 14-4 overall and 3-4 in Big Ten play.
This week, USC will get Northwestern at home on Wednesday and Wisconsin on the road on Sunday. There’s reason to believe the Trojans can win both games, which would be needed, as many NCAA projections have the team on the outside looking in.
#11 – UCLA Bruins (-1)
The Bruins had mixed results last week, beating Penn State on the road on Wednesday, but falling on the road to Ohio State on Saturday. The latter was a tough result, as UCLA fell by 12 points in a matchup that looked relatively even heading into tip. The loss left UCLA sitting at 12-6 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten play.
UCLA is another team that remains on the NCAA bubble with about two months remaining. The team’s biggest issue remains a lack of marquee wins, as the Bruins have still yet to beat a top 50 opponent on KenPom. We’ll see if that can change this week, with Purdue at home on Tuesday and Northwestern at home on Saturday.
#12 – Minnesota Golden Gophers (—)
The Gophers fell in both the team’s games last week, losing at home to Wisconsin on Tuesday and then on the road to Illinois on Saturday. Minnesota actually played relatively well in the games, pulling tight with Wisconsin in the closing seconds and keeping it competitive in a tough environment against Illinois. However, the Gophers weren’t good enough to close the deal in either game. The losses left Minnesota sitting at 10-8 overall and 3-4 in Big Ten play. The team has now lost three straight.
At this point, Minnesota’s at-large NCAA hopes only remain alive by a whisper or two. To put things in perspective, TRank currently has the Gophers as the 35th team out of the field and with an unmeasurably low chance of making the cut. As such, any further discussion on the topic is probably more academic than practical. Still, weird things happen, so we’ll entertain it at least for a few more days.
Minnesota will return to action this week with Ohio State on the road on Tuesday and Nebraska at home on Saturday. If those minuscule NCAA hopes are going to remain alive, this needs to be a split or sweep.
#13 – Washington Huskies (—)
The Huskies had a rough week, falling to Michigan at home on Wednesday and against Michigan State at home on Saturday. The losses dropped Washington to 10-8 overall and 2-5 in Big Ten play. Desmond Claude also announced his exit from the program in a massive blow to the team’s dwindling NCAA hopes. Both losses came by double-digits.
Washington will try to get back on track this week against Nebraska on the road on Wednesday and Oregon at home on Sunday. KenPom projects a split.
#14 – Oregon Ducks (—)
The Ducks went 0-2 last week, falling to Nebraska on the road in blowout fashion on Tuesday and at home to Michigan on Saturday by double-digits. The losses dropped Oregon to 8-10 overall and 1-6 in Big Ten play. The group is now playing without Nate Bittle and Jackson Shelstad. Oregon will hope to bounce back this week at home against Michigan State on Tuesday and on the road against Washington on Sunday.
#15 – Northwestern Wildcats (—)
The Wildcats continued struggling last week, falling to Illinois at home on Wednesday and against Nebraska at home on Saturday. The losses dropped Northwestern to 8-10 overall and 0-7 in Big Ten play. Notably, the group is winless against top 160 KenPom opponents since November 23rd. We’ll see if Northwestern can bounce back in Los Angeles this week against USC on Wednesday and UCLA on Saturday.
#16 – Rutgers Scarlet Knights (—)
The Scarlet Knights lost the team’s only game last week, falling to Wisconsin on the road on Saturday. The loss left Rutgers sitting at 9-9 overall and 2-5 in Big Ten play. The team will now prepare for Iowa on the road on Tuesday and Indiana at home on Friday.
#17 – Maryland Terrapins (+1)
The Terrapins finally broke through this week. Maryland fell on the road to USC on Tuesday, but rebounded with a win against Penn State at home on Sunday. The win left Maryland sitting at 8-10 overall and 1-6 in Big Ten play. It was the team’s first win against a top 125 team since November 15th. Maryland will hope to build off that with Illinois on the road on Wednesday and Michigan State on the road on Saturday.
#18 – Penn State Nittany Lions (-1)
The Nittany Lions lost both of the team’s games last week. Penn State began by falling to UCLA at home on Wednesday and then followed it up by losing to Maryland on the road on Sunday by 23 points. The losses ended any remaining positivity around the team. Penn State now finds itself sitting at 9-9 overall and 0-7 in Big Ten play. The team will now prepare for Wisconsin at home on Thursday.
