Big Ten Basketball power rankings: Illnois and Rutgers continue to climb up

2. Purdue Boilermakers – 13-2 (2-2)

Remember when Purdue was viewed as the heavy favorite to win the Big Ten and could go 18-2 overall? Well, they’re now at .500 overall in league play and not only lost to Wisconsin last week but struggled to put away Penn State on the road before pulling away for a seven-point victory. Zach Edey had a big game against Wisconsin and Trevion Williams had another versus the Nittany Lions but the guard outside of Jaden Ivey has really struggled as of late.

The Boilermakers still look like a top-tier contender in the conference but are much more vulnerable as of late. They should have no issue against Nebraska at home this week but looming is an intriguing battle against Kofi Cockburn and Illinois on Monday the 17th.

1. Michigan State Spartans – 13-2 (4-0)

With the rivalry matchup against Michigan postponed this past weekend, the Spartans only had a 13-point home win over Nebraska to look at, thanks to 21 points from freshman Max Christie. In a league with superstar individual players, Michigan State can argue that it has the best overall “team” in the conference in terms of depth and consistent production.

To a degree, the Spartans have had an easy schedule, having faced Minnesota, Penn State, Northwestern, and Nebraska so far. And it doesn’t get much tougher this week, with home battles against Minnesota and Northwestern once again. They should be 6-0 in league play next Friday when they take on Wisconsin on the road, the start of what on paper will be a brutal stretch.

Whether Michigan State is truly the best team in Big Ten Basketball is yet to be determined but in a span of two weeks that included upsets and letdowns, the Spartans have managed to avoid any of that. And if Christie is starting to turn a concern into becoming a consistent and more dangerous scorer, then this team can reach a whole new ceiling for the rest of the season.