Tag: Big Ten Tournament

Big Ten Tournament bracket revealed, Michigan State gets No. 8 seed

The Big Ten Tournament bracket has been released

The Big Ten has officially released the bracket for this year’s Big Ten baseball tournament. The Spartans, who finished the year with a 12-12 record in the conference and tied for 7th place, will serve as the No. 8 seed in the tournament.

Michigan State will take on the No. 1 seed Maryland on Tuesday to open the tournament. Also in the Spartans side of the bracket is Nebraska and Rutgers.

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Michigan State baseball clinches Big Ten Tournament berth

MSU baseball has clinched a berth in the Big Ten Tournament

Michigan State has officially clinched their spot in the Big Ten baseball tournament following a win over Indiana on Friday. Only the top 8 seeds in the conference make the tournament, making it a highly competitive event.

The Spartans will head to Omaha for the Big Ten Tournament next weekend, and will soon learn their fate in the coming days of who they will draw in the tournament.

Contact/Follow usĀ @The SpartansWireĀ on Twitter, and like our page onĀ FacebookĀ to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on TwitterĀ @Cory_Linsner.

Big Ten baseball roundup: Who will be the No. 1 conference seed?

As we head into the last weekend of regular season play, six Big Ten teams are in the mix for the No. 1 spot in the Big Ten Tournament.

As we head into the last weekend of conference regular season play, six Big Ten teams are in the mix for the No. 1 spot in the Big Ten Tournament. With three conference games left to play, Which Big Ten school will be the number one seed heading into the tournament on May 24?

Ā Five Big Ten conference schools are still ranked in the baseball top 100 heading into this week according to theĀ NCAA rating percentage index.

According to the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, No. 23 Maryland is the only Big Ten school representing the conference in the top-25 rankings. Previously ranked No. 22, Maryland is entering the week ranked No. 23 in the Baseball America Top 25 rankings.

With Indiana (38-14, 15-6) and Maryland (35-18, 15-6) tied for the conference’s top seed, Iowa (37-12, 13-7), Rutgers (32-19, 13-8), Michigan (26-22, 13-8), and Nebraska (29-20-1, 13-8) are in good positions to pursue a top spot for the Big Ten Tournament.

Here are the weekly Big Ten Conference power rankings:

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Big Ten Baseball: Rutgers wins another conference series

Rutgers baseball (32-19, 13-8) shut out Illinois (23-24, 12-12), winning the weekend series with a 3-0 victory in the series finale.

Taking the rubber match of a home Big Ten series is big news for Rutgers baseball, especially with conference tournament time almost here.

Rutgers baseball (32-19, 13-8 Big Ten) shut out Illinois (23-24, 12-12) and won the weekend series with a 3-0 victory in the series finale on Sunday. Rutgers has now won consecutive Big Ten series as well as their last three home conference series.

The Scarlet Knights captured the series openers on Friday with a 5-4 win over the Fighting Illini. Illinois bounced back on Saturday and took game two with a 9-7 win.

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Playing at ShoreTown Ballpark in Lakewood, NJ, a minor league facility, the Scarlet Knights pitching staff struck out 13 batters and picked up another 12 hits to defeat the Fighting Illini.

Rutgers left-handed pitcher Justin Sinibaldi made his first appearance since April 18, pitching five shutout innings, recording four hits, seven strikeouts, and four walks. Sinibaldi’s seven strikeouts tied a career-high.

Rutgers’ Jake Marshall relieved Sinibaldi, providing three scoreless innings. In the top of the ninth, Rutgers closer Ben Gorski shut out the Fighting Illini securing his eighth save of the season.

In the bottom of the third inning, Rutgers Ryan Lasko and Chris Brito singled to lead off the inning. With Lasko and Brito advancing to second and third by a wild pitch, Evan Sleight drove in Lasko with an RBI groundout, and Hugh Pinkney singled in Brito to give Rutgers a 2-0 lead.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Scarlet Knights picked up an insurance run with Brito’s solo home run to dead center filed, making the score 3-0.

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Can Rutgers baseball capture the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament?

There are six remaining conference games left in the regular season, can Rutgers still capture the No. 1 spot in the Big Ten Tournament?

Heading into their three-game weekend series against Illinois, the Scarlet Knights (30-18, 11-7) are two games behind Maryland (33-17, 13-5) for the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Conference. Rutgers baseball is riding a five-game winning streak and is 8-2 in their last ten games as they look to capture the number one seed for the Big Ten Tournament.

The 41st Big Ten Tournament starts on May 24th, with four teams battling for the number one seed. The Terps hold a two-game lead in the conference, with Indiana (34-14, 12-6) a game behind. Iowa (34-12, 10-7) is a half a game back from the Scarlet Knights, with Rutgers holding one more conference win than the Hawkeyes.

Maryland

Each of the four teams has six conference games left to play until the conclusion of the regular season. The Terps have the easiest path to the number one seed, with matchups against two below-average teams, Minnesota (14-31, 7-11) and Penn State (24-18, 6-11).

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Indiana

The Hoosiers have a difficult path to the No. 1 seed, with matchups against two teams with winning conference records, Purdue (23-23, 10-8) and Michigan State (28-16, 10-8). Indiana is only a game behind the Terps but will need to finish strong if they want to capture the number-one spot.

Rutgers

As for the Scarlet Knights, they need to continue to win and hope for some help from their Big Ten rivals. Rutgers will head into a weekend home series against Illinois (22-22, 11-10) and then hit the road to take on Minnesota.

The Scarlet Knights have been dominant at home, holding a 14-3 (6-3 Big Ten) record. It has been a different story on the road for the Scarlet Knights, holding a 15-13 (5-4 Big Ten) record.

Iowa

The Hawkeyes are preparing for a three-game series matchup against Michigan State this weekend, knowing they are three games behind the Terps in the win column. Iowa finishes its regular season schedule with a three-game series against Northwestern (8-35, 3-15).

These last six remaining conference games will determine which team will capture the No. 1 spot for the Big Ten Tournament.

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Big Ten baseball roundup: Rise and fall in this week’s power rankings

As we inch closer to the Big Ten Tournament, which Big Ten school moved in the weekly power rankings?

As we inch closer to the Big Ten Tournament (May 23-28, 2023), four Big Ten schools are two or fewer games out of first place. Which Big Ten school will be the number one seed heading into the tournament on May 23?

Heading into the week, seven Big Ten conference schools are still ranked in the baseball top 100 according to the NCAA rating percentage index.

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According to the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, no current Big Ten schools are ranked in the top 25, with Indiana having recently dropped out. Maryland (60 votes) and Indiana (11 votes) are the only Big Ten schools to receive votes for the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll. Baseball America Top 25 has the Terps (No. 22) as the only school representing the Big Ten conference in their top 25 rankings.

With Maryland remaining the conference’s top seed,Rutgers, Indiana and Iowa are in good positions to pursue a top seed for the Big Ten Tournament.

Here are the weekly Big Ten Conference power rankings:

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Penn State forward Kebba Njie transfers to Notre Dame

Shrewsberry continues to poach talent from his old stomping grounds.

The week of [autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag]’s guys switching from Penn State to Notre Dame continues.

First, three of his 2023 recruits set to play for the Nittany Lions switched to the Irish. Then, a 2024 recruit selected the Irish when the Nittany Lions were among the programs that had made him an offer. Now, the trend is affecting the transfer portal. Nittany Lions starting forward [autotag]Kebba Njie[/autotag] announced he also is coming to South Bend.

Njie brings much-needed size to the guard-heavy Irish. He is 6 feet, 10 inches and started 26 of 37 games played as a freshman last season. He averaged 3.4 points and 3.5 rebounds a game while shooting 52% from the field for a Nittany Lions team that qualified for the NCAA Tournament after a surprise run to the Big Ten Tournament title game that they nearly won. He also received ACC experience in losses to Virginia Tech and Clemson.

Njie announced he was entering the transfer portal April 4, not long after Shrewsberry was introduced as Irish coach. Within five days, the Irish had expressed interest in him, joining Indiana, Texas, Texas Tech, BYU, Nevada and UCF. In the end, he joined guard [autotag]Julian Roper II[/autotag] as Shrewsberry’s second successful transfer target.

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Pete Thamel lists four coaches who could fill Notre Dame opening

Would you like one of these coaches?

Since [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] announced his intention to leave Notre Dame in January, various names have floated as his replacement. Our own Nick Shepkowski made his own list of candidates in the immediate aftermath of Brey’s announcement. While it’s nice to keep all options open, it appears the list is starting to narrow down. At least that’s what ESPN’s Pete Thamel said he believes during the most recent episode of College GameDay:

For all we know, this list could be completely bogus with none of the four landing the job. But when you cover college basketball for a living, you’re bound to hear a few whispers about who the next coach might be. For argument’s sake, let’s pretend this list is legitimate and that the search indeed will come down to these four. Then, we can debate as to who would be the best candidate for the Irish for the long haul:

Ohio State basketballā€™s Bruce Thornton gets conference tournament recognition

Bruuuuuuuce!!! #GoBucks

The [autotag]Ohio State[/autotag] basketball team had run not many expected in the [autotag]Big Ten Tournament[/autotag]. They became the lowest seed, No. 13, to ever make it to the conference semifinals.

On the way to the fourth day of the tournament, Buckeye guard [autotag]Bruce Thornton[/autotag] was phenomenal. He averaged 15.5 points, with 4.25 assists and 2.75 rebounds over the course of four games, and turned the ball over just four total times, none over the final three games. The freshman was the best player on the court for Ohio State and the Big Ten noticed.

The conference named Thornton to their all-tournament team, making him just the 10th freshman ever to be named to the team. The distinction makes it four for Ohio State, as Thornton joins [autotag]Greg Oden[/autotag], [autotag]Mike Conley[/autotag] and [autotag]Jared Sullinger[/autotag]. Thatā€™s quite an impressive list of Buckeyes.

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The Georgia native really came on late in the season, being named a captain, upping his offensive game and this was the cherry on top. Expectations for Thornton rose significantly as the year went on and he is expected to lead the squad next year in what should be a much more prosperous season.

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Penn State’s Big Ten Tourney run ends in championship game

Furious rally comes up short for Penn State vs. Purdue in Big Ten championship game

Penn State had one of the most exciting March runs in recent program history. Coming into the tournament, they were firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

They put themselves into the tournament with wins over Illinios and Northwestern on their way to their semifinal appearance. But they weren’t satisfied by just playing in the game. They beat Indiana to play in their second ever conference championship game and cement themselves in NCAA Tournament.

That run ended on Sunday after falling to Purdue 65-67.

Penn State made a flurry at the end of the game to come within one possession and a shot to win the game. They failed to get a shot off as [autotag]Camren Wynter[/autotag] was called for a travel before the shot attempt.

It was going to be a tall task to beat the Boilermakers who had beat them twice during the regular season. The best team in the Big Ten all season, Purdue is also expected to be a one seed when the bracket is released.

Penn State hit their first two buckets of the game to lead 4-0, but missed their next six shots. This got them into an early hole and they trailed by their largest margin of the entire tournament.

The Nittany Lions were fighting an uphill battle the entire first half as they tried to stay in the game. They were able to keep the margin close and went into halftime down 27-35.

The uphill battled continued all second half as Purdue kept pounding them in the paint and on the offensive glass. The Boilermakers pulled down 13 offensive rebounds and kept possessions alive they ultimately capitalized on.

With six and a half minutes to go, it looked like Purdue was going to run away with the game. They were up 17 points and had Penn State out of sorts.

But Penn State would not go away. They started chipping away at the lead with basket after a basket from their seniors.

After a dunk from freshman [autotag]Evan Mahaffey[/autotag] with just under three minutes remaining, Penn State trailed 58-64.

[autotag]Jalen Pickett[/autotag] cut the lead to four points after two made free throws, but Big Ten Player of the Year, [autotag]Zach Edey[/autotag], made a layup through a triple team to put the lead back up to six.

After [autotag]Andrew Funk[/autotag] missed a three, Purdue was fouled and on free throw line looking to put the game away for good.

Freshman guard [autotag]Fletcher Loyer[/autotag] missed both free throws and Penn State senior guard [autotag]Myles Dread[/autotag] hit a three to cut the lead to three points.

The ending got crazy after Purdue turned the ball over in the backcourt on the steal from Mahaffey. Wynter hit a layup to unbelievably cut the lead to one point with seven seconds remaining.

Loyer was on the line again for Purdue. He made the first one but missed the second giving Penn State an opportunity to win or tie the game.

They advanced the ball into the front court and called a timeout to set up the potential game-winning shot.

When Pickett inbounded the ball, it was tipped and created a scramble play to get up a shot.

Dread came up with the ball and found Wynter who has hit clutch shots for Penn State all season. He pump-faked once and then shuffled his feet when trying to get a clean look.

Travel. Game over.

[autotag]Seth Lundy[/autotag] led the Nittany Lions with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Wynter added 14 points and Pickett finished with 11.

Probable NCAA Player of the Year, Edey, finished with a game-high 30 points and 13 rebounds. [autotag]David Jenkins Jr.[/autotag] and [autotag]Mason Gillis[/autotag] joined him in double figures with 11 and 10 points respectively.

It was definitely a tough loss to stomach for Penn State and all its seniors. The magical postseason tournament run ended in heart breaking fashion.

But what a run it was!

Head coach [autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag] did an excellent job getting all the players to buy in and believe they could make this run. After coming into the tournament with questions about their March Madness hopes, they left no doubt they are a tournament team.

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