The paper, or the Big 10 website, gives us the overall standings, Wisconsin & Nebraska on top at 10 & 2, the Gophers tied at 9 & 3, and a 4-way tie between Penn State, Ohio State, Purdue & Illinois at 8 & 4. Let’s call these “The Top 7.”
But given that some of these teams have already played each other twice, and other pairs not at all, I thought it would be interesting, just past the halfway mark in this grueling Big Ten Season, to look at how The Top 7 have fared against each other.
TOP SEVEN STANDINGS:
Wisconsin 6 & 1* with 3 games remaining
PURDUE 4 & 3 with 3 games remaining
NEBRASKA 3 & 2 with 5 games remaining
MINNESOTA 2 & 2* with 5 games remaining
PENN STATE 2 & 4 with 3 games remaining
ILLINOIS 2 & 4 with 3 games remaining
OHIO STATE 1 & 4 with 4 games remaining
* Also lost to a team in the bottom 7.
What does this tells us?
Maybe not much that we didn’t know. The Badgers’ 6 & 1 record confirms that they are probably the cream of the crop – exactly what I thought from watching them crush the Gophers and Nebraska.
It also suggests that our Gophers, who have played the fewest Top 7 matches, and have the most left, have a tough road the rest of the way through the schedule, starting with matches this weekend. (Thursday, 6:00 @ Columbus. on BTN. And Saturday, 6:00 @ Champaign, on BTN+.)
Ohio State and Illinois currently sit at the bottom of the Top Seven, but they are both very good teams. The hype about the Big Ten being the toughest volleyball conference in the country is exaggerated, of course, you can’t count on two Big Ten teams in the Final Four every year. But if you set up a tournament for just the 6th and 7th best teams in each conference, I would definitely bet the Buckeyes and the Illini.
I’d feel good about my Gophs if they could finish “the Top 7” at 5 &4. A split this weekend keeps that hope alive, but a sweep would be better..