Northwestern will look to solidify its NCAA Tournament case, while last-place Illinois will try to make an unlikely run as the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament opens this week in Indianapolis.
The 14th-seeded Illini (6-19, 1-13) play No. 11 seed Wisconsin (8-20, 5-13) in the second of Wednesday’s two first-round games (3:30 p.m., BTN). The winner will meet No. 6 seed Nebraska in the second round Thursday.
No. 7 seed Northwestern (16-11, 8-8) got a bye into the second round, where it will face 10th-seeded Minnesota (14-16, 7-11) on Thursday (5:30 p.m., BTN). The Wildcats were listed as the last at-large team in the newly expanded 68-team NCAA Tournament field in ESPN’s latest bracket projection Monday.
If they get past the Gophers, the Wildcats would meet No. 2 seed Iowa in a Friday quarterfinal. Northwestern lost at Minnesota on Feb. 11 and split two games with the Hawkeyes in January, with the road team winning each game.
ESPN projects seven Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament field: Michigan (as a No. 2 seed), Iowa (No. 4), Maryland (No. 4), Indiana (No. 5), OhioState (No. 6), Nebraska (No. 7) and Northwestern (No. 12).
Big Ten Tournament schedule
At Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis
Wednesday (first round)
Game 1: #12 Penn State vs. #13 Rutgers, 1 p.m., BTN
Game 2: #11 Wisconsin vs. #14 Illinois, 3:30 p.m., BTN
Thursday (second round)
Game 3: #8 Michigan State vs. #9 Purdue, 10:30 a.m., BTN
Game 4: #5 Indiana vs. Game 1 winner, 25 minutes after Game 3, BTN
Game 5: #7 Northwestern vs. #10 Minnesota, 5:30 p.m., BTN
Game 6: #6 Nebraska vs. Game 2 winner, 25 minutes after Game 5, BTN
Friday (quarterfinals)
Game 7: #1 Ohio State vs. Game 3 winner, 10:30 a.m., BTN
Game 8: #4 Maryland vs. Game 4 winner, 25 minutes after Game 7, BTN
Game 9: #2 Iowa vs. Game 5 winner, 5:30 p.m., BTN
Game 10: #3 Michigan vs. Game 6 winner, 25 minutes after Game 9, BTN
Saturday (semifinals)
Game 11: Game 7 vs. Game 8 winner, 2:30 p.m., BTN
Game 12: Game 9 vs. Game 10 winner, 5 p.m., BTN
Sunday (championship)
Game 13: Game 11 vs. Game 12 winner, 3 p.m., ESPN2