Busting Brackets
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Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings: Purdue, Maryland make huge leaps

By Austin Walther

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN - JANUARY 03: Head coach John Beilein of the Michigan Wolverines reacts from the bench while playing the Penn State Nittany Lions at Crisler Arena on January 03, 2019 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan won the game 68-55. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN - JANUARY 03: Head coach John Beilein of the Michigan Wolverines reacts from the bench while playing the Penn State Nittany Lions at Crisler Arena on January 03, 2019 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan won the game 68-55. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN – JANUARY 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with his team during the second half at Breslin Center on January 08, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 77-59. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN – JANUARY 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with his team during the second half at Breslin Center on January 08, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 77-59. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

2. Michigan State Spartans (15-2)

Previous Rank 2

How many power rankings are we going to do this year where Michigan State and Michigan are the top-2? I know for a fact that neither will be undefeated when they meet at the end of February. That’s a long time to wait for one of the most anticipated meetings between to the schools.

The Spartans are on one of their long winning streaks and it takes an act of God to knock them off. Last year we saw a 14-game winning streak get snapped in Columbus. That led to losing two out of three with the second coming to Michigan. That sparked a 13-game winning streak only to see it killed by none other than the Wolverines in the Big Ten Tournament. And what happened to Michigan State after that? They lost two out of three with second coming to Syracuse which ended their season.

Michigan State has had Rutgers and Penn State on their schedule. But they have also beaten Iowa, Purdue and exercising the demons with a win in Columbus. When Tom Izzo is rolling, there’s no stopping him. Even when he loses two lottery picks from the year before and has a very down recruiting class.

Cassius Winston, Nick Ward and Joshua Langford have all returned. Winston can make the case as one of the country’s best point guards, averaging 17.6 points per game, 7.4 assists with 20 steals and 44 three-pointers. Ward may give up some height from time to time, but when he’s in the right state of mind, few are better than him in the paint. Langford though has missed the past four games. That’s a shame because he’s having his best season yet. He’s shooting great from deep and is averaging over 15 points per game.

None of the three four-star recruits are seeing much playing time. It’s actually Aaron Henry who is one of the last guys in the rotation, but made a start against Penn State for an injured Langford and Kyle Ahrens. Michigan State goes a solid eight deep and if one of the top-100 recruits comes on later in Big Ten play, that will make them even more dangerous.

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