At the beginning of the season, the top of the Big Ten was to be dominated by the three \I"" teams'Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. However, times have changed and parity has set in.
Or has it?
This question was posed to many of the coaching fraternity within the Big Ten during Monday's teleconference.
Some coaches, such as Illinois' Bill Self, have somewhat enjoyed the conference season.
""This has been a strange year in our league in that it's been kind of wacky, which I don't think is all bad,"" Self said.
Others, such as Iowa Head Coach Steve Alford, attribute the balance to a lack of a dominant team that has a national reputation.
""The parity in the league is outstanding,"" Alford said. ""I think last year when you had Illinois and Michigan State, I think those were two dominant teams and there was another tier. At least in my three years, I think this is the most parity that I've seen in the league this year.""
Ohio State Head Coach Jim O'Brien agreed with Alford's assessment about the conference's lack of a national title contender.
""The one thing that is different from the recent past is that we have not had a marquee team or two that has carried the banner for us,"" O'Brien said.
With the lack of a banner team due to early season losses comes a sense of failure that spreads throughout the conference.
It is especially true for the Big Ten this season, as many pundits have written stories about the perceived ebb the conference is in compared to its main rivals, the Atlantic Coast Conference and Big 12.
""I think once you start losing some games early, especially the big hitters'which are Illinois and Iowa'then you get a bad rap,"" Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo said. ""Perception at the beginning seems to matter more at this point [of the season].""
Despite the image portrayed by analysts, O'Brien believes the Big Ten is one of the deepest conferences in the country and will receive multiple bids for the NCAA Tournament.
""I think that we could get six in,"" O'Brien said. ""If you look up and down the country, for example the Big 12, maybe six. Everybody's talking about the ACC being the best league in the country and depending on what happens to Virginia, they may only get four teams in the Tournament.""
Indiana Head Coach Mike Davis agreed.
""I think we should get six in,"" Davis said. ""Once people say something, everyone starts repeating it without actually evaluating and investigating the whole deal.\
