Big Ten Basketball Tournament: Schedule, Odds, Predictions

Purdue played much of this season as the No. 1 poll team and college basketball national championship odds favorite. It’s still likely to start the NCAA Tournament next week as the No. 1 overall seed.

In a modest year for the Big Ten, Purdue’s tournament ramp and overall March performance is among the most interesting things to watch this week.

As you might expect, the BetMGM online sportsbook has odds for all the NCAA conference basketball tournaments. Here’s a quick guide to the Big Ten. 

Big Ten Tournament Schedule

The Big Ten basketball tournament runs March 13-17 at Target Center in Minneapolis. 

• Game 1: No. 12 Maryland vs. No. 13 Rutgers (March 13)
• Game 2: No. 11 Penn State vs. No. 14 Michigan (March 13)
• Game 3: No. 8 Michigan State vs. No. 9 Minnesota (March 14)
• Game 4: No. 5 Wisconsin vs. Game 1 Winner (March 14)
• Game 5: No. 7 Iowa vs. No. 10 Ohio State (March 14)
• Game 6: No. 6 Indiana vs. Game 2 Winner (March 14)
• Game 7: No. 1 Purdue vs. Game 3 Winner (March 15)
• Game 8: No. 4 Northwestern vs. Game 4 Winner (March 15)
• Game 9: No. 2 Illinois vs. Game 5 Winner (March 15)
• Game 10: No. 3 Nebraska vs. Game 6 Winner (March 15)
• Game 11: Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner (March 16)
• Game 12: Game 9 Winner vs. Game 10 Winner (March 16)
• Game 13: Game 11 Winner vs. Game 12 Winner (March 17)

Big Ten Tournament Odds

Big Ten Tournament Prediction

Purdue (-110) will win the Big Ten Tournament and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Here are a couple of other notes to keep in mind:

How Seriously Should Bettors Take Purdue?

It’s the question on everyone’s mind. Matt Painter’s tournament record is not a secret, and everybody in West Lafayette has PTSD from the name Fairleigh Dickinson. 

Purdue has a stunningly bad track record in March, which means the 2024 Big Ten Tournament is going to be a Rorschach test for what bettors think of Purdue. People will overanalyze the mistakes and over-celebrate wins against teams that Purdue is clearly better than. 

Even still, the magnification of Purdue’s performance over the next few days will be important to bracketologists and bettors alike. If you’re someone who’s seriously thinking about betting a Purdue future in the next week, you have to tune in for some of this tournament to get a sense of the goods you’re gambling on. 

The Official Big Ten Sleeper Is…

Nebraska. I almost wanted to take the Cornhuskers as my outright prediction. I feel that strongly about it.

Nebraska is obviously a school associated with football, which is one reason the Cornhuskers have flown so far under the radar this year. But this is a team that quietly finished in third place in the Big Ten this season and has head-to-head wins against both No. 4 seed Northwestern and No. 1 seed Purdue. They closed the season on a 6-1 run. 

I think Nebraska is dangerous, and I think the +750 odds in this tournament is not quite in line with how good they are. They wouldn’t have to rematch Purdue until the championship round, assuming the Boilermakers can make it that far. 

This is surely the best blend of talent, value, and return in the table. 

Damaged Goods in Madison, East Lansing

Not much to say here other than the obvious. Wisconsin is 3-8 since Feb. 1. Michigan State is 1-4 since Feb. 20. Neither team is playing good basketball right now. 

Tread carefully with the Badgers and Spartans, both in the Big Ten Tournament and (potentially) beyond. 

Indiana, Ohio State Playing For Their Lives

Indiana and Ohio State are a combined 6-14 in Quad 1 games, and as a general basketball fan, I question whether the NCAA Tournament really needs either program in the bracket.

As a matter of bracketology, though, both teams could hypothetically make a play to move into the field of 68 with strong showings this week.

Indiana’s chances in particular are bleak, but the Hoosiers did rip off four straight wins to end the year and swept Ohio State during the regular season. They’re way, way down the bubble sheet, but let’s assign them something of a pulse.

Ohio State has also won four straight and is 6-2 since Feb. 10, earning impressive wins over Purdue, Michigan State, and Nebraska. 

Another hot run through the Big Ten Tournament, just as they did last year, could put the Buckeyes on the brink of a berth. They would draw No. 2 seed Illinois in the quarterfinals, and a win against the Illini could really raise some eyebrows.

Conference Tournament Previews & Predictions