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Michigan State Basketball: Why Spartans deserve a No. 1 seed for the Big Dance

By Ryan Kay

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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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MARCH 16: Xavier Tillman #23 of the Michigan State Spartans attempts a shot while being guarded by Charles Thomas IV #15 of the Wisconsin Badgers in the first half during the semifinals of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at the United Center on March 16, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MARCH 16: Xavier Tillman #23 of the Michigan State Spartans attempts a shot while being guarded by Charles Thomas IV #15 of the Wisconsin Badgers in the first half during the semifinals of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at the United Center on March 16, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

Won Regular Season Title in arguably the toughest conference in America

Even though others will argue that the Atlantic Coast Conference is the best conference in America, top to bottom the Big Ten Conference  has the best overall collection of teams making the Big Ten the best conference in America.

Michigan State Basketball did share the regular season title with Purdue, but Michigan State earned the #1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament due to playing a more difficult conference schedule and winning the tiebreakers against Purdue.  The Spartans also advanced to the Tournament semifinals, while the Boilermakers lost in the quarterfinals further validating Michigan State as the best team in the Big Ten.

If you want to compare the Big Ten to other Power 5 Conferences, according to the NET Rankings which is the new ranking system the NCAA uses that replaced the RPI ranking system, the Big Ten has currently has 10 teams ranked in the top 60, while the ACC has nine, the Big 12 has eight, the SEC has six, and the PAC-12 has two teams ranked in the top 60.

The NCAA Tournament Committee when evaluating who gets a #1 seed, they need to put that into consideration that the Spartans are the best team in the best conference from top to bottom.

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