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Big Ten competition as good
as any in college basketball
Sarah Mitchell
- Staff Reporter
In a league of parity, Illinois (15-4, 5-1 Big Ten) is the early front-runner of Big Ten men's basketball standings. Under first-year coach Bill Self, Illinois barely sits ahead of Michigan State (15-1, 4-1).
"I always thought the Big Ten was the best or one of the two or three best leagues in America, but I think after you get on the inside you realize just how tough it is," Self said. "It is different, different than any league I've been in. I do think it's a league that's very hard to win. It's a better league than what I even envisioned."
Purdue (12-5, 4-2) holds the third spot while Iowa (14-4, 3-2) and Minnesota (15-3, 3-2) are tied for fourth.
So far, the Gophers are the surprise team of the Big Ten. A shot at postseason play might be the leading cause behind Minnesota's success.
"I think it's the driving force as far as this team having life," Gophers coach Dan Monson said. "I think the day (the NCAA report allowing the Gophers to be eligible for postseason play this year) came out, I told them we have life now. But it doesn't do any good if you don't live that life and that's something our team has been very motivated to do."
In the polls
Four Big Ten teams are ranked among the country's top 25. No. 3 Michigan State is the highest ranked conference team. Illinois is not far behind, sitting at No. 7, while Wisconsin is ranked 15th and Iowa 21st.
MSU home win streak hits 40
With its 71-56 home defeat of Ohio State on Sunday, Michigan State extending the nation's longest home winning streak to 40 games.
Equally impressive, only five of the last 40 teams to enter the Breslin Center have lost by less than 10 points. While the Buckeyes (12-6, 3-3) were defeated by more than 10, they did cause problems for the Spartans.
Michigan State did grab the lead for good midway through the first half, but were unable to dominate Ohio State in typical Spartan fashion.
"We're coming off a tough win at home," Spartans coach Tom Izzo said. "We were able to steal a win at home.
"I've been in the league long enough where they say it's hard to win on the road, but it's hard to win at home, too, so I guess that speaks well for the league."
The Spartans now have to test their road skills. Michigan State is scheduled to play five of its next six games on the road. The team begins a three-game road trip this week, when it travels to Northwestern on Wednesday before a game at Ohio State on Saturday.
Sarah Mitchell covers men's basketball and welcomes comments at smitchell@daily.umn.edu.
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