B1G Weekend Preview

Let’s look ahead to a weekend without Michigan basketball and another birthday for yours truly.  I think my wife will be happy that my present will involve something besides watching another basketball game.  Anyways, it is another big weekend around the conference as it’s the third weekend in a row with a game involving two top 20 teams.  Nine conference teams are in action between Saturday and Sunday, so let’s quickly go through each one.

Nebraska @ Penn State Saturday 1:00pm

This is not football.  This is the battle of the cellar dweller.  If Nebraska wins on the road then Penn State will be destined for the bottom spot for weeks to come.  I think the Cornhusker defense will be able to slow down the game enough for Big Red to pull out the road win.

West Virginia @ Purdue Saturday 2:00pm

A few years ago these two met in an epic game on New Year’s Day, fast forward to current times and this has the all of the makings for a pillow fight.  West Virginia is improving, but they lack offensive play makers and really struggle to score the ball.  The thing going for the Mountaineers though, is that Purdue is a mirror image of them.  This will likely be a game with 50 or so possessions and the first team to 55 will likely win. Could be of interest to watch, since the Boilers are Michigan’s next opponent.

Ohio State @ Michigan State Saturday 6:00pm

I should look through my football previews since this one will likely have more take downs than an Illinois vs Indiana game on the gridiron.  These two teams are the definition of “old-school” B1G teams.  Old school here meaning the 2000s.  Basketball in the conference has evolved, but don’t tell the two cavemen on the sidelines that.  The Spartans have really struggled with turnovers so far this season, but they have been improved in the B1G schedule so far.  This could be because of their relatively easy schedule of bottom defensive teams or because the freshman are beginning to improve.  I believe it’s the former.  Aaron Craft and Shannon Scott will have a field day in East Lansing, and Ohio State will have the best player on the floor in DeShaun Thomas.  It will be interesting to see how Dawson matches up with the conference’s leading scorer.  If he is able to slow him down, it could mean trouble down the road for GRIII.  However, Ohio State has shown that it is a completely different team on the road, and Michigan State’s pressure defense could really limit the Buckeye’s scoring ability.  This one should be close, and the winner will likely struggle to break 60.

Wisconsin @ Iowa Saturday 8:00pm

Again, if Iowa wants to be a bubble team on Selection Sunday this game tomorrow against the Badgers is a must win.  Yes, the Hawkeyes have played the toughest conference schedule so far, but at some point they are going to need to string together wins.  Wisconsin is the hottest team right now after the best win of any B1G team (at Indiana).  Bo Ryan will be one of the best coaches in America if he can get this Badger to finish in the top 4 of the conference this year.

Indiana @ Northwestern Sunday 1:00pm

The Hoosiers will look to bounce back after their disappointing loss on Tuesday.  It seems that both Michigan and Indiana fans have similar concerns about their team.  Can they win games while playing at an opponent’s tempo,  against teams that want to slow down the pace of play to a crawl, or extremely physical teams.  Northwestern is coming off a surprising blow out win against in-state rival, Illinois.  I would guess Indiana will be a little angry in this one, and 100 points might be realistic.