With the regular season now in the books, the college basketball world begins the best and most chaotic period of the season. It all starts this week with the appetizer that is conference tournament week.
The Big Ten collectively has put together one of its best seasons in a long time, and there are a handful of teams that are more than capable of making a run in the big dance. But before the NCAA Tournament bracket comes out, they will battle it out one last time in Chicago in the 18-team bracket to crown
a conference champion.
With so much chaos ready to ensue and a wealth of possible scenarios on the table, here’s a look at a few bold predictions of what we could see for Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament.
Michigan avenges its lone conference loss
It wasn’t until Jan. 10 that Michigan suffered its first loss of the season and its only loss in Big Ten play. That day, Michigan lost a heartbreaker to Wisconsin, 91-88. Now, Wisconsin is positioned as the No. 6 seed on Michigan’s side of the bracket, giving them a chance to meet again in the semifinal on Saturday if the Badgers are able to get by either USC or Washington, and then Illinois.
Wisconsin has had one of the stranger seasons in the Big Ten this year, with wins over Michigan, Illinois, Purdue and Michigan State, yet six losses in conference play. When they’re on, the Badgers can beat anybody, so it wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see them win their first two games this week.
Should they see Michigan again, the Badgers would need to catch fire again. In their last matchup, they knocked down a whopping 15 three-pointers while Michigan also surrendered at what one point was a 14-point lead. If Michigan is able to play the same game it’s played all year and Wisconsin doesn’t once again have an A-plus performance, the Wolverines would be in good shape to win this time.
A Michigan role player steals the show
One of the biggest keys in the month of March is depth. No matter how good a team’s starting five is, the amount of games played in a short span of time makes it imperative that there are multiple guys ready to go off the bench. And fortunately for Michigan, it has two players on its bench that could be ready to pop on the national stage, and both played big roles in the win over Michigan State on Sunday.
Roddy Gayle Jr. took his game to another level this time last year after being seen as a liability on the court at times. However, his defense made him a valuable cog in the rotation while his offensive game woke up as well, capped with a 26-point performance against Texas A&M in the Round of 32. On Sunday, he played 28 minutes and scored 15 points to help hush the Spartans, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he puts the cape back on this week.
Similarly, freshman Trey McKenney’s role will continue to grow as Michigan tries to replace L.J. Cason in its backcourt. McKenney has shown flashes of greatness throughout the year and adds a mix of shooting prowess and physicality that should bode well in March. He seems like a good candidate to make some big shots off the bench as one of Michigan’s best shooters from deep.
Michigan and Michigan State meet again…with the same result
Positioned as the No. 3 seed, Michigan State is in a favorable spot to make a run to the championship. Its toughest possible opponents are Purdue, Nebraska or UCLA, with Nebraska being the lone team to beat the Spartans.
Aside from its loss to Michigan on Sunday, Michigan State had been hot coming into the month of March with five straight wins. Should the Spartans stay hot, they could meet the Wolverines again on Sunday. That’s where the fun could really start for Michigan, as it’s been able to solve Michigan State in both matchups this season by winning both by double digits.
While it’s a borderline fool’s errand to confidently pick a winner for any one game this time of year, Michigan should be able to get the job done and complete the sweep of the Spartans and cap off what’s been the best season in program history.
