Big Ten Basketball power rankings: Illinois, Rutgers rise to top of standings
By Adam Childs
If you want on talent the Buckeyes would be near the top of these rankings. But talent doesn’t always equate to wins and Ohio State is not winning much lately.
The Buckeyes have lost five of their last six games including double-digit losses to Maryland, Indiana, and Penn State, Their lone win came at home against Nebraska.
Ohio State went from what some people thought the number one team in the country to out of the rankings in a month. Something is wrong in Columbus and it is hard to figure out what exactly.
The once-powerful Buckeyes offense is struggling to score and they are turning the ball over almost 14 times a game. It looks like the offensive struggles have seeped into their defensive effort also.
Kaleb Wesson is still playing well scoring 14.7 points per game, but he isn’t getting much help as the Buckeyes have scored in the 50’s in three of their recent losses. They need to figure out something quick before the season completely slips away.
The Boilermakers are a curious team right now. They score just 37 points against Illinois, then take Michigan to double overtime in Ann Arbor and to finish it off they beat a good Michigan State team by 29 at home. They then follow that up by playing Maryland close but losing by seven on the road.
Purdue, like most teams in the Big Ten, plays much better at home than on the road but that still doesn’t excuse their 37 point clunker against the Illini.
The problem for the Boilermakers is they just don’t have a go-to scorer this year as they have in recent years. If they can hit their shots they are a dangerous team, but too often they can’t put the ball in the basket and go through prolonged scoring slumps.