Busting Brackets
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Big Ten Basketball: Why conference is better than the ACC in 2018-19

By Adam Childs

COLUMBUS, OH - JANUARY 5: Head Coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans shouts instructions to his team in the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes on January 5, 2019 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH - JANUARY 5: Head Coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans shouts instructions to his team in the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes on January 5, 2019 at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /
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PISCATAWAY, NJ – JANUARY 09: Andre Wesson #24 of the Ohio State Buckeyes attempts a shot as Myles Johnson #15 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights defends during the first half a game at Rutgers Athletic Center on January 9, 2019 in Piscataway, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PISCATAWAY, NJ – JANUARY 09: Andre Wesson #24 of the Ohio State Buckeyes attempts a shot as Myles Johnson #15 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights defends during the first half a game at Rutgers Athletic Center on January 9, 2019 in Piscataway, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

2. The bottom is better

While almost anyone that wants to compare conferences will point to the top teams and who is better, they still need to pay attention to the bottom. But like any team you are only as good as your worst player or in this case team. Especially when the top teams are so closely ranked, you have to look further down the list to find some separation. That is how we get to the bottom.

If you look at the bottom four teams of each conference, there is no doubt the Big Ten is better. The Big Ten is represented by Northwestern, Illinois, Rutgers and Penn State. The ACC has Clemson, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, and Miami.

Think about this for a second. The worst team in the Big Ten by record is Penn State and during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge they beat Virginia Tech, who is the fifth best team in the ACC by record. The reverse argument could be made that Notre Dame beat Purdue earlier this year, but Purdue is playing much better now, while Virginia Tech has looked very vulnerable since then. Plus Penn State has looked awful against most every other power-five opponent.

Each team at the bottom of the Big Ten has either upset a top team or gave them a run for their money. While that could mean the top is bad, it is the opposite this year and shows the strength of the Big Ten. The ACC is so top heavy that there does not seem to be any big upsets this year.

Northwestern can be a dangerous team, while Illinois is not as bad as their record would show. They went through a stretch where they lost four straight games that they lead in the second half. They also gave Gonzaga all they could handle in Maui before losing by six. Rutgers has shown they can play with a lot of teams also.

Wake Forest, on the other hand, may be one of the worst power five teams in the country and Miami is not playing good basketball at all. Notre Dame has been a mystery and Clemson might be one of the biggest disappointments this year. None of those schools are playing good basketball right now and I think the Big Ten would win each of those four games if they played right now.

Again you are only as good as your worst team, and the Big Ten is better at the bottom. Right now that is enough to show that the Big Ten is the better conference.