@BTNStatsGuys: Big Ten Tourney seed scenarios entering into the weekend

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Purdue?s win over Illinois and Wisconsin?s win over Northwestern last night means that we have four seeds locked in as well as our 1st locked in matchup. Wisconsin clinched the  No. 9 seed and will play No. 8 Maryland at Noon on Thursday. Northwestern has clinched the No, 10 seed while Minnesota has clinched the No. 11 seed.

Ohio State needs to win at Indiana tonight to keep their hopes alive of sharing the Big Ten title. If they lose, they will be out of the race for the #1 seed as well and could fall to the No. 3 seed if Purdue wins on Sunday. If they win, they?ll be no worse than the No. 2 seed and could be the top seed if Michigan State loses at Wisconsin Sunday. As for Indiana, they can clinch the No. 6 seed with a win.

If the Hoosiers lose, they will either be No. 7 if Penn State wins at Nebraska on Sunday or stay at No. 6 if Penn State loses. As for the bottom, Illinois, Rutgers and Iowa are battling it out for seeds Nos. 12-14.

I?ve broken it into four tiers. The first tier is the 3 teams fighting for the Big Ten Title. The second tier is teams Nos. 4-7, which have all clinched at least a single bye. The Huskers and Wolverines are the only teams that can clinch a double bye and both will finish in the Top 5 in the standings.

The third tier is teams Nos. 8-10 which are all locked in. The final tier is the bottom four teams that are locked into playing on Wednesday. Minnesota is locked in at No. 11 and we?ll know more about the other three since Rutgers plays Illinois this weekend. The teams are listed by their current place in the Big Ten Standings (tiebreakers included).

1. Michigan State (15-2)

• Already clinched double bye
• Clinches No. 1 seed with win at Wisconsin OR Ohio State loss at Indiana
• Clinches No. 2 seed with loss at Wisconsin + Ohio State win at Indiana
• Seed range: 1 or 2

2. Ohio State (14-3)

• Already clinched double bye
• Clinches No. 1 seed with win at Indiana + Michigan State loss at Wisconsin
• Clinches No. 2 seed with win at Indiana + Michigan State win at Wisconsin OR with a loss + Purdue loss vs Minnesota
• Clinches No. 3 seed with loss at Indiana + Purdue win vs Minnesota
• Seed range: 1-3

3. Purdue (14-3)

• Already clinched double bye
• Can?t clinch No. 1 seed but can clinch share of Big Ten Title with win vs Minnesota and a Michigan State loss at Wisconsin
• Clinches No. 2 seed with win vs Minnesota + Ohio State loss at Indiana
• Clinches No. 3 seed with a loss OR Ohio State win at Indiana
• Seed range: 2 or 3

***

4. Nebraska (12-5)

• Clinches No. 4 seed and double bye with win vs Penn State OR a Michigan loss at Maryland
• Clinches No. 5 seed with loss vs Penn State + Michigan win at Maryland
• Seed range: 4 or 5

5. Michigan (12-5)

• Clinches No. 4 seed and double bye with win at Maryland + Nebraska loss vs Penn State
• Clinches No. 5 seed with loss at Maryland OR Nebraska win vs Penn State
• Seed range: 4 or 5

6. Indiana (9-8)

• Clinches No. 6 seed with win vs Ohio State OR Penn State loss at Nebraska
• Clinches No. 7 seed with loss vs Ohio State + Penn State win at Nebraska
• Seed range: 6 or 7

7. Penn State (9-8)

• Clinches No. 6 seed with win at Nebraska + Indiana loss vs Ohio State
• Clinches No. 7 seed with loss at Nebraska OR Indiana win vs Ohio State
• Seed range: 6 or 7

***

8. Maryland (8-9)

• Clinched No. 8 seed. Will open Thursday at Noon against #9 Wisconsin

9. Wisconsin (7-10)

• Clinched No. 9 seed. Will open Thursday at Noon against #8 Maryland

10. Northwestern (6-11)

• Clinched No. 10 seed. Will open Thursday at 6:30 PM ET against #7 seed

***

11. Minnesota (4-13)

• Clinched No. 11 seed. Will open Wednesday at 8:00 PM against #14 seed

12. Illinois (3-14)

• Clinches No. 12 seed with win at Rutgers + Iowa loss vs Northwestern
• Clinches No. 13 seed with win at Rutgers + Iowa win vs Northwestern
• Clinches No. 14 seed with loss at Rutgers
• Seed range: 12-14

13. Rutgers (3-14)

• Clinches No. 12 seed with win vs Illinois
• Clinches No. 13 seed with loss vs Illinois + Iowa loss vs Northwestern
• Clinches No. 14 seed with loss vs Illinois + Iowa win vs Northwestern
• Seed range: 12-14

14. Iowa (3-14)

• Clinches No. 12 seed with win vs Northwestern + Rutgers loss vs Illinois
• Clinches No. 13 seed with Rutgers win vs Illinois
• Clinches No. 14 seed with loss vs Northwestern + Rutgers loss vs Illinois
• Seed range: 12-14