Sean Merriman, BTN.com web editor, June 4, 2015

The NBA Finals is set to begin tonight as the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors will battle in what has become one of the most-anticipated matchups in recent history.

[ MORE: Ex-Michigan State star Draymond Green opens NBA Finals tonight ]

This got me thinking about the best Big Ten tournament championship games. The conference title game was introduced in 1998, and has featured several outstanding matchups.

A total of six different schools have won the tournament, led by Michigan State and Ohio State, both of which hold four titles.

Here are my top 5 Big Ten tourney title games:

1. 2001: Iowa 63, Indiana 61 – The sixth-seeded Hawkeyes became the first team to rattle off four wins in four days on their way to becoming the lowest-seeded team to win the Big Ten tourney. Brody Boyd hit 8-of-12 shots for a team-high 22 points to spoil Kirk Haston's 24-point, 12-rebound effort.

2. 2015: Wisconsin 80, Michigan State 69 (OT) – The only Big Ten tournament championship game to go to overtime, this one was closer than the final score indicates. The Badgers came back from an 11-point deficit late in the second half and survived a last-second Branden Dawson shot attempt at the buzzer to force overtime, where they outscored Michigan State, 11-0. Nigel Hayes scored a game-high 25 points to lead Wisconsin to its third tourney crown.

3. 2012: Michigan State 68, Ohio State 64 – In a game that featured Jared Sullinger and 2012 Big Ten Player of the Year Draymond Green, Valparaiso transfer Brandon Wood was the biggest star, scoring a season-high 21 points to help Michigan State claim a close game that featured 16 lead changes.

4. 2009: Purdue 65, Ohio State 61 – This contest is probably refereed to as the "E'Twuan Moore Game" by several Purdue fans. Moore hit four 3-pointers and scored 14 of his team-high 17 points in the second half to lead the Boilermakers to their first and only Big Ten tournament championship. Robbie Hummel was named the tournament MVP after totaling 48 points and 28 rebounds in three games.

5. 2006: Iowa 67, Ohio State 60 – Ohio State led for most of this game, but Iowa's Jeff Horner scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half, including nine in the final eight minutes, to lead a furious Iowa comeback. The Hawkeyes went on to earn the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament.