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The Boilermakers have known since yesterday, beating Northwestern 70-54 to tie for the Big Ten Championship and lock in as the #2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, that they’d be playing at 7:00 PM Friday at the United Center in Chicago. Now they will have an idea of who they will play.
Purdue will play the winner of #10 seed Penn State and #7 seed Minnesota. That game will be on Thursday night at 7:00 pm.
Here’s a full look at the Big Ten Tournament bracket:
And here it is, the final bracket for the Big Ten tournament. pic.twitter.com/sXiFgugpmL
— Dr. J (no not that one) (@Air_Force_Juan) March 10, 2019
For Purdue, that means regardless of the opponent, they will face an opponent they’ve already played twice this year.
Purdue beat Penn State in both their matchups. Besting the Nittany Lions at home 76-64 after getting put to the test at Penn State when the two teams went into overtime. Purdue pulled away in OT, winning 99-90, but the Nittany Lions showed Purdue their athleticism and tenacity on the glass can cause Purdue problems. They out rebounded Purdue by 9 in their first match-up. Purdue would need to keep them off the glass to beat them for a third time.
It would be a tough for Penn State who has had absolutely zero recent success against the Boilermakers. Penn State hasn’t beaten Purdue since 2014.
Purdue and Minnesota split their season series, with Minnesota’s recent win at the Barn against Purdue, 73-69, preventing the Boilers from standing on top of the B10 by themselves and placing Purdue as the #2 seed in the tournament after losing the tiebreaker to Michigan St..
The Golden Gophers also played Purdue tough in Mackey. The Boilers pulled away late, winning 73-63, but the Gophers were in it until the end and led going into the half. Amir Coffey, Minnesota’s best player, in particular has had Purdue’s number. He’s scored 22 and 32 points against the Boilers.
After Minnesota’s victory against Purdue in the regular season, they have all but locked their tournament ticket. But a win for either team will do wonders for both team’s seeding. Purdue will be in line for anywhere between the 2 thru 4 seed. A long run in the Big Ten Tournament would help secure an easier March draw.
The winner of this game is likely to take on Michigan, but Iowa stands as a potential upset team at the #6 seed if neither Illinois or Northwestern knock them off.