Busting Brackets
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Big Ten Basketball: Ranking each team’s league schedule for 2021-22 season

By Trevor Sinodhinos

Feb 13, 2021; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo during the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 13, 2021; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo during the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /
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Big Ten Basketball E.J. Liddell Ohio State Buckeyes (Photo by G Fiume/Maryland Terrapins/Getty Images)
Big Ten Basketball E.J. Liddell Ohio State Buckeyes (Photo by G Fiume/Maryland Terrapins/Getty Images) /

4. Ohio State Buckeyes

Home & Away – Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Wisconsin
Home Only – Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern
Away Only – Illinois, Purdue, Rutgers

Chris Holtmann has himself a very good team, which makes the schedule look a lot easier when you have the ability to beat a lot of teams. After finishing in fifth place with a 12-8 conference record, then capping the Big Ten season with a three-point loss to Illinois in the championship game, they return four of five starters, one of which will be coming off the bench in 2021-22.

Putting aside the fact that the Buckeyes will be playing non-conference games versus Duke and Kentucky, their conference schedule has them playing Minnesota, Penn State, Nebraska, and Wisconsin twice each. The trickiest of those eight wins should be the deep and fast-paced Cornhuskers whose guards can score, but like mentioned back at No.7 the Cornhuskers’ three-guard back-court will not be big enough to defend.

Michigan should be an interesting match-up due to 6’11, 255-pound Joey Brunk joining the Buckeyes, it will be a different match-up for Dickinson than Kyle Young. Plus the Sueing versus Houston match-up will be intriguing.

Their unfortunate away schedule is what keeps them from being in the top three ‘schedule winners’. Purdue is the team Ohio State will be chasing in the standings and Illinois will be right behind them, two losses would send their second-place aspirations into fourth place.

As for their home games, Iowa and Northwestern are two victories regardless of the location, but the home court will be the saving grace for Ohio State to defeat Michigan State led by Tyson Walker, qs not everybody is sold on Jamari Wheeler improving his output substantially compared to what he did at Penn State.

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