We have discussed Monday’s game between the Wisconsin Badgers and Iowa Hawkeyes through a number of lenses. These discussions have revolved around the matchup between Nate Reuvers and Luka Garza in the paint. They have dealt with the need for Wisconsin to show its toughness and manhood after being humiliated by Purdue. Removed from those angles, however, Monday’s game also carries with it the simple fact that any game lost in the Big Ten can have profound consequences for the Big Ten Tournament.
The annual goal for Wisconsin basketball, relative to the Big Ten Tournament, is to get the double-bye as a top-four seed. If UW hits that target, its Big Ten regular season achieved one of its central objectives. Before the start of play on Sunday morning, Jan. 26 (Maryland visits Indiana later on Sunday, while Minnesota hosts Michigan State and Ohio State visits Northwestern), Wisconsin and Iowa are part of a traffic jam in the upper half of the conference.
The Badgers and Hawkeyes are part of a six-team cluster. Rutgers, Maryland, Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota occupy the third through eighth slots in the Big Ten standings. They are separated by one game. Rutgers is 6-3, while Wisconsin and Minnesota are currently 5-4. The Gophers will either be 5-5 or 6-4 by the end of Sunday. The Maryland-Indiana loser will also be 5-4, while the winner joins Rutgers in a tie for third at 6-3.
Imagine a scenario in which the Big Ten remains bunched up like this in early March. That certainly seems realistic if not likely. Imagine the final two games of the Big Ten regular season making the difference between a double-bye (top-four seed at the Big Ten Tournament) and having to play in the 8-versus-9 second-round game, with the winner to face (potentially) top-seeded Michigan State in the quarterfinals. That is a massive difference. Right there, the value of notching a win in Monday’s Wisconsin-Iowa game can be appreciated.
Do we have to say more? We could, but if a point is adequately made, why add more words? That’s mere fluff. The heart of the matter is abundantly clear. Wisconsin and Iowa need that four seed, and they just as urgently need to stay away from the 8-9 game at the Big Ten Tournament.