Big Ten Weekly Men’s Basketball Central – January 27-February 2

Big Ten Weekly Men’s Basketball Central – January 27-February 2

Big Ten. Big News.

• Just shy of the midway point of the conference schedule, Nebraska remains the only unbeaten team at 9-0, the program’s best conference start since joining the Big Ten in 2011. Illinois, Michigan, and Michigan State sit one game back at 8-1. Several of these teams will play each other in a trio of top-10 matchups. Tonight, No. 5 Nebraska will visit No. 3 Michigan (7 p.m./Peacock). On Friday night, No. 7 Michigan State will host No. 3 Michigan (8 p.m./FOX) before the Huskers welcome No. 9 Illinois to Lincoln on Friday (4 p.m./FS1).
• Coming into Tuesday’s contests, Nebraska (20-0) is one of only three remaining unbeaten teams in the nation, joining Miami (Ohio) (20-0) and Arizona (21-0). It marks the best start for the Cornhuskers in program history. They’ve also won their last 24 games in a row dating back to last season, which is a new school record, as well as the longest active mark of any team in the nation. Nebraska’s 20-0 start marks just the third time in the last 30 years a Big Ten team has started 20-0 and the first since Ohio State opened the 2010-11 season with 24 straight wins.
• Entering Tuesday’s games, Big Ten teams have combined to win 38 Quad 1 games, with 11 teams scoring at least one Quad 1 win. The Big Ten is the only conference with five teams with at least five Quad 1 wins and five with at least 10 combined Quad 1 and 2 victories. Nebraska (6-0) and Michigan (5-0) are two of just three teams nationally to go at least 5-0 against Quad 1 opposition. Illinois, Michigan State, and Purdue join the Huskers and Wolverines with at least five Quad 1 wins each, a feat accomplished by just 10 teams thus far this season.
• Through games on Monday, Jan. 19, the Big Ten boasts 13 teams in the top 75 spots in the NET Rankings, including five in the top 10 and 10 in the top 50. Michigan leads the Big Ten contingent at No. 3, followed by No. 5 Nebraska, No. 6 Illinois, No. 9 Michigan State, No. 10 Purdue, and No. 21 Iowa. Indiana, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and UCLA also claimed spots in the top 50. No other conference in the country has more teams in the top 10 (Big 12 – 2), top 25 (Big 12 – 6), or top 75 (SEC – 13).
• The Big Ten currently ranks second in today’s Kenpom conference rankings (+18.11), behind only the SEC (+19.40). Thirteen of the Big Ten’s 18 teams are ranked in the top 75 of the Kenpom rankings after Mondays’ games, including six in the top 25 and 12 in the top 50. Michigan leads the conference at No. 2, followed by No. 4 Michigan State, No. 5 Illinois, No. 8 Purdue, No. 12 Nebraska, and No. 21 Iowa. No other conference has more teams in the top 10 (Big 12 – 3), top 25 (Big 12, SEC – 6), or top 50 (SEC – 11).
• Seven different Big Ten teams were ranked or received votes in this week’s AP and USA Today Coaches Top 25 polls released on Monday, Jan. 26, including five ranked in the top 12. Michigan led the way at No. 3 on the AP list, followed by No. 5 Nebraska, No. 7 Michigan State, No. 9 Illinois, and No. 12 Purdue. The Wolverines stayed No. 2 in Coaches poll, while Nebraska sits at No. 5, followed by No. 8 Michigan State, No. 10 Illinois, No. 12 Nebraska, and No. 25 Iowa. Wisconsin also received votes in the AP poll.
• On Monday, the Big Ten announced its list of men’s basketball weekly award winners. Illinois’ Keaton Wagler and Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. were named Co-Players of the Week. Wagler, who also claimed his fourth Freshman of the Week accolade, averaged 29.5 points, 6.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds in a pair of wins for the Illini. Wagler scored 46 points on 13-17 shooting, including 9-11 from three-point range and 11-13 from the free throw line, in an 88-82 win at Purdue. The freshman from Shawnee, Kansas posted the second-highest scoring performance in Illinois history, set the Illinois freshman single-game scoring record, and broke the program mark with nine three-pointers. His output marked the most points scored by a Big Ten player against an AP top five team and the most in a road win over a top-10 opponent in AP poll history.
• Fears earned his first Big Ten Player of the Week award after averaging 15.5 points and 11.0 assists as the Spartans claimed a pair of wins. The redshirt sophomore guard paired 17 points and a career-best 17 assists in a 91-48 win over Maryland, second most assists in program history. He also added 14 points and five dimes in Michigan State’s 68-52 victory at Oregon.
• With the completion of the traditional nonconference schedule, the Big Ten owns a nonconference record of 157-39, the second-best win percentage (.801) of any conference, behind only the Big 12 (.806). Big Ten teams have defended home court to the tune of an 118-4 (.967) record in non-conference home games, the highest non-conference home winning percentage of any D-I conference. Big Ten teams have just two nonconference games remaining on the schedule, both in February.
• Milestone Watch… Congratulations to Minnesota’s Langston Reynolds, Purdue’s Oscar Cluff, and Ohio State’s Christoph Tilly, each of whom recently scored their 1,000th career point… Iowa’s Bennett Stirtz is 34 points from becoming the third active player in Div. I with 2,000 career points… Purdue head coach Matt Painter is four shy of 250 conference victories.
• The 29th annual TIAA Big Ten Tournament will be played at the United Center in Chicago, March 10th – 15th, 2026. For the first time, all 18 Big Ten teams will compete for the tournament title. The tournament will open with a pair of games on Tuesday, March 10 and culminate with championship on Sunday March 15.