Big Ten Bracketology

What follows is my anticipated breakdown of the BT Tournament just underway. Look for updates after each day of games in Chicago as I'll be on hand as the undermanned Badgers attempt to run the table and land a #1 seed in the Big Dance.

Game 1: Michigan vs. Minnesota: Miserable season ends for the Goofs, with #1 OSU as the prize for the Victors.

Game 2: MSU vs. NW: When you run the Princeton offense and win, it's acceptable to watch paint dry, but when you lose year in-year out. Sparty prepares for a rubber match with Bucky.

Game 3: UI vs. Penn St.: Chief-less Illini dispatch of the Nittany Lions and prepare for the a stellar Friday evening match-up with IU.

Game 4: OSU vs. Michigan: OSU in a close game. Brutus is ripe for an upset, but not by Tommy Amaker's team. Dance drought continues in Ann Arbor, a decade and counting...

Game 5: Purdue vs. Iowa: Landry and Teague rise to the occasion, the latter clamping down on Haluska, resulting in another miserable performance from the field. Purdue has a date to the Dance, and Iowa is Not Invited to the Tournament (NIT).

Game 6: Bucky vs. MSU: Another game decided in the final possession. This time JBo hits the big shot to advance. Sparty's on the bubble.

Game 7: IU vs. UI: The Orange Crush responds to a favorable crowd and knocks the Hoosier Daddies down to an #8 seed in the Dance.

Game 8: OSU vs. Purdue: Here's where the upset occurs. Painter's boys finish off the upset they should have achieved in Columbus.

Game 9: Bucky vs. UI: Tucker and fresh legs place UW in the title game with a top regional seed on the line.

Game 10: Bucky vs. Purdue: Low-scoring game as expected for third game in as many days. Bucky finds separation down the stretch as Landry and Chappel step up as Purdue tries to eliminate Tucker. Over in time for the selection show. I hope the committee tunes in.

Round Three?

The bracket has been released for the 2007 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament. Wisconsin, as the number 2 seed, will play the winner of the Michigan State/Northwestern game on Thursday. Barring a Wildcat upset, it looks like MSU and Wisconsin are headed for a third meeting in three weeks.

Out of the cluster of Big Ten teams from number 4 to 8 in the standings, Michigan State is the last team Badger fans want to see on Friday. Drew Neitzel's hot shooting and Michigan State's brusing style will pose a tough challenge to the second seeded Badgers.

However, with great risk comes great reward. A win over Michigan State and Indiana/Illinois/Penn State on Saturday will solidify Wisconsin's resume and make the Badgers no worse than a number 2 seed in the NCAAs.

Finally, I must correct myself about comments I made to fellow fans about Brian Butch's injury and my perceived lack of impact it would have. I didn't believe that Brian's offensive production would be missed and that other frontcourt players would step up and fill the void. Saturday confirmed that I was wrong. Chappel, Steisma, Landry and Krabbenhoff combined to shoot 4-9, which is a good percentage, but none of the bigs stretched the MSU defense and allowed MSU to guard the paint aggressively and double and triple team Tucker when he received the ball in the post. As a result, Wisconsin scored only 52 points in 57 possessions, well below the Badgers' average of 1.17 points per possession.

Bo Ryan has five days to prepare for Friday's game and I am hopeful the Badgers will come out on top on Friday.