The Big Ten’s top four players will rank among the nation’s top 10 at the end of the season. Michigan guard Trey Burke, Ohio State forward Deshaun Thomas, Indiana center Cody Zeller and Indiana guard/forward Victor Oladipo all are competitive for first-team All-American honors. All four are almost assured of landing on the top two [...]

IOWA CITY — The lane was clear for Iowa guard Devyn Marble, thanks to sophomore teammate Josh Oglesby. In perhaps the game’s most pivotal possession Tuesday night, the Hawkeyes had a play drawn up for Oglesby. The Illinois defense knew it and watched for Oglesby. Marble took advantage, scored, was fouled, sank a free throw and [...]

Iowa’s Devyn Marble scored 21 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished four assists in Iowa’s 63-55 win against Illinois on Tuesday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Here’s Marble talking about the win and Josh Oglesby’s play down the stretch. Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery showed obvious excitement with the win and happiness with Oglesby’s performance late. Iowa sophomore [...]

IOWA CITY — Andy Kaufmann still hears about his shot at weddings and funerals. Friends remind him of it every time the Fighting Illini battle Iowa in a basketball game. People still shake his hand and tell him they were at The Assembly Hall the night he buried a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to lift Illinois past Iowa [...]

IOWA CITY — In the two games since Mike Gesell’s foot injury, sophomore Josh Oglesby has started at off-guard and Devyn Marble has played the point. The results have been mixed. Marble has scored 38 points in the two games, while Oglesby is 1-for-9 from the field with seven total points. Senior Eric May has [...]

ILLINOIS Games against Iowa — March 5 in Iowa City Recent Action vs. Iowa — Iowa snapped series-worst 7-game losing streak in Big Ten Tournament. Illinois has won series-record 3 straight in Iowa City Who’s Back? — Wings Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson are explosive scorers who fit with new coach John Groce’s system. PG [...]

IOWA CITY — Tom Izzo might have the Big Ten’s sixth-best basketball team, and his Michigan State Spartans rank 19th in both major polls. “This league, definitely, has to be the best in my era,” Izzo said Monday morning. Izzo has coached the Spartans since 1995 and taken the team to seven Final Fours and one [...]

ILLINI ARE BACK No. 22 Illinois perpetually is the Big Ten dark horse because it always has talent. When coaches can put it together, like Bill Self a decade ago, the Fighting Illini are a national player. When they can’t, like Bruce Weber recently, they end up mediocre. Right now, it looks like the 8-0 [...]

Michigan junior guard Tim Hardaway Jr. doesn’t fear the known as much as he does the unknown. Hardaway is aware the Big Ten boasts four men’s basketball teams ranked in the top 14, including his own. It will take a complete effort for any team to win those games, whether it’s at No. 1 Indiana [...]

It’s Ohio State and everybody else. The Buckeyes are the Big Ten’s undisputed top team but NCAA sanctions prevent Ohio State from competing in the postseason this year. It’s anybody’s educated guess as to who plays whom in Indianapolis’ everybody-else Big Ten bowl this December. That’s because No. 12 Ohio State has lapped its Big [...]