Darth Vader has officially returned.
The Michigan Wolverines beat rival Michigan State 69-50 on Thursday night, and with it, clinched the regular-season Big Ten championship for the 2020-2021 season.
To be fair, the chance at Ohio State elbowing its way to the top came to a crashing thud after a season-long, three-game losing streak when it dropped another game, this time against Iowa on Sunday. But still, watching your arch-rival get a conference crown is never going to make the butterflies flutter in the competitive gut.
The Wolverines went to halftime up by eleven points, then kept the gas full throttle to extend the lead in the second half and never let the game to a point of being in doubt. It was a good bounce back after Michigan got eviscerated by a hard-surging Illinois squad on Monday.
Ohio State currently sits fifth in the league. The Buckeyes can still overtake Purdue for the No. 4 seed and subsequent double-by in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament if it beats Illinois on Saturday and the Boilermakers lose this weekend to Indiana. OSU could get as high as the No. 3 seed if that result holds and Iowa also loses to Wisconsin on Sunday.
BIG TEN REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS! 🏆
From unranked at the start of the season to the top of the conference, @umichbball has had a special season and isn't done yet. pic.twitter.com/EzHsoybvOg
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 5, 2021
We would say congrats, but we can’t get our lips to move on that one. Here’s to hoping Ohio State gets another crack at the Wolverines in the Big Ten tournament.
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