Among college basketball’s top six conferences, only the Big 12 sent a greater percentage of its teams to the 2023 NCAA Tournament than the Big Ten, which put eight of its 14 squads in the Big Dance. But by the tournament’s second weekend, only No. 7 seed Michigan State remained, and the Spartans fell in the Sweet 16.
No. 1 overall seed Purdue’s stunning first-round loss to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson underscored the conference’s postseason futility and added fuel to the league’s reputation for flopping in March. But it’s hard to question the Big Ten’s regular-season prowess. During one stretch in nonconference play, the Boilermakers rattled off consecutive victories over Marquette, West Virginia, Gonzaga and Duke, all of whom finished inside the 2023-24 season inside the top-20 at KenPom.com.
Illinois picked up wins over top-five KenPom finishers UCLA and Texas. Even Nebraska, which missed the NCAA Tournament, produced a non conference road win over a Creighton team that came one possession away from reaching the Final Four. So why did the Big Ten fail to send a team past the Sweet 16 for a second consecutive year?
Pinpointing a single reason is tough, but the conference has one last chance to erase its reputation for March sadness before realignment arrives and disrupts the sport. The Big Ten’s last national title came from Michigan State in 2000 when the league boasted a mere 11 teams. It expanded to 12 for the 2011-12 season and 14 for the 2014-15 campaign. Good basketball has been played since then — eight or more Big Ten teams have reached the past four NCAA Tournaments — but a national breakthrough has yet to come. Will 2023-24 be the year?
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