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Jan. 24—The top teams remain the same in the Big Ten. The most likely conference champions haven’t changed. But that doesn’t mean Illinois beat writer
Scott Richey
didn’t have to shuffle the vast middle of the conference in his most recent power poll:
1. Michigan State (16-2, 7-0 Big Ten)The Spartans haven’t had an All-American since Cassius Winston in 2019 and 2020, and this year’s team isn’t going to snap that streak. There’s no real star on the Michigan State roster, but the full ensemble of talent has been good enough to secure 11 straight wins (and counting).
2. Michigan (14-4, 6-1)
Vlad Goldin might have swiped some eventual All-Big Ten votes from fellow Michigan 7-footer Danny Wolf in the last two weeks. The Florida Atlantic transfer’s slow start has been fully countered by a pair of 30-point games in wins against UCLA and Northwestern.
3. Illinois (13-6, 5-4)
Tom Izzo said it twice — once before Michigan State played Illinois and again after the Spartans’ win — that Illinois was the best team in the conference. If the dean of Big Ten coaches says so, it has to be true. But it certainly didn’t look that way on Thursday night against Maryland.
4. Purdue (15-5, 7-2)
Team after team — 26 of them, in fact — showed up at Mackey Arena in the last 23 months only to get handed a loss from the Boilermakers. That 26-game home winning streak ending Tuesday to Ohio State might be disappointing, but doesn’t drop Purdue from the top tier.
5. Oregon (16-3, 5-3)
The Ducks played their way into the top 10 nationally with Jackson Shelstad not exactly living up to his preseason All-Big Ten expectations. That’s changed the last 21/2 weeks, with the sophomore guard averaging 18 points, 3.6 rebounds and three assists in his last five games.
6. UCLA (13-6, 4-4)
The Bruins are in a stretch where it plays six of seven games in Los Angeles and only has to make a quick trip (comparatively) to Seattle. UCLA started that run with wins against Iowa and Wisconsin.
7. Wisconsin (15-4, 5-3)
John Tonje…
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Author : The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.
Publish date : 2025-01-24 15:49:00
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