Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, February 9, 2016

Big game tonight at Purdue with Michigan State in town. Graham Couch has an interesting take. If you recall, Boiler star big man Caleb Swanigan originally committed to Michigan State ? but flipped to Purdue. Had he landed in East Lansing, it may have disrupted the development of Matt Costello and Deyonta Davis. You see ? everything happens for a reason.

***

Michigan is slumbering. And, a big reason for that is shooting woes personified by the struggles of Duncan Robinson.

Michigan is shooting 29.6 percent (21-71) from beyond the arc over the last three games. The stretch has produced a win over Penn State and back-to-back blowouts at the hands of Indiana and Michigan State. Those shooting woes made it nearly impossible for the Wolverines to capitalize on having two top-25 teams come to Crisler Center. Will NCAA hopes slip away? This is a critical juncture for Michigan.

***

Winning basketball games is Iowa?s business. And business is good.

There is a deadly efficiency to how this veteran squad operates. It doesn?t get rattled. It knows it strengths and weakness. It won?t be sidetracked or distracted each time it hits the floor. The Hawkeyes could have sleep walked through the game at Illinois on Sunday. Instead, Iowa took care of-you guessed it-business. Now comes a big finish to the season. Can this team be derailed down the stretch?

***

Good roundtable discussion on InsideNU.com: How important would an NIT bid be to Northwestern?

With seven games remaining in its regular season, Northwestern sits on the fringes of the NIT bubble. After a five-game losing streak that required a matchup with woebegone Minnesota to finally come to an end, the Wildcats are on the outside looking in, and a postseason berth, for a third straight year, looks somewhat unlikely. But would missing out on the postseason be a major negative for Chris Collins and the Wildcats? I say ?no.? But next year, a postseason move must be made.

***

It was a scary deal for Nebraska?s Shavon Shields over the weekend when he took a hard fall vs. Rutgers. The good news: He is OK and in concussion protocol.

Nebraska athletic trainer R.J. Pietig said Shields was unconscious for about a minute, but was alert, awake and had feeling in his hands and feet by the time he left the court. Pietig said Shields was taken to the emergency room for further testing.

?It is as significant an event as I?ve been through during a game,? Nebraska coach Tim Miles said. ?It?s scary stuff.?

***

Have you noticed that Tom Izzo?s Spartans are clicking again? It?s time to be afraid. The calendar says ?February,? and MSU is improving. What will Izzo?s crew look like in March? I wouldn?t be shocked if the Spartans end up winning the Big Ten tourney.

***

Sounds like Penn State has some grand plans for Beaver Stadium. And I like it.

Pennlive.com says that A.D. Sandy Barbour envisions wider use of the athletic department??s biggest revenue-generator, which she said requires sweeping upgrades to the 107,000-seat venue.

?I think that?s what we?re taking a look at as administrators, the business aspect of what we do - using Beaver Stadium for more than seven Saturdays,? Barbour told The Associated Press. ?That makes perfectly good sense to me.?

The NHL has inquired about playing at Beaver Stadium, Barbour confirmed. The athletic department also would like to host summer concerts, FIFA events and bring Pennsylvania?s high school football championships to the stadium.

***

An area to watch at Ohio State this spring: The offensive line.

The unit has a new coach in Greg Studrawa, who must find replacements for tackles Taylor Decker and Chase Farris and guard Jacoby Boren. This unit needs to develop.

***

OK, this is interesting: NJ.com has the ranking of the first recruiting class for each Big Ten coach.

Really, to me, it?s more about what school you are recruiting for more so than a reflection on a coach. I mean, Ohio State is always gonna have a highly ranked class ? no matter the coach. Still, this is interesting.

***

Email Tom Dienhart using the form below.

And if you want to leave a comment on this post, use the box below. All comments need to be approved by a moderator.