Emma's Big Ten Power Rankings: Down The Stretch They Come
By Chris Emma-
(CBS) A week remains in the Big Ten's regular season, with plenty of drama and storylines set to unfold before the conference tournament begins next week at United Center.
With all that, there's only one matchup I want in the tournament final. You should, too. It's a battle of the Big Ten's best, two top-10 teams. Bring on the Wisconsin Badgers and Maryland Terrapins.
Both Wisconsin and Maryland have Final Four potential, rosters loaded with talent and impressive resumes. The seasons series is evened up, 1-1. It's Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker against Fab Melo and Dez Wells. Let's get a rubber match between these two teams, say, a week from Sunday in Chicago.
On to the power rankings:
1.) Wisconsin (26-3, 14-2) — Finally, the Badgers were tripped up. Go figure, it was Maryland doing the damage.
2.) Maryland (24-5, 12-4) — The Terrapins would be the best team in most conferences, but the Badgers still boast that claim.
3.) Ohio State (21-8, 10-6) — An impressive comeback win over Purdue puts Ohio State just behind the class of the Big Ten.
4.) Purdue (19-10, 11-5) — The Boilermakers likely need two wins before Selection Sunday to fully secure a tournament bid. Right now, Matt Painter's team passes the proverbial eye test.
5.) Michigan State (19-10, 10-6) — A down week for the Spartans brought more reasons for concern before postseason play begins.
6.) Indiana (19-10, 9-7) — Stop me if you've heard this one before, but a 2-3 zone threw off Tom Crean's team. This time, though, it was Northwestern, not a Syracuse.
7.) Iowa (19-10, 10-6) — The Hawkeyes are beginning to click at the right time, potentially poised to do some damage in the tournament.
8.) Illinois (18-11, 8-8) — With an active, healthy Rayvonte Rice, the Fighting Illini are so dangerous. Still, this group needs another quality win to solidify a tournament bid.
9.) Michigan (14-14, 7-9) — Credit John Beilein, one of the best coaches in the country, for weathering the storm with these banged-up Wolverines.
10.) Minnesota (17-12, 6-10) — A critical overtime road win at Breslin Center brought the Golden Gophers a glimmer of hope for the NCAA Tournament.
11.) Northwestern (14-15, 5-11) — The Wildcats' first Big Ten four-game winning streak since 1967 came to an end with their worst loss of the season, a blowout from Illinois.
12.) Nebraska (13-15, 5-11) — From Big Ten feel-good story to dropping off the page completely, this has been a bad year for the Cornhuskers.
13.) Penn State (15-14, 3-13) — The Nittany Lions have wasted a stellar season from D.J. Newbill.
14.) Rutgers (10-19, 2-14) — Oof.
Follow Chris on Twitter @CEmma670.