Over the past two years, experts and NCAA men's basketball fans alike have used one word to describe the Big Ten conference-down.
Last year this description was characteristic of the conference. Only a trio of teams made it into the NCAA Tournament, with No. 7 seed Michigan State ousted in the first round after an upset by No. 10 seed Nevada. Wisconsin pulled off a come-from-behind victory over Richmond in the first round yet fell to Pittsburgh in round two. Illinois made it the farthest of any Big Ten team but after playing Duke in the Sweet Sixteen, they too were sent packing.
These three relatively early exits were no surprise to many considering the low expectations for the conference as a whole.
The following season, there were new teams and new opponents to face, but the same talk of the conference. Although the ACC was expected to dominate the Big Ten in the challenge, the conference was slated for yet another \down"" year. While the ACC did win the Challenge, the spotlight turned to Illinois after they tabbed a rare victory for the Big Ten over then-No. 1 Wake Forest. The Illini pummeled Wake Forest 91-73 and brought needed attention to the conference. For 31 weeks following the win, the Illini never left the top spot in the country, and enter the Final Four with one loss.
Once March came, there was no question the Illini would be trucking into St. Louis. But then something unbelievable happened: Another Big Ten team decided it was not finished with its season either. Michigan State caught the nation off-guard by rightfully earning its spot in the Final Four this weekend. This was no fluke considering the Spartans knocked off Duke and held on in a double-overtime game against Kentucky. MSU was consistently in the Top 25 rankings during the season but never drew much attention because of its status as a Big Ten team. Through use of the NCAA Tournament MSU proved that they, as well as the Big Ten can compete with the rest of the country.
So the Big Ten is not down anymore, right? With 50 percent of the Final Four from the conference and one lone ACC team, it may be safe to say it is on the way up. Some critics disagree though. Even though Illinois and MSU are still dancing, and Wisconsin almost put a third team in for the Big Ten, some people see the rest of the conference as lacking. Have they forgotten that five teams were in the tournament this year not including ""self-sanctioned"" Ohio State?
This weekend will not only determine the top team in the country but will put the Big Ten back up there as one of the best conferences in the country. In an ideal situation for their conference, Illinois and MSU will make advance to the final game, but regardless, talk of the Big Ten being down can finally be laid to rest.
