Big Ten Country

Must-Win Road Tests

The noon EST time slot on Saturday features three teams facing must-win games if they're going to keep themselves in the hunt for a New Year's Day bowl game. Northwestern, Minnesota and Illinois all need to get W's in road tilts. In the case of the former two teams, they can theoretically afford to lose these games and still bounce back. However, practically speaking, a loss in either case would signal alarm bells about their ability to win out the rest of the way. And Illinois put itself up against a wall when they lost at home to the Gophers two weeks ago, and unless they plan on beating Ohio State a second straight year, they can't afford to be losing in other spots.

Northwestern goes to Indiana. The one thing certain in what's been a chaotic year amongst the eight teams situated between the elites and the basement is that IU's holding down the #11 hole. Terry Hutchens of The Indianapolis Star reports that the Hoosier faithful is none too optimistic about even winning a single Big Ten game. In the meantime, the Wildcats are rolling along at 6-1 and getting good offensive balance between C.J. Bacher at quarterback and Tyrrell Sutton in the backfield. The latter has not had the kind of superstar season I was watching for, but he's still been pretty good and the 'Cats have more then filled in around him.

Minnesota travels to Purdue. This is a test game for the Gophs. They are coming off a bye week and the Boilermakers look ready to unravel after being routed by Northwestern last week. But keep in mind that Rick Brewster's team has been far from dominant. They built their early season record on a soft schedule, struggled to get past Indiana at home and beat Illinois primarily on the strength of turnovers. Whether they can maintain their focus and come up with a big win on the road against a very beatable team will be a key test of how fast they are progressing. Kent Youngblood of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune opines that the offensive line is now starting to stabilize, after injuries and lineup changes. A win here would signal that Brewster has the team back to its Mason-era level where they were a team that might not have been championship-level, but was one no contender wanted to mess with.

Illinois goes north to Wisconsin. The Badger defense is going to have to play vastly better then they have for the past two weeks and realistically need their best game of the season. With the quarterback position in flux and the running game far from its customary dominant self, UW has no hope of winning a scoring race with Juice Williams' offense. If the Illini don't beat themselves, I can't see the Badgers slowing them down sufficiently in this ESPN2 telecast. Herb Gould of The Chicago Sun-Times declares that receiver Aurelious Benn has been even better in his encore performance.

Must-Win On The Undercard

Six teams are facing must-win situations in the Big Ten's undercard games this week. Foremost among them is a noon EST game in Iowa City where the Hawkeyes host the Badgers. Iowa finally showed some life last week in blowing out Indiana, but needing three more wins to make it to a bowl game won't be easy and they are going to have beat quality teams now. Of course the question of whether Wisconsin is such a quality team is now in serious doubt, with UW staring at an 0-3 conference record and a quarterback controversy on its hands. No announcement has been made, but Jeff Potrykus of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that freshmen Dustin Sherer has been practicing with the first team. While I don't think Wisconsin is as bad is they looked last week (mainly because such would be impossible), I think it's naive for Wiscy fans to assume a quick resurrection to the season now that Ohio State and Penn State are passed. This is a struggling team and is traveling to a place that has not been friendly. I suspect Iowa's weaknesses are even more acute, so I'll pick the Badgers in a nail-biter, but this is a game with considerably less juice then might have been expected just a few weeks ago.

Northwestern hosts Purdue in another noon game, this one on ESPN2. The Boilermakers might attribute their 0-2 league record to having drawn the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes to start conference play. Fair enough, but they weren't playing great in non-conference play as it was. The Wildcats were also a shaky 5-0 team that was undressed last week by Michigan State. As the Big Ten season unfolds in a chaotic manner, this might be one of the few places NU can turn to get the wins they need to get to a bowl. As for Purdue, Tom Kubat of The Journal Courier opines that getting the offense untracked is the key to a turnaround.

Illinois goes to Indiana in a prime-time 8 EST kick on the Network. Juice Williams says both teams desperately need the win, and he's right. But all desperation isn't created equal, and the Hoosiers do not have the defense to contain Williams. If the Illini don't beat themselves like last week, they will win easily. A more interesting test will be whether Ron Zook's defense plays well. They have not had a truly outstanding game yet, and Indiana did ring up the points against a comparable team in Michigan State. Illinois is one of several teams we're still waiting to really get a bead on and the defense is key to that.

Illini & Bucks Push Forward

Illinois and Ohio State each have relatively easy home games ahead of them on Saturday and can continue to push forward off the big wins they got this past weekend. The Illini host Minnesota. Juice Williams is directing an offense that is pure dynamite and should be enough to win at home (Noon EST, ESPN). What will be interesting to watch is the play of Ron Zook's defense. As mentioned here yesterday, the Illini defense has not yet played at the level needed to let Juice & Co. carry them to a January 1 game. Minnesota has a nice pitch-and-catch tandem of Adam Weber & Eric Decker that will test this unit. Whether Illinois can keep them under wraps will give us a good progress report. Herb Gould of The Chicago Sun-Times says the Gophs remind him a lot of the 2007 Illini, both in terms of style and their hopes of a big turnaround.

Ohio State plays host to Purdue in a 3:30 EST kickoff on ABC, one of two conference games that will be on national televison in this time slot (Michigan State-Northwestern being the other). The Boilermakers haven't lived up to the expectations that some (such as myself) had for Joe Tiller's swan song. Right now, making any kind of bowl is looking like a tough fight and they won't make any progress towards that goal in Columbus. Ken Gordon of The Columbus Dispatch writes that a Boilermaker is just the cure for an OSU team that's beat up after the win in Wisconsin.

Iowa travels to Indiana (Noon EST, BTN). I've got the Hoosiers penciled in for last place this year, as do most observers after their loss to Minnesota. But we have to be honest--Iowa's done nothing on the field to make you think they are appreciably better then Indiana. Respect for Kirk Ferentz and his ability to get a team going, along with the fact that it was their own mistakes that did them in against Northwestern, preclude burying the Hawks too quickly. But if they are going to save their season it absolutely must start in Bloomington. Andy Hamilton of The Iowa Press-Citizen reports that while the vultures are circling the program, the head man is standing firm.

Michigan hosts Toledo in another noon game on the Network, and this should be a game that finally gives Rich Rodriguez a chance to breath easy. If it turns into a dogfight, the only question will be how loud the booing gets in Ann Arbor.

All Eyes On Florida

The race for the Big Ten's New Year's Day bowl bids in Orlando and Tampa looks as wide-open as it will be all season. At the start of the year, I saw the the trio of Ohio State, Wisconsin and Penn State being head-and-shoulders above the rest of the league. The Big Ten can reasonably assume an at-large bid to the BCS will go to its second-place team (for reasons that will be elaborated on when we get into regular bowl projections in a few weeks), so that allows room for a fourth team to jump into the New Year's party. Wisconsin's 0-2 start has knocked them off the pedestal, and while they remain a contender for either Capital One or Outback, they have fallen back into the pack.

Ohio State and Penn State look headed into the BCS, and that holds true even if the Lions falter in Madison & Columbus (can anyone really picture a 10-2 Lion team not getting a major bowl bid?). On the opposite side of the conference, Indiana looks locked into the #11 spot this year. Minnesota has clearly progressed, but it would be a big stretch to put them in Florida on January 1. Northwestern is sitting on 5-0, but against a soft schedule and their season is going to be defined by a scramble to get the extra wins they need just to make any bowl. Iowa & Purdue haven't played at the level that would justify any confidence in their ability to make a major run.  That leaves four teams in a race for two spots. Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State and Illinois.

Wisconsin can re-assert itself as the leader of this foursome with a win over the Nittany Lions on Saturday night. The Badgers have only played one bad quarter since Big Ten play started (albeit perhaps one of the worst quarters in the history of Michigan Stadium). If their psyche stays in good shape, they could easily win out, or at least get to 5-3 in the conference (9-3 overall). With their good reputation for travel and what would be a strong finish, they'd be an attractive team to a bowl. But the way they lost to Michigan and Ohio State won't be easily overcome. Jeff Potrykus of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that defensive chaos prevented the defense from stopping OSU's winning touchdown.

Illinois has its offense in full gear, an achievment that makes Juice Williams an MVP candidate. With 69 points against Penn State & Michigan, no lead will be safe against the Illini. They have two easy home games against Minnesota and Indiana coming up and can continue the roll they started in Ann Arbor. But they will need to start playing D, or they will fall victim to the kind of unexpected loss that puts a team in the Champs Sports Bowl rather then the Capital One. Herb Gould of The Chicago Sun-Times says the players aren't looking ahead. They have the Gophers on their minds.

Michigan State is taking on the personality of its coach. Mark Dantonio is gritty and hard-nosed, and he's turned the Spartans into the same. The talent base is not yet high enough to avoid losing a few games in league play, but previous MSU teams would have lost in the face of a strong challenge at Indiana and not been able to slug past Iowa. An interesting test case will be when they host Wisconsin (interesting for both teams). Overall, the Spartans have to be consistent enough to outlast a more explosive Illinois team in the race and to finally overcome their problems against Michigan. One team MSU couldn't stop last year was Northwestern. Shannon Shelton of The Detroit Free Press looks at the D's preparation for the rematch on Saturday.

Michigan is only in this group based on reputation, quite frankly. They've played one noteworthy quarter since the season started and still have games with Ohio State & Penn State ahead. If they lose those two, they'd have to sweep the rest to get into the New Year's party. As troublesome as the offense is, given the transition to the spread, I'm waiting to see the defense play a good game against conference competition. They did not play well against Wisconsin, though they made enough key stops to make the comeback possible. And they were blistered by Illinois.

The prediction? I'll say Wisconsin and Michigan State get onto January 1. The Spartans are able to outlast Illinois in a close race for the Outback slot, while the Badgers go Capital One.

Both bowls are Big Ten vs. SEC matchups. If you look at prospective SEC opponents, you can also assume two teams from that league will go to the BCS, and then Cap One and Outback start making their picks. Right now, we can look at LSU, Alabama, Florida and Georgia as being the lead candidates to fill the BCS & New Year's slots. Auburn would be right on the outside looking to break in. Right now, I'd project Florida in the Cap One and Georgia in the Outback.

October 4 Game Summaries

Ohio State 20 Wisconsin 17
The prime-time battle in Camp Randall was everything it was supposed to be. This was a game as nearly even as you can get. Total yardage was a virtual dead heat, and neither team had an appreciable edge running or passing. Third down conversions were about 50 percent each way. And if Wisconsin would have had a few more seconds at the end of the first half to try another play or two after getting to the 3-yard line, they might have a touchdown instead of a field goal and had the margin of victory. The Badgers can also point to two OSU fumbles on the final game-winning drive that bounced safely back into Buckeye hands.

But it's Ohio State who got out of this one with a win because they had more playmakers. Terrell Pryor's final numbers aren't spectacular, but they don't reflect the way his speed changed the game, and the way he came through at every key point when the Bucks had to move the ball. A long touchdown drive just after UW had taken the lead with six minutes left answered any questions as to whether he was ready for high-pressure situations. And Chris Wells rushed for 168 yards on 22 carries and was another game-changing player that the tandem of P.J. Hill and John Clay wasn't for UW. Though the latter two played well, neither has Wells' explosiveness. Thus, Ohio State is on track in the Big Ten and hoping for a rejuvenation of national title hopes, while Wisconsin has to try and recover and see if they can play their way back into the New Year's Day bowl picture. Bob Hunter of The Columbus Dispatch writes about how OSU exorcised some demons in Madison with their winning drive.

Penn State 20 Purdue 6
It wasn't the kind of win that will reverberate through the college football establishment when they read through the scores. But it was exactly the kind of performance Penn State needed. They were efficient on offense, getting strong games from both Darryl Clark and Evan Royster. Most important, their defense stood up and shut down Purdue. The Lions' road tests get stricter the next two weeks in Madison and Columbus. But PSU fans can enter those games knowing they have a complete team. Jeff Rice of The Centre Daily Times says the D knows how to defend the Boilermaker spread.

Illinois 45 Michigan 20
Those of us who said Michigan's win over Wisconsin was no turning point, but the product of a Badger collapse were vindicated in the last three quarters on Saturday. The Illini spotted the Wolverines a 14-3 lead and then just exploded in UM's face. Juice Williams lit up the Michigan defense for 431 all-purpose yards. Even though Steven Threet had his most productive game at quarterback, he wasn't going to keep up with this onslaught.

Between this game and a near-miss at Penn State, Illinois has put itself back on the agenda as a player in the race for the January 1 bowl invites. As for Michigan, there is no excuse for the defensive performance. This is a veteran defense that is not learning a new system. This was the kind of game they were reasonably expected to carry the load in, and it's not happening. They've given up 60 points in two Big Ten games. Rich Rodriguez is right when he says that this is ridiculous.

Michigan State 16 Iowa 13
The Javon Ringer Express was slowed down in East Lansing. 91 yards on 25 carries isn't exactly shabby, but he was upstaged by Iowa's Shon Greene, who rushed for 157. MSU was still able to get out to a 16-3 lead and then hold on. It wasn't a statement win, but it kept the Spartans moving forward. It wasn't a bad loss, but it keeps the Hawkeyes struggling. Andy Hamilton of The Iowa Press-Citizen opines that the Hawks were their own worst enemy.

Minnesota 16 Indiana 7
Neither team had any running game to speak of, and both quarterbacks played a good game. But Gopher QB Adam Weber had Eric Decker to throw to and that was the difference. The Minnesota wide reciever hauled in 13 catches for 190 yards, and his team was able to get three second-half field goals to break up a 7-7 tie at intermission. It's been a long time coming, but more then two years after Glen Mason's firing, Minnesota has again won a conference game. Rachel Blount of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune gives credit to Decker and his toughness.

Notre Dame 28 Stanford 21
After each of the last three Notre Dame wins, I've had the same reaction. Nice win, but nothing to get too excited about. And taken individually, that's true. Michigan, Purdue and Stanford are nothing to get worked up about, especially given they were all in South Bend. But taken collectively, it's a mark of how ND is progressing. No one more so then Jimmy Clausen, who threw for 347 yards in a career-best day. The Irish will have to improve their running game as the schedule gets tougher, but at 4-1, there's again reason for hope under the Dome.

A Rough Opening Week

It was a rough opening week for the Big Ten. The league went 1-3 in four key intersectional tests. Michigan fell to Utah. Michigan State lost at Cal. Illinois came up short against Missouri. Only Northwestern's 30-10 win over Syracuse provided any solace, and I'm probably stretching it by calling the Orange a "key intersectional test." On top of it, the premier Heisman candidate in Chris Wells is now uncertain, down to a foot injury in Ohio State's otherwise easy win.

Any hopes that Michigan would latch on to Rich Rodriguez's system quicker then expected, or that the defense might carry them were quickly dashed by Utah. Ute quarterback Brian Johnson shredded the secondary for 305 yards. And offensively, Michigan got nothing at quarterback from either Nick Sheridan or Steven Threet. The completion percentages weren't bad, but it was mostly rinky-dink stuff. And the running game was appalling, netting only 36 yards. Michael Rosenberg of The Detroit Free Press calls the game a reality check for R-Rod's supporters.

Michigan State's 38-31 loss at Cal wasn't quite as bad. The Spartans do have people to replace and they were on the road against a good program. And they did a lot of good things, particularly in the air. Mark Dell showed he's ready to step in for Devin Thomas by producing an astounding 202 yards receiving. But the defense's inability to stop the run was alarming. Given that running games typically take longer into the season to find their stride, this surely is going to tick off the hard-nosed Mark Dantonio. And quarterback Brian Hoyer adds that he's sick of losing the close ones.

Illinois' 52-42 loss to Missouri was hardly anything to be ashamed of. The Illini tried to rally from a 45-20 deficit in the third quarter, but couldn't quite close the gap. How one reacts to this game will largely depend on how high one was on Ron Zook's team to begin with. Those expecting a repeat of last year and seeing this game as a benchmark will walk away disappointed. Those expecting a completely matured Juice Williams will not be happy with his overthrows and interceptions. But those who expected a rebuilding team saw a team that will be ready to compete and play with most Big Ten teams, and those who were skeptical of Williams saw a quarterback keep his cool and ring up a stunning 451 yards against a defense that brought back ten starters. He still needs a running game to help him out, as the loss of Rashard Mendenhall was apparent last night. But still, not a bad outing against a national championship contender and Herb Gould of The Chicago Sun-Times adds that Illinois now knows where it stands.

Northwestern actually trailed Syracuse by a point into the second half, before reeling off three touchdowns to take the win. Tyrrell Sutton produced 144 yards on the ground and C.J. Bacher was efficient in the passing game. The Wildcats need to sweep their non-conference games to have a good shot at a bowl game. Duke was the only game beyond this that NU was likely to lose. They are halfway home.

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The three conference favorites--Ohio State, Wisconsin & Penn State--all took care of business in their tuneups. The news reports are abuzz with speculation about Wells' foot injury, but as of now all we know is that the MRI was negative. Until we get more information, I'm not going to assume he's going to miss the Southern Cal game in two weeks. Buckeye fans also got a look at Terrelle Pryor, who apparently will be a contributor as a role quarterback in his freshman year. Pryor ran 9 times for 52 yards and hit 4/6 passing. He's a new variable that could shake up the equation in Los Angeles on September 13.

Wisconsin overpowered Akron on the ground. P.J. Hill rushed for 210 yards. Given Hill's history of nagging injuries, it was also good news for UW that they didn't skip a beat when Zack Brown or John Clay stepped in. Penn State cruised past Coastal Carolina 66-10.

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Kellen Lewis set the Indiana career record for touchdown passes in leading his team past Westerk Kentucky. Lewis also got it done with his feet, scampering for a 75-yard touchdown run that got the scoring underway.

Iowa blew out Maine 46-3, but seeing the Black Bears rush for 137 yards is enough to make one raise an eyebrow. Big Ten Country will be watching Iowa's rush defense carefully in the coming games before conference play starts. And Minnesota showed it has problems on pass defense. The secondary was vulnerable all night long against Northern Illinois, coughing up a 24-13 lead before Adam Weber's offense bailed them out with a last-minute drive that pulled out a 31-27 win. Weber's 24/37 for 298 yards and zero picks is a major shot in the arm for those who hoped that the sophomore's second season as a starter would see greater consistency.

Football Preview: Illinois

If Illinois is going to repeat its run to a BCS bowl game this fall it's going to have to start on defense and up front. With the loss of Big Ten MVP Rashard Mendenhall from the backfield and no adequate replacements on the horizon, Ron Zook is going to have find alternate means of getting the pressure off the talented, but erratic, Juice Williams.

Defense can be the way it's done. Illinois brings back three starters on the D-Line and are expecting big things from new senior starter Will Davis on the end. The Illini also have both cornerbacks returning in Vontae Davis and Dere Hicks. A combination of a good pass rush and strong play on the corners can provide enough cover for inexperience at safety and make the D a good overall unit.

And that will be necessary because of the offensive problems mentioned. Illinois brings back some good talent in the passing game. Indeed, Herb Gould of The Chicago Sun-Times reports on how the air attack is being unharnessed for sophomore receiver Arrelious Benn. The speedy wideout is joined by fellow returnees Kyle Hudson and tight end Michael Hoomanawanui. But it all comes back to Williams and consistency behind center. He's never had to be the man in his college career, and Mendenhall's early departure places that burden squarely on him.

The schedule does Illinois no favors. They open with Missouri, and have conference road games at Wisconsin, Penn State and Michigan. And revenge-minded Ohio State comes calling in the penultimate game of the regular season.

Zook has this program moving quickly in the right direction. But to repeat last year's performance requires more of his recruits to step in before they are ready. It's tough to see the Illini winning more then eight games, and 7-5 or 6-6 looks more realistic this time around.

Season Recaps: Illinois & ND Football

Big Ten Country has always seen Notre Dame football as a first couisin to the family and included them in this blog's coverage. Today, they join Illinois in the season recaps.

Illinois
Life at this basketball school was turned upside down over the past year. Basketball took a tumble, while the football team scaled unexpected heights.

When the Illini lost the football opener to Missouri, no one could have guessed they'd just lost to a team who would be within one game of playing for a national title, or that they themselves would be playing Southern Cal in January. But Illinois took advantage of a schedule that was lined up for them, going 2-1 in home games against Wisconsin, Penn State & Michigan. And the one disappointment--a loss to the Wolverines--was more then made up for when Ron Zook took his team to Columbus and knocked off top-ranked Ohio State. When a series of late-season events still got the Buckeyes into the national title game, the Illini performance was persuasive enough to the Rose Bowl committee to get them a bid.

The Rose Bowl itself didn't go as Illinois fans hoped, though few observers were surprised. In the end, they had achieved more then enough just by being there. The program produced the conference MVP in running back Rashard Mendenhall, and with Zook recruiting very well, it looks like the good times might be just starting in Champaign.

Three years ago, Bruce Weber's basketball team came within a bucket of a perfect regular season and played for the national championship. Those days seemed light years ago, as Illinois struggled through a 14-18 regular season and won just five conference games. The lone highlight of the regular season was an 84-60 road pounding of Minnesota at a time the Gophers still harbored outside NCAA aspirations. As highlights go, that's not much.

But March was kinder to Weber. Illinois found their footing in the conference tournament and won three games, including triumphs over Indiana and Purdue. They lost to Wisconsin in the final and the overall record wasn't good enough to get them a postseason invite, but Illini fans can hope the fighting spirit their team showed will carry over into next year.

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Unless you've been hidden in a cave somewhere, you've surely heard that the past football season won't go down in the annals of Notre Dame football history. And with Illinois rising, the Fighting Irish have a potential threat for the loyalties of Chicago. Well, that might be an exaggeration. ND's chances of losing the loyalty of Chicago are on a par with the Democrats' chances of losing Massachusetts. But the Irish started the year 0-5, finished it 3-9 and were embarrassed several times along the way. They lost to every Big Ten team they played.

On the plus side, they beat two Pac-10 teams on the road. One of them was Stanford--the same Cardinal who stunned USC, and Notre Dame also beat UCLA. But Notre Dame Nation is desperately hoping that Charlie Weis' recruiting classes are as good as advertised. Now entering his fourth season, Weis expended a lot of the goodwill his back-to-back BCS runs of 2005-06 built up with last autumn's wipeout.

Purdue Stands The Test

It was showdown week in the Big Ten and Purdue once again stood the test. The Boilermakers jumped out to a big lead against Michigan State and then held off the surging Spartans down the stretch for a 60-54 triumph in front of a delighted Mackey crowd.

Purdue did an outstanding job taking away Tom Izzo's key scorers. While Kalin Lucas had a big night off the Spartan bench, Drew Neitzel was nowhere to be found. Raymar Morgan and Goran Suton were barely more noticeable. Meanwhile, Robbie Hummell was continuing his stretch drive hot streak, pouring in 24 points. And just like at Wisconsin, the Boilers won the turnover battle, forcing 17 MSU miscues. Jeff Washburn of Boiler Station proclaims that the Boiler Express rolls on.

Overall, it was a strange week in the Big Ten. While Purdue defended their home floor, the home teams generally had about as good a midweek as Kelvin Sampson, losing the other four games. And no home loss was more consequential then the one suffered by Sampson's team against Wisconsin. The Badgers got a banked-in trey from Brian Butch to steal a 68-66 win in Assembly Hall.

While Butch's shot got the headlines, the UW big man did not have a good night, getting only four rebounds. Trevon Hughes had his second straight poor game. The lynchpin of the Badger offense has scored just 12 points total in two games against Purdue & Indiana, something that has to give Bo Ryan serious cause for concern as his team tries to make a championship push. On Wednesday they were bailed out by Jason Bohannon who knocked in 18 off the bench.

Indiana got its usual good games from Eric Gordon and D.J. White, though with "only" eight rebounds, White was kept reasonably in check on the glass. Armon Bassett got 12, but beyond that no one contributed. With the loss, IU now trails Purdue by a game in the loss column.

Minnesota's hopes for an NCAA bid took a devastating hit with an 84-60 home loss to previously reeling Illinois. The Illini shot 59 percent from the floor and put four players in double figures. While the inconsistency of Brian Randle and Shawn Pruitt has been the primary cause of the disappointing season, it's worth noting that neither player had much of a resurgence in Wililams Arena. Certainly not Randle, who was as irrelevant in this game as he has been much of the conference schedule. The hero was Trent Meacham, who led the way with 19 points.

As for the Gophers, while they are still 15-8, this is the type of game that knocks a team off the bubble. Minnesota's RPI is very weak as it is (103) and a 24-point loss at home to a bad team in mid-February is going to stick out like a sore thumb. Myron Medcalf of The Minneapolis Star-Tribune writes that freshman guards have played a big role in Tubby's developing turnaround. But this week, they and the rest of the team were all too green.

Rounding out the midweek games, Ohio State rolled past Northwestern in Evanston, overcoming eighteen turnovers. And Michigan surprised Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye behind 15 points from Manny Harris.

Gordon & IU Survive Champaign

It was, as Bob Kravitz of The Indianapolis Star writes, Eric Gordon's toughest road game. The freshman made the visit into Illinois last night, the school he spurned for Indiana after making a verbal committment to the Illini and spawning a sea of hatred and recriminations between the border rivals.

Illinois gave Indiana everything they could handle before succumbing in double-overtime. Gordon did not play well. His 19 points led the Hoosiers, but it came on 3-of-13 shooting from the field. But he got to the stripe and was successful when he was there, hitting 10-of-12 from the line. And that was the microcosm of the game. It was a night when Gordon struggled from the field, D.J. White was held in single digits for rebounds and Illinois played Indiana evenly in every phase of the game but one. At the charity stripe, the Illini shot just 8-17, while the Hoosiers racked up 22 points from the line. Therein lay the difference between IU being tied for first and being a game out.

The Illinois season is beginning to smack of the one Notre Dame just endured on the gridiron. No one really expected the Illini to be a serious contender, everyone knew they had to do a little rebuilding, but no one could have expected them to be this inept. With only two conference wins, it's hard to believe this program is just three seasons removed from the national title game.

What has to make it even harder for Bruce Weber and the fans is that it really doesn't have to be this way. If Brian Randle and Shawn Pruitt played consistently up to their potential, the Illini would be in the mix for an NCAA bid. But last night illustrates the problem. Illinois gets 31 points from Demetri McCarney, but Randle is completely AWOL, while Pruitt has a so-so 13 points & seven rebounds. I'm not sure what the problem is, and I certainly don't mean to imply it's for lack of effort (I lack sufficient inside knowledge of the Illini program to make such a claim), but just looking at hard numbers, you have to think both players can give much more then they have.

Jay Mariotti of The Chicago Sun-Times declares that the treatment of Gordon--which included a hard chest bump by Chester Frazier in the pregame intros was "sad" and "classless." Mariotti's right, but what's even more sad and classless is that this pious lecture comes from the same guy who was snidely mocking Ron Zook after the Rose Bowl, a game which every reasonable person acknowledged Illinois had done well just to be in. If Mariotti is finally coming around to the virtues of sportsmanship and decency in competiton, Big Ten Country applauds him. But his newfound devotion would be more impressive if he applied it to himself and not just everyone else.

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Even with the win, Indiana isn't playing well right now. Having struggled in losses to UConn and Wisconsin and then last night's narrow escape (with a win over Northwestern mixed in), the Hoosiers are ripe to be picked. And the next team to get a crack at them will be Ohio State (Sunday, 1EST on CBS). The Buckeyes beat Michigan behind 15 points and 12 rebounds from Othello Hunter. If Thad Matta can get Hunter and fellow giant Kosta Koufus to really click in tandem the Bucks are going to be a dangerous team down the stretch. With three league losses they're not likely to do a three-peat conference title unless they win out, but they have the ability to become that team no contender wants to play.

Minnesota blew out Northwestern 92-72 in Evanston. It was a contrast between one team that was balanced and the other that was top-heavy. The Gophers had six players hit double figures, the highest being Spencer Tollackson's 19. NU had three players produced sixty of their points, all with 19 or more. The balanced team won.

And who would have guessed that the game of the year to date would be Purdue-Wisconsin on Saturday night in Madison? Both teams won this week to set up their 9 EST showdown. The Badgers got a tough fight from Iowa, and watched as Trevon Hughes did nothing, Brian Butch got only two rebounds and their usually decisive edge at the free-throw line became neglible. But Marcus Landry bailed UW out with 16 points and they escaped with a six-point win. Mark Stewart of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that Landry has elevated the team's play.

Purdue kept their end of the bargain by beating Penn State. The Boilermakers had nine steals and forced eighteen turnovers to key the win. Robbie Hummel led the way with 17 points, E'Twaun Moore chipped in 16 and Marcus Green made a big contribution off the bench with 14 points and seven rebounds. Green is that rarity--a junior contributor on a team of underclassmen. Matt Painter's team is easily the story of the year in this conference so far and is set for a major battle on Saturday night. However, freshman forward Scott Martin's status for the game is in doubt.