BleedGopher
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per Kastenschmidt:
What makes a college basketball conference great? Is it having several top-ranked schools at the head of the pack? Or is it the quality of depth that it has, with strong teams from top to bottom? This year the Big Ten Conference has both, and it’s made for one of the most competitive regular seasons in recent memory.
The Big Ten tournament begins Wednesday and culminates Sunday, and it has a number of direct implications on next week’s NCAA Tournament field. For the Minnesota Gophers, it presents an opportunity to cement their spot in the Big Dance — or risk some sweaty palms come Selection Sunday.
The Gophers are currently projected as a No. 10 seed according to ESPN’s bracketology. As fans know, the “bubble” to get into the NCAA tournament shrinks as automatic bids are secured this week and fringe teams reel off unexpected wins to boost their resume.
The Gophers open the tournament at 6 p.m. Thursday against Penn State. Minnesota is favored in the contest as the higher seed, but it beat the Nittany Lions by only one point at Williams Arena in January. The Gophers trailed for the first 28 minutes of the contest and overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to edge one of the conference’s bottom feeders.
Would it really be a big shock to see them lose in the rematch? Penn State has won five of its last six games entering the tournament. A Gophers loss would push them ever closer to the bubble and put their fate in the hands of the selection committee, which is something coach Richard Pitino would like to avoid.
Conversely, a win against Penn State would likely solidify their spot in the tournament. What’s more, it would set up a quarterfinal battle with Purdue, which Minnesota defeated last week. A win over the co-conference champion, and perhaps a deep run in the conference tournament, could see the Gophers rise a number of seedlines.
The Gophers situation is interesting and fun to watch and is just one of a number of storylines heading into the conference tournament. Indiana and Ohio State are due to square off with both teams needing at least one (and likely more) wins to secure a bid in the NCAA tournament. Five Big Ten teams enter the tournament ranked nationally, and could see their tournament paths greatly affected by strong or poor tournament showings.
Though the NCAA Tournament itself garners much of the “March Madness” allure, it’s the week of conference tournaments leading into it that gets the momentum started. Big Ten basketball is one of the best showcases to watch in college hoops, and this week’s tournament makes for a fun appetizer to this month of madness.
https://www.crowrivermedia.com/inde...cle_bd4ffd5f-96b3-5062-8acd-e16eed57a679.html
Go Gophers!!
What makes a college basketball conference great? Is it having several top-ranked schools at the head of the pack? Or is it the quality of depth that it has, with strong teams from top to bottom? This year the Big Ten Conference has both, and it’s made for one of the most competitive regular seasons in recent memory.
The Big Ten tournament begins Wednesday and culminates Sunday, and it has a number of direct implications on next week’s NCAA Tournament field. For the Minnesota Gophers, it presents an opportunity to cement their spot in the Big Dance — or risk some sweaty palms come Selection Sunday.
The Gophers are currently projected as a No. 10 seed according to ESPN’s bracketology. As fans know, the “bubble” to get into the NCAA tournament shrinks as automatic bids are secured this week and fringe teams reel off unexpected wins to boost their resume.
The Gophers open the tournament at 6 p.m. Thursday against Penn State. Minnesota is favored in the contest as the higher seed, but it beat the Nittany Lions by only one point at Williams Arena in January. The Gophers trailed for the first 28 minutes of the contest and overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to edge one of the conference’s bottom feeders.
Would it really be a big shock to see them lose in the rematch? Penn State has won five of its last six games entering the tournament. A Gophers loss would push them ever closer to the bubble and put their fate in the hands of the selection committee, which is something coach Richard Pitino would like to avoid.
Conversely, a win against Penn State would likely solidify their spot in the tournament. What’s more, it would set up a quarterfinal battle with Purdue, which Minnesota defeated last week. A win over the co-conference champion, and perhaps a deep run in the conference tournament, could see the Gophers rise a number of seedlines.
The Gophers situation is interesting and fun to watch and is just one of a number of storylines heading into the conference tournament. Indiana and Ohio State are due to square off with both teams needing at least one (and likely more) wins to secure a bid in the NCAA tournament. Five Big Ten teams enter the tournament ranked nationally, and could see their tournament paths greatly affected by strong or poor tournament showings.
Though the NCAA Tournament itself garners much of the “March Madness” allure, it’s the week of conference tournaments leading into it that gets the momentum started. Big Ten basketball is one of the best showcases to watch in college hoops, and this week’s tournament makes for a fun appetizer to this month of madness.
https://www.crowrivermedia.com/inde...cle_bd4ffd5f-96b3-5062-8acd-e16eed57a679.html
Go Gophers!!