Big 10 Tournament Odds & Picks

By Mike Rose

How schizophrenic was the Big Ten regular season? Raise your hand if you had both the Illinois Fighting

 Illini and Wisconsin Badgers going on to steal the regular season title away from the Purdue Boilermakers who have nobody to blame but themselves for the late season swoon. As great Matt Painter’s offense is, the defense leaves much to be desired which has me questioning linemakers at BetRivers Sportsbook as to why Jaden Ivey and company are installed the odds on favorite to cut the nets down come late Sunday afternoon. On top of that, they’re taking money from the betting public. I’m not buying it! I think this tournament is wide open from the top seeds all the way down to the long shot dart throws. I get that it’s taking place in the Boiler’s backyard, but that’s still not enough for me to buy into a PU outfit that split its 10 played road games and only managed to cover at a 3-6-1 ATS clip in those contests. Sorry, not sorry but I’m looking elsewhere. The following are favorite, underdog and long shot positions I’ve taken to cut down the nets in the B1G tourney.

Big 10 Tournament Odds at BetRivers Sportsbook

Purdue +175

Illinois +275

Iowa +400

Wisconsin +800

Ohio State +1200

Rutgers/Michigan +1400

Michigan State +1600

Indiana +2200

Northwestern +6600

Penn State +8000

Maryland/Nebraska/Minnesota +10000

Favorite to Bet: Iowa Hawkeyes +400

I wouldn’t fault you if the decision was made to run with either of the two chalks. For as big a detractor I am of Purdue, the Boilermakers still march one heck of a team onto the hardwood every passing game. It’s also tough not to buy into Kofi Cockburn and company making a run at a repeat. However, I’m going to side with arguably the hottest team in the conference that closed the regular season out with wins in eight of their final 10 games and covered the closing number all but twice. I’m speaking of none other than the Keegan Murray led Iowa Hawkeyes. Fran McCaffrey’s kids would’ve invaded Indianapolis winners of six straight had they found a way to upend Illinois in Champagne in the finale. They still covered the 3.5-point spread in a 74-72 defeat. Iowa’s resurgence has been mainly because of its drastic improvement at the defensive end of the court paired with an unrelenting offensive attack that tickles the twine for better than 83 points per game (No. 5). While it would’ve been nice to secure the No. 4 seed, I still like the Hawkeyes path to the finals. They get the winner of the 13/12 game in the second round and then a revenge tilt with Rutgers whom it fell to 48-46 as 3-point road favorites back in late January. Win those games, and it’s a likely rematch with Illinois whom it tested mightily on the road this past Sunday. This team is in a groove and looking very confident. KenPom.com only has Iowa ranked behind Purdue in B1G play. Peeps are taking notice and so should you!

Underdog to Bet: Rutgers Scarlet Knights +1400

Much like the team up above, Rutgers closed the season out on a high as well capturing wins in six of its final nine played games to score the No. 4 seed in the Big Ten tournament. Having already led the program to an NCAA tournament bid for the first time in 29 years last season, Steve Pikiell likely never has to buy a meal or drink when frequenting local establishments in New Brunswick the remainder of his life. But there’s bigger game out there to be had and Rutgers looks like a team stoked about the path that lies ahead. It’s run up against the No. 19 ranked offensive strength of schedule, yet the defense still clocks in at No. 38 overall in efficiency. That’s extremely telling right there – the Scarlet Knights know how to play some defense! That paired with slowing every game to a crawl (No. 292) has allowed it to win 18 overall games and go an insane 7-3 SU and 9-1 ATS the last 10 times it went off the board dogged. Ron Harper Jr. is a special player that never shies away from the big moment. Case in point most recently hitting the game winner at Indiana to score the win that put them in a position to snag the No. 4 seed. The kids a winner on a team that only now just might be coming into its own. At 14-1, I’m willing to throw a unit on them just to see if the magic continues.

Longshot to Bet: Indiana Hoosiers +2200

As it stands right now, the Hoosiers are on the outside looking into the Big Dance as one of the first four teams out according to Joe Lunardi’s most recent 2022 NCAA Tournament Bracketology installment. Indiana must win this tournament to have any shot of guaranteeing itself an automatic bid. Either that, or at the very least reach the finals and go down fighting. While I might be talking myself into this dart throw more than anything else, go ahead and name me a team that suffered more heartbreaking defeats than that of the 2021-22 Hoosiers. Each of their last two were no doubt sickening. A last second defeat to Rutgers at home followed by a two point loss at Purdue to close it all out. Don’t forget about the overtime loss in Columbus back on February 21 that saw Ohio State cover the 7-point spread in the extra session! Believe it or not, but IU ranks out No. 44 at KenPom.com, and ranks out even better per the T Ratings (No. 22). With Trayce Jackson-Davis and Race Thompson down low and Xavier Johnson being the ultimate ball distributor, the Hoosiers have a solid foundation that could get hot and lead the team to the Promised Land. I know it’s a big if, but you have to think there’ll be a large contingent of Indiana fans in attendance willing their squad to victory.