Spartans stay perfect, Illinois bounces back

Welcome back to the Big Ten Basketball Midweek Rundown.

In this edition of the Midweek Rundown, we’ll examine where each ranked Big Ten team sits in the latest version of the AP Poll, as well as review the results from Monday-Wednesday this week. Which teams looked impressive? Which were major disappointments?

Let’s get started with 13.-15. the January version of the Midweek Rundown.

Ten big in the AP poll: Week 11

No. 12 Michigan State
no. 13 Oregon
no. 17 Purdue
no. 19 Illinois
No. 20 Michigan
no. 24 Wisconsin

Rutgers 75, UCLA 68

Rutgers snapped its three-game losing streak with a 75-68 victory over UCLA, extending the Bruins’ skid to four games. Freshman Ace Bailey was the standout, recording a double-double with 20 points, 10 boards. Dylan Harper contributed 18 points, including two 3-pointers, and Jeremiah Williams had 11 points off the bench.

UCLA was led by Eric Dailey Jr. and Sebastian Mack, who each scored 16 points. Despite UCLA’s early 7-0 run and a 33-30 halftime lead, Rutgers rallied in the second half, with Bailey leading the charge to secure the victory.

Maryland 77, Minnesota 71

Maryland tasted Minnesota, led by freshman Derik Queen, scoring a season-high 27 points. Queen played a key role in the victory, scoring six straight points to push Maryland ahead 60-53. His dunk with 4:19 left capped his scoring streak and set a new career high.

Rodney Rice added 21 points, while Ja’Kobi Gillespie had 15 points and seven assists. For Minnesota, Dawson Garcia led the Gophers with 21 points. Freshmen Isaac Asuma and Lu’Cye Patterson each contributed 15 points, but the Gophers’ late push fell short as Maryland held on for the victory.

No. 19 Illinois 94, Indiana 69

Now it was more like it for the Fighting Illini. Illinois cruised to a 94-69 win over Indiana, opening up a massive 28-point halftime deficit. Kylan Boswell led the offense with 22 points, while Kasparas Jakucionis added 21 and Tomislav Ivisic contributed a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. The Fighting Illini were dominant from the start and established a commanding 60-32 lead at halftime.

Indiana rallied after halftime and scored the first 10 points of the second half, but they never really threatened. Oumar Ballo led the Hoosiers with 16 points and 15 rebounds, but his effort wasn’t enough to close the gap.

No. 24 Wisconsin 70, Ohio State 68

Wisconsin fended off a late comeback attempt by Ohio State to secure a 70-68 win, extending its winning streak to six games. The Badgers held a commanding 37-20 lead at halftime, but struggled after the break as Ohio State mounted a rally. Bruce Thornton’s 21 points and Devin Royal’s 12 helped the Buckeyes pull within 65-64 on a layup by Micah Parrish with 16 seconds left. However, John Tonje, who finished with 17 points, hit a key 3-pointer to give Wisconsin a 65-57 lead with just over four minutes left and sealed the win with clutch free throws in the final moments.

John Blackwell added 15 points and Steven Crowl had 14 for Wisconsin, which marked coach Greg Gard’s 200th career victory. Ohio State had a strong second half as Royal’s 3-pointer capped a 9-0 run that closed the gap to 48-44 with just over 10 minutes left. Despite their late surge, the Buckeyes couldn’t complete the comeback and remain one of the most confusing teams in the country.

USC 99, Iowa 89

USC defeated Iowa on Tuesday night, fueled by a stellar performance from Desmond Claude, who scored 25 points. Saint Thomas was also outstanding, contributing 24 points on 9-for-10 shooting, including 3-for-4 from deep.

Wesley Yates III added 21 points and Chibuzo Agbo chipped in 18. Iowa couldn’t keep up despite a strong effort from Owen Freeman, who scored 23 points on 11-for-14 shooting. Payton Sandfort (20 points), Drew Thelwell (16 points) and Josh Dix (13 points) contributed offensively, but Iowa was unable to overcome the Trojans.

No. 12 Michigan State 90, Penn State 85

Michigan State secured a 90-85 victory over Penn State on Wednesday night, with Frankie Fidler leading the way with a season-high 18 points. The Spartans have now won 10 straight games, their longest streak since the 2018-19 season, which ended in a Final Four appearance under coach Tom Izzo.

Penn State continues to struggle, dropping its fourth straight game and third straight against a ranked opponent. Ace Baldwin Jr. was a standout for the Nittany Lions, scoring 20 points. However, Penn State faced a setback when Puff Johnson, who had recently scored 15 points, left the game in the first half with a right hand injury and did not return. Despite Baldwin’s impressive performance, the Nittany Lions couldn’t keep up with Michigan State’s efficient offense.

No. 17 Purdue 69, Washington 58

Purdue rallied in the second half to defeat Washington 69-58 on Wednesday night. Trey Kaufman-Renn led the Boilermakers with 19 points as they overcame a 10-point deficit late in the first half. Purdue trailed by eight at halftime, but surged ahead with an 11-2 run to start the second half, fueled by Kaufman-Renn’s strong performance.

Despite the loss, Great Osobor shined for Washington, scoring 28 points. He was incredibly efficient, hitting 8-of-9 from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 from three-point range, while also grabbing nine rebounds. However, his efforts weren’t enough to stop Purdue from extending their dominance in the second half.

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