Here on FanHouse, I've discussed the maligned Big Ten ad nauseum. For some reason, people just love to hate the power conference of the midwest. Droves of fans and media alike cried foul when the conference received seven total bids to the NCAA tournament -- conveniently ignoring the fact that three of the teams were given double-digit seeds. After two rounds, I believe the conference was vindicated to an extent. Michigan and Wisconsin advanced, and Purdue went to the Sweet 16. Still, a deep run was probably needed by someone to quiet the critics. Enter Michigan State, participants in Monday night's national championship game.
I don't know how we got here, where fans of conferences are constantly comparing each and always proclaiming theirs superior. Fans of the Big East will likely point to the overall record of the conference in this year's tournament, without factoring in the seeds they received. In fact, considering only Villanova outplayed their seed and there are no teams in the finals, I'd argue they fell drastically short of expectations as a group. Putting two teams in the Final Four from the same conference isn't exactly rare. Parlaying three No. 1 seeds and two 3-seeds into zero participants in the championship doesn't impress me in the least.
You could do something similar to discount the job every conference has done in this tournament. For the Big Ten, though, the only negative you could mention is that Illinois was toppled by Western Kentucky. Nothing else made the league look bad. The Spartans of East Lansing, however, are making the Big Ten look strong.
One of the knocks people like to say about the Big Ten is they lack athleticism. Watch Michigan State play. They damn near ran UConn -- of the vaunted Big East -- off the court. Durrell Summers' rim-shaking jam in Stanley Robinson's face was one of the defining moments of the tournament.
Another knock is they can't score. Advocates of the league, such as myself, will say they play superior defense. People like Digger Phelps like to discount that by saying, "oh, don't give me defense. They just can't score." Yet, there they were Saturday night, scoring 82 points on Connecticut team who only allowed an average of 64.2 per game and leads the nation in blocks per game by a staggering margin of 2.5.
NCAA Tournament Action
GREENSBORO, NC - MARCH 21: Wayne Ellington #22 of the North Carolina Tar Heels drives against Garrett Temple #14 of the Louisiana State University Tigers during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 21, 2009 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Wayne Ellington;Garrett Temple
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PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 21: A Washington Huskies cheerleader performs during a break in the action against the Purdue Boilermakers during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Rose Garden on March 21, 2009 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Manny Harris #3 of the Michigan Wolverines jumps to the basket for a lay up against Taylor Griffin #32 of the Oklahoma Sooners in the first half during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Manny Harris
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Zack Novan #0 and Zack Gibson #32 of the Michigan Wolverines vie for the loose ball with Blake Griffin #23 of the Oklahoma Sooners in the first half during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Zack Gibson;Zack Novak;Blake Griffin
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Willie Warren #13 of the Oklahoma Sooners makes contact as he goes to the basket with Zack Gibson #32 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first hafl during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Willie Warren
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Taylor Griffin #32 of the Oklahoma Sooners goes up for the short jump shot against DeShawn Sims #34 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first half during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Taylor Griffin;DeShawn Sims
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PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 21: JaJuan Johnson #25 of the Purdue Boilermakers goes up for a shot over Jon Brockman #40 of the Washington Huskies in the second half during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Rose Garden on March 21, 2009 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** JaJuan Johnson;Jon Brockman
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Taylor Griffin #23 of the Oklahoma Sooners and Zack Novak #0 of the Michigan Wolverines vie for position to the loose ball in the first half during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Zack Novak;Taylor Griffin
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KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 21: Head Coach Jeff Capel of the Michigan Wolverines yells from the sideline during their game against the Oklahoma Sooners in the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 21, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Jeff Capel
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PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 21: Lewis Jackson #23 of the Purdue Boilermakers goes up for a layup as Quincy Pondexter #20 of the Washington Huskies looks on during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Rose Garden on March 21, 2009 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lewis Jackson;Quincy Pondexter
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And to touch upon that "don't give me defense" thing, why not look at the Louisville game for evidence that defense does matter. The Cardinals were one of the top offensive teams in the nation this year, averaging 77 points a game. The Spartans stifled them to the tune of 52 points. The Michigan State defense knocked a third of the Cardinals' offense off the court.
Critics could say the league was a one-team conference, and that Michigan State's run doesn't say much about the Big Ten as a whole. Well, they lost at home to Northwestern and Penn State. They lost to Purdue by 18. Ohio State took them down in the Big Ten Tourney very convincingly. Many other teams played the Spartans close. Purdue, Michigan and Wisconsin outplayed their seeds, while Penn State won the NIT.
Teams play for themselves, not their conferences. I get that. To ignore the impact Michigan State should have in regard to the national recognition given to the Big Ten with this tournament run, though, would be short-sighted. It's a strong league, and the Spartans are illustrating just how battle-tested they are as a result of their competition. Will the payoff be a national championship? That's to be settled Monday night.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-06-2009 @ 8:12PM
hafttwo said...
sparty on from a wolverine. i hope they go all the way tonight
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 9:18PM
cgbrumms said...
I yearn for the good old days when fans would cheer for their school/alma mater/homestate's flagship university.
This whole "cheering for a conference" thing sucks. It's like people are afraid to go all-in on their fandom and choose one team to live and die by. Instead, they pick a conference to hedge their bets and have 10-16 teams to root for.
Lame.
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 11:00PM
r said...
12:25 to play and the arse whipping for the big ten as usual continues. It doesn't matter what sport they are over-rated how did sparty even get here this is just brutal
Reply