Dusty May’s Michigan Wolverines were granted a gift this week, as Illinois lost twice and Nebraska faltered to Purdue at home. This gives Michigan a full two-game lead in the Big Ten since it has just one loss while Illinois, Purdue, Nebraska and Michigan State all have three. With that said, Michigan’s schedule down the stretch is a gauntlet of epic proportions.
Who should the Wolverines be most concerned about catching them in the Big Ten regular-season title race?
There’s a case to be made for each
of those four teams, but it would be remiss to not also consider the Wisconsin Badgers and UCLA Bruins. Both have four losses but still have time to work their way into the conversation should Michigan falter. In fact, UCLA plays in Ann Arbor tomorrow while Wisconsin already has a head-to-head win at Crisler Center.
But for me, Illinois is the greatest threat for two reasons. The first is their schedule; of the top five Big Ten teams, the Illini’s is the easiest. They play Michigan at home, but then don’t have any remaining games against the top-five Big Ten teams we’ve mentioned, or any ranked teams for that matter.
The second reason is the fact that a home win over Michigan would give them a tiebreaker and make up a game of the two they need. If they can run the table elsewhere (which seems plausible), they would only need Michigan to trip up in one other game.
After losing three straight, Purdue seems to be back on track and is still in the thick of it. The Boilermakers picked up a big win this week in Lincoln, and will now travel to Iowa tomorrow. If they can get through that game, their three toughest remaining matchups are all at home (Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin). Winning at Mackey is always tough, so Purdue could be favored in every game remaining.
The shimmer seems to have come off the Cornhuskers a bit, as they’ve lost three of their last four. However, their schedule is very manageable down the stretch, with two against Iowa twice, along with road games at USC and UCLA. If Fred Hoiberg can get his team out of their slump, the schedule sets up favorably to get right back into the Big Ten race.
As for Michigan State, the path to a conference championship seems pretty daunting. The Spartans have to travel to Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Michigan while also hosting UCLA. It helps that Tom Izzo and company can make up a game on Michigan by winning to end the regular season, but doing it on the road will be tough. Their schedule is also arguably the toughest of the contenders.
In my eyes, the biggest threat to Michigan’s title hopes are the Fighting Illini, but Nebraska’s schedule makes it hard to ignore. If the Wolverines simply take care of business, the conference championship is theirs for the taking. However, there’s no denying Michigan’s schedule is absolutely brutal to end the season.
Who do you see as the biggest threat to the Wolverines’ regular-season Big Ten title chances? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments section below.
