Busy Holiday Weekend of Big Ten Hoops

It was a busy weekend for Big Ten teams, with several unexpected results. Let's get right to it...

Purdue lost a tough one to Oklahoma in the NIT Championship, 87-82 in overtime. The number that really jumps out (and has been pointed at by angry Boiler fans) is the free throw disparity - 46 to 5 in favor of Oklahoma. That's a huge gap, but at least some of it can be explained by the differences in the way these teams play. Last season, Purdue's defense was 288th nationally in free throw rate - meaning they put opponents on the line more often than all but 53 Division 1 teams. Oklahoma's defense last year had the 50th lowest free throw rate, so they were on the other end of the spectrum. Couple these tendencies with the proportion of threes taken by each team in this game (Oklahoma took 31% of their shots from downtown, Purdue 42%), and there's some reason to expect a big free throw disparity. Maybe not 46 to 5 big, but there are other reasons that Purdue lost this game regardless.

Oklahoma posted a solid 107.9 efficiency, fueled partly by all those free throws, but also by a low TO rate (17.4) and excellent offensive rebounding. Purdue just didn't play the same kind of defense that we're used to seeing from them. Offensively, Purdue struggled with turnovers for the first time this season and posted an efficiency of just 101.7 despite excellent shooting. All in all, it was a disappointing loss, but Purdue showed that they can run with the big dogs nationally, even when the calls aren't going their way. The Boilermakers get another chance for a marquee win on Tuesday against Duke. Box score.

Illinois had a nice weekend, winning two games and the trophy at South Padre Island. First, the Illini pulled out a tough overtime win against Kent State, 69-63. Sophomore big men Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale were too much to handle, combining for 37 points (on 27 shots), 20 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Chester Frazier did all the little things, dishing 8 assists to just one turnover, grabbing 4 rebounds, and holding Al Fisher to 6 for 15 shooting. Box score.

In the title game, Illinois managed an ugly 48-44 win over Tulsa. This game was totally Big Ten style, with just 57 possessions and excellent defense (or terrible offense?). The Illinois defense did almost everything right, with the exception of some iffy defensive rebounding (32.8 OR% for Tulsa). Offensively, Richard Semrau provided surprising efficiency off the bench, scoring 9 points on 5 shots. Mike Tisdale had 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks to lock up the Tourney MVP award, while Mike Davis had a strangely quiet night - 1 for 2 from the floor in 26 minutes, albeit with 8 rebounds. It's notable that Illinois' strength in this tournament was their frontline, which was a big question mark coming into the season. Playing well again was Chester Frazier, with 8 assists (to 3 turnovers), 7 rebounds, and great defense on Ben Uzoh, who went 4 for 15 from the field. Box score.

Michigan State took out some aggression on Oklahoma State, 94-79. This game was actually pretty fast at 78 possessions, and the Spartans won this with great offense (120.7 efficiency on 63.6 eFG%). Raymar Morgan was the star (off the bench!), with 29 points on an amazingly low 11 shots. Kalin Lucas chipped in with 12 points on 11 shots, and 10 assists to just one turnover. Box score.

On Sunday, the Spartans struggled to a 65-57 win over surprising (dare I say, shocking) Wichita State. This game had a rain delay - yes, a college basketball rain delay - when the roof of The Milk House started leaking (there's some obvious puns to be had here, but I'll leave it alone after biting on the bad Shockers pun. You're welcome). Michigan State didn't shoot all that well and had some turnover problems, but their offensive rebounding was just too much for Wichita State to overcome. Marquise Gray had a nice game with 12 points (on 5 shots) and 8 rebounds. Delvon Roe added 9 points on 5 shots and grabbed 11 rebounds. The Spartans can now dry off and prepare for North Carolina on Wednesday in Detroit. Box score.

Iowa had an interesting weekend, going 1-1 in Las Vegas against a couple solid teams. First, on Friday, Iowa just couldn't stop West Virginia, giving up a crazy 130.4 efficiency. The Mountaineers did everything well, shooting 55% from the field and committing only 10 turnovers. Even when they did miss, they often grabbed the offensive rebound. On the offensive end, Iowa actually shot very well but took terrible care of the ball (31.5 TO%). Anthony Tucker continued his surprising freshman campaign with 24 points on just 12 shots. Jake Kelly tried to make us Geeks look good (not an easy task) with 15 points on 6 shots. Box score.

On Saturday, Cyrus Tate hit a layup at the buzzer to lift Iowa over Kansas State, 65-63. It was nearly a late-game collapse for the Hawkeyes, as they had led by as many as 13 points before Kansas State roared back. This is a nice win for Iowa, and they did it primarily on the offensive end. Kansas State hadn't allowed an opponent to reach 100 efficiency this season, and Iowa posted a solid 108.5. The Hawkeyes did it by taking reasonable care of the ball (18.4 TO%) and by getting to the foul line, going 26 for 37 (70%). Jeff Peterson led the scoring with 18 points on 7 shots (including 11 for 12 at the line), although he did turn it over 5 times. Anthony Tucker had the worst game of his young career, shooting 1 for 11 for just 3 points. Amazingly, he was the only Hawkeye with fewer points than shots, which shows how much of a team effort this truly was. Box score.

Penn State lost their biggest test to date, 77-72 against Rhode Island. Defense was the culprit, as the Nittany Lions allowed a 114.0 efficiency. Offensively, Penn State again took good care of the ball (14.8 TO%) but shot under 50% eFG% for the first time this season. Talor Battle was close to a triple-double, with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists, but he also committed 4 turnovers and shot just 4 for 16. Jamelle Cornley led the way with 23 points on 20 shots. Box score.

On Saturday, Penn State got back on track with a 78-54 drubbing of Towson. Talor Battle got even closer to a triple-double, with 15, 8, and 9. Even more impressive is that he committed just one turnover and took only 8 shots. Battle has really exceeded my expectations thus far, although we must remember that he's done most of this against bottom feeders. A road test at Georgia Tech will provide an interesting barometer for both Battle and his team. Box score.

Ohio State put on an impressive defensive display against Samford, winning 59-22. This game was fairly slow (61 possessions), but still - twenty-two points. That translates to a ridiculous defensive efficiency of 36.0. The Buckeyes did it in every way imaginable - limiting eFG%, forcing turnovers, grabbing rebounds, and not fouling. Unfortunately, the Ohio State offense wasn't nearly as impressive, posting an efficiency of just 96.7. Of course, a big blowout can lead to sloppy play, which may have been what happened here (the 27.9 TO% supports that theory). Evan Turner stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 steals. Dallas Lauderdale blocked 3 more shots, putting his average at 5.3 bpg. B.J. Mullens had a decent game with 8 points on 5 shots, but still isn't the factor I expected coming into the season. Box score.

Wisconsin blew out UW-Milwaukee, 67-46. The Badgers were excellent at both ends of the court, posting efficiencies of 117 and 80. After turnover problems in the previous three games, the Badgers overcompensated with a ridiculously low 8.7 TO%. Trevon Hughes had a nice game, with 16 points on 8 shots. Box score.

Michigan survived a scare, rallying for a 66-64 overtime win over Savannah State. Michigan actually trailed by 20 at halftime, then scored 15 straight to open the second half and get back in the game - apparently Beilein got through to the young Wolverines. Michigan's FG defense was the biggest problem, allowing Savannah State to shoot 50% from two and 7 for 9 from downtown. Offensively, Michigan had an awful time handling the ball (29.6 TO%) but was saved by offensive rebounding and free throws. As usual, Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims were the leaders, combining for 45 points on 22 shots and 21 rebounds, although Harris' line was tainted by 8 turnovers. In other boxscore news, one of the officials was John Hughes. No word if any mixtapes were involved. Box score.

Minnesota shot lights-out in beating North Dakota State, 90-76. Minnesota's offensive efficiency of 125.4 sure was tasty, but the Gophers were mediocre defensively for the third straight game (hmm, I just used 'tasty' and 'gophers' in the same sentence... not good). In each of those three games, opponents had an eFG% of 50% or higher, and Minnesota's defensive rebounding has been lacking as well. Maybe those things are to be expected when relying on inexperienced big men, but Tubby Smith needs to address them soon if he hopes to get this team to the NCAA Tournament. Jamal Abu-Shamala scored 20 points on 10 shots, while Lawrence Westbrook threw in 17 on 10. Al Nolen did a bit of everything, with 7 rebounds, 4 assists, no turnovers, 2 steals and a block. Box score.

Indiana got a nice win over a decent Cornell squad, 72-57. This game was closer than the final score indicated, but IU turned up the defensive intensity down the stretch to put the Ivy Leaguers away. We should mention that Cornell was missing 2 of their 3 best players, including oustanding PG Louis Dale. Still, a win is a win is a win, especially for a young team like IU. This was probably the most complete effort by Indiana thus far, holding Cornell to an efficiency of 83.8 while posting a 105.8 on their end. The Hoosiers again struggled with turnovers, but shot so well that it didn't really matter. Tom Pritchard continues to impress with 23 points on 7 for 7 shooting, and Nick Williams scored 18 on 12 shots. There was a scary moment in the first half when Verdell Jones ran hard into a screen and had to be taken away on a stretcher. Thankfully, Jones has already been released from the hospital, and it sounds like he'll be alright. Box score.

Northwestern ate some turkey and didn't play any games.

Here's the slate for tonight, including the first game of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge (all times CT):

6pm - Wisconsin at Virginia Tech - ESPN2
8pm - UC-Riverside at Northwestern - Big Ten Network