The Big Ten entered the NCAA tournament full of confidence after a highly competitive and fun regular season guaranteeing them nine moves, including four out of the top 14.
“I’m not afraid of … anyone, because we really play against the best teams in the country night after night,” said Michigan State coach Tom Izzo.
Some media (ahem) have even written stories about how good the league was and how this could be the perfect opportunity to end their 21-year national championship drought.
Well, then there was a 22-hour stretch that included:
Michigan State losing to UCLA.
Ohio State losing to Oral Roberts.
Purdue losing to northern Texas.
Oh, and Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens once again reiterated – perhaps quite clear this time around – that he will not be the next head coach in Indiana.
“I am a 44-year-old Masshole. I deviate, like Dunkin ‘Donuts and cheer for the Patriots, ”said Stevens, who grew up in Indiana, played ball at college in Indiana and previously trained in Indiana.
He might as well have said that the Indy 500 is a waste of fossil fuel, pork loin sandwiches are not edible and Deflategate has not happened.
Indiana is desperate to return to prominence and Stevens was the dream candidate – even if that dream was delusional. They are still able to get a great coach, but when even Brad Stevens is leaving the Midwest and declaring his support for the Patriots …
It wasn’t all bad, of course.
Illinois rolled over and Wisconsin defeated North Carolina. Rutgers won his first NCAA tournament game in 38 years. Michigan, Iowa and Maryland haven’t played yet, so they have that going for them. Rick Barnes is not a league coach.
The Big Ten can still win the long-awaited national title – or even send enough teams to this tournament to dominate the stories.
What happened in the first two days (Michigan State was in Thursday’s game round) certainly does not create confidence.
The Big Ten’s hope this year was that teams would be battle tested after a difficult conference schedule. However, three teams have already collapsed in times of crisis.
“Obviously, Michigan State lost in overtime, we lost in overtime and I think Ohio State lost in overtime too,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter. “Then you are going to enter games played in the NCAA tournament.”
Still, in these games played, each of them failed to show their toughness, execution and passion amid the pressure that is needed in March.
UCLA recovered from an 11-point handicap in the interval to win six in overtime, with the Spartans’ attack becoming a disjointed mess.
“Just disappointed,” said Izzo. “I mean, we won the game.”
North Texas ended with an absurd 11-0 run in overtime to beat Purdue. 78-69.
“We had just a series of attacking possessions, defense to start overtime where we didn’t execute,” said Painter.
And Ohio State had a series of offensive opportunities at the end of the second half and in overtime before dropping 75-72.
“I thought we had a lot of missed opportunities, a lot of turns, a lot of empty objects in the attack,” said Buckeye coach Chris Holtmann.
It wasn’t just losses. There is never an excuse for the state of Ohio to lose to a 15 seed or Purdue to a 13 seed. But there is really no one when the Big Ten is being defeated and achieved – the basic principles of the league.
Congratulations to the losers, but that was bad.
And this is a difficult year for the Big Ten to start stumbling. The entire tournament is being held in Indiana, including the first weekend games on the IU and Purdue courts. The last few rounds are all in Indianapolis, the spiritual home of the Big Ten.
And the question now is whether the Big Ten was as good as everyone believed during the regular season and just got in the way – as it usually does at this event.
Or was the strength of the league a mirage, the work of the teams hitting each other and thus creating a perception of excellence that is not rooted in reality?
The next few weeks will tell the story. As Michigan is suffering a critical injury, Illinois has always been the most likely national champion in the league. Illini looked great, albeit against 16-headed Drexel.
And, of course, there were Rutgers to rescue – the Scarlet Knights, in defeating Clemson, served as a good story after decades of futility.
In the middle of an ugly 24 hours into the league, the Big Ten will hold out. Formerly full of confidence, the league now has questions and concerns to answer.
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