Can anyone knock off Purdue in the 2023 Big Ten tournament?

The Big Ten has been the second best conference in men’s college basketball for the 2022-2023 season, according to KenPom. The Purdue Boilermakers have been the top team in the conference all season, but a six-team race for second place into the final days of the regular season put huge stakes on every game of the stretch run. Now the bracket for the 2023 Big Ten tournament is set, with the field invading the United Center in Chicago from March 8-12.

The Boilermakers have plenty to play for entering the conference tournament as they try to secure a No. 1 seed to the NCAA tournament. Purdue was shaky to close conference play, finishing the regular season 4-4 in the last eight games, but it still has one of the best resumes in America. Purdue’s 13-0 start included wins over Marquette, Gonzaga, and Duke and set the course for one of the best seasons in program history. Everything starts with Zach Edey, the 7’4 center likely to be national player of the year, who is a dominant force as an interior scorer and rebounded. Purdue needs big contributions from freshmen Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer if it wants to make the Final Four for the first time under head coach Matt Painter.

Indiana also has big dreams this year. The Hoosiers are led by senior star Trayce Jackson-Davis, an explosive 6’9 center who can attack the rim, hit the glass, and block shots. Freshman guard Jalen Hood-Schifino has been the team’s breakout star, positioning himself as a possible NBA draft first round pick this year with a combination of size (6’6), shot-making, and playmaking. Indiana’s defense has been vulnerable this season, entering the tournament ranked No. 46 in the country. The offense has one of the lowest three-point rates in the DI, but their three-point percentage ranks in the top-25 nationwide.

A year ago, Iowa won the Big Ten tournament behind star forward Keegan Murray. Now it’s his twin brother Kris Murray leading the way for the Hawkeyes after Keegan was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Kris Murray has had a breakout season by carrying the scoring load for Iowa, though his three-point shot struggled a bit at the end of the season.

Illinois feels like the boom-or-bust team of the Big Ten. The Illini are loaded with talent thanks to transfers Terrence Shannon Jr. and Matthew Mayer, but their play has been wildly inconsistent all year. Shannon’s athleticism and shot-making gives Illinois a chance at a tournament title, but he’ll need his teammates to hit shots around him. Illinois has been one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the Big Ten all year.

Our latest bracketology projection has 10 Big Ten in the 2023 men’s NCAA tournament — more than any conference in America. Here’s the bracket, schedule, and a prediction for what’s going to happen in Chicago.

2023 Big Ten tournament bracket

2023 Big Ten tournament predictions

We picked Purdue to win the Big Ten tournament. From our conference tournament predictions post:

Our pick: Purdue Boilermakers. It’s almost impossible to lose a top-five NBA draft pick (Jaden Ivey) and one of the best big men in the conference (Trevion Williams) and get even better, but that’s exactly what Purdue has done this season. The Boilermakers have been considered an elite team since earning victories over Duke, Gonzaga, and Marquette early in the season, and for the most part Matt Painter’s team has remained among the country’s best ever since. Everything Purdue does is built around star center Zach Edey, the 7’4 behemoth poised to be college basketball’s national player of the year. With two standout freshmen (Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith) and a couple of savvy vets around him, Purdue’s pieces just fit better this year even if the talent isn’t as overwhelming. Now it’s time for Painter to prove it in March and get to his first Final Four ever. — Ricky O’Donnell

2023 Big Ten Tournament schedule

March 8 First Round

Game 1: No. 13 Ohio State 65, No. 12 Wisconsin 57

Game 2: No. 14 Minnesota 78, No. 11 Nebraska 75

March 9 Second Round

Game 3: No. 9 Rutgers 62, No. 8 Michigan 50

Game 4: No. 13 Ohio State 73, No. 5 Iowa 69

Game 5: No. 10 Penn State 79, No. 7 Illinois 76

Game 6: No. 6 Maryland 70, No. 14 Minnesota 54

March 10 Quarterfinals

Game 7: No. 9 Rutgers vs. No. 1 Purdue, noon, BTN

Game 8: No. 13 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Michigan State, 2:30 p.m., BTN

Game 9: No. 10 Penn State vs. No. 2 Northwestern, 6:30 p.m., BTN

Game 10: No. 6 Maryland vs. No. 3 Indiana, 9:00 p.m., BTN

March 11 Semifinals

Game 11: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 1 p.m., CBS

Game 12: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, 3:30 p.m., CBS

March 12 Championship

Game 13: Winner Game 11 vs. Winner Game 12, 3:30 p.m., CBS

Odds to win 2023 Big Ten Tournament from DraftKings Sportsbook

Purdue +150
Indiana +550
Michigan State +600
Maryland +650
Northwestern +900
Illinois +1200
Rutgers +2000
Iowa +2200
Penn State +2500
Michigan +2500
Wisconsin +6000
Ohio State +6000
Nebraska +25000
Minnesota +100000

This is everything you need to know about the 2023 ACC Tournament.

The ACC Tournament begins on Tuesday, with every team desperate for making a deep run into the tournament and getting their shot at the big dance. Overall, it’s been a down year for the conference—a really down year, actually. There’s no team in the ACC in the top 30 of Ken Pomeroy’s KenPom rankings, and only three teams are ranked in the top 25. No. 13 Virginia, No. 17 Miami and No. 25 Pitt are the only teams ranked, and the Hurricanes split the regular season ACC title with the Cavaliers. Below them, teams like NC State loom, with upsets on their mind. The Wolfpack are +1200 to win the ACC tournament, but with their high scoring ability (2nd in ACC in points per game), they can make any game interesting. The Hurricanes and Cavaliers looked like the two best teams in the conference, but neither are the betting favorites to win the entire thing.

That would be the Duke Blue Devils, who are currently +280 to win. In their first season without Coach K roaming the sideline, there’s been ups and downs, yet they finished the regular season 14-6 in the conference and the highest rated ACC team according to KenPom. Despite the freshmen talent not being as good as previous years, freshman C Kyle Filipowski is the engine behind the team, leading the Blue Devils in points per game and rebounds per game. In addition, the Blue Devils enter the tournament hot, winning their final six games, including over North Carolina.

Speaking of North Carolina, to say that this season has been rough would be an understatement. Entering the season as the top ranked team, they now sit unranked and would more than likely need to win the ACC tournament just to make the NCAA tournament. Sitting at 19-12 overall, the Tar Heels will have to run the table without the aid of byes, and will need another massive run of high quality play from any of their four starters that returned from the national title team last year. Which means leading scorer Caleb Love and forward Armando Bacot will need to put together multiple stretches of great play just to even get an at-large bid.

ACC tournament 2023 bracket

ACC tournament 2023: schedule, start times, TV info, and more

Tuesday, March 7

First Round

2 p.m. – Georgia Tech 61, Florida State 60 (ACC Network)

4:30 p.m. – No. 10 Boston College 80, vs. No. 15 Louisville 62

7 p.m. – No. 11 Virginia Tech 67, No. 14 Notre Dame 64

Wednesday, March 8

Second Round

Noon – No. 9 Wake Forest 77, No. 8 Syracuse 74

2:30 p.m. – No. 5 Pitt 89, Georgia Tech 81

7 p.m. – No. 7 North Carolina 85, No. 10 Boston College 61

9:30 p.m. – No. 6 NC State 97, No. 11 Virginia Tech 77

Thursday, March 9

Quarterfinals

Noon – No. 1 Miami 74, No. 9 Wake Forest 72

2:30 p.m. – No. 4 Duke 96, No. 5 Pitt 69

7 p.m. – No. 2 Virginia 68, No. 7 North Carolina 59

9:30 p.m. – No. 3 Clemson vs. No. 6 NC State (ESPN/ESPN2)

Friday, March 10

Semifinals

7 p.m. – No. 1 Miami vs. No. 4 Duke (ESPN/ESPN2)

9:30 p.m. – No. 2 Virginia vs. Clemson/NC State Winner (ESPN/ESPN2)

Saturday, March 11

Championship

8:30 p.m. – Semifinal winners (ESPN)

ACC title odds at DraftKings Sportsbook

Duke: +280
Virginia: +300
Miami, FL: +340
UNC: +600
Clemson: +600
NC State: +1200
Pitt: +1400
Wake Forest: +4000
Virginia Tech: +5000
Syracuse: +10000
Florida State: +15000
Georgia Tech: +35000
Boston College: +35000
Notre Dame: +50000
Louisville: +100000