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As the Big Ten basketball season heads toward its final stretch, Purdue has taken over as the conference’s top team. On the back of superstar Caleb Swanigan, the Boilermakers are peaking at the right time. Combined with Wisconsin’s recent two game skid (a home loss to Northwestern followed by a road defeat at Michigan) and Bronson Koenig’s injury, the Boilermakers could make a major impression on the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee with a Big Ten title. But Maryland is still very much in the mix after an impressive road win over the Scottie Lindsey-less Wildcats. As it stands, it looks to be a three-horse race for the conference title, with Northwestern, Michigan State, Minnesota and Michigan lurking on the outside. Those four teams are in a race of their own: a battle for the all-important fourth seed and double bye in the Big Ten Tournament.
Here are our Big Ten power rankings (as of Feb. 17):
1

Purdue Boilermakers
NEXT: vs. Michigan State
AVERAGE RANK: 1.0
Zach Pereles | 1 | Will Ragatz | 1 |
Martin Oppegaard | 1 | Isaac Bushnell | 1 |
Josh Burton | 1 | Zach Wingrove | 1 |
Chris Grismer | 1 | Caleb Friedman | 1 |
2

Wisconsin Badgers
NEXT: vs. No. 23 Maryland
AVERAGE RANK: 2.3
Zach Pereles | 2 | Will Ragatz | 3 |
Martin Oppegaard | 3 | Isaac Bushnell | 2 |
Josh Burton | 2 | Zach Wingrove | 2 |
Chris Grismer | 2 | Caleb Friedman | 2 |
3

Maryland Terrapins
NEXT: at No. 11 Wisconsin
AVERAGE RANK: 3.1
Zach Pereles | 3 | Will Ragatz | 2 |
Martin Oppegaard | 4 | Isaac Bushnell | 4 |
Josh Burton | 3 | Zach Wingrove | 3 |
Chris Grismer | 3 | Caleb Friedman | 3 |
4

Northwestern Wildcats
NEXT: vs. Rutgers
AVERAGE RANK: 4.0
Zach Pereles | 4 | Will Ragatz | 6 |
Martin Oppegaard | 2 | Isaac Bushnell | 3 |
Josh Burton | 4 | Zach Wingrove | 4 |
Chris Grismer | 4 | Caleb Friedman | 5 |
5

Michigan Wolverines
NEXT: at Minnesota
AVERAGE RANK: 5.0
Zach Pereles | 5 | Will Ragatz | 4 |
Martin Oppegaard | 5 | Isaac Bushnell | 5 |
Josh Burton | 5 | Zach Wingrove | 6 |
Chris Grismer | 6 | Caleb Friedman | 4 |
6

Michigan State Spartans
NEXT: at No. 16 Purdue
AVERAGE RANK: 5.9
Zach Pereles | 6 | Will Ragatz | 5 |
Martin Oppegaard | 7 | Isaac Bushnell | 6 |
Josh Burton | 7 | Zach Wingrove | 5 |
Chris Grismer | 5 | Caleb Friedman | 6 |
7

Minnesota Golden Gophers
NEXT: vs. Michigan
AVERAGE RANK: 6.8
Zach Pereles | 7 | Will Ragatz | 7 |
Martin Oppegaard | 6 | Isaac Bushnell | 7 |
Josh Burton | 6 | Zach Wingrove | 7 |
Chris Grismer | 7 | Caleb Friedman | 7 |
8

Indiana Hoosiers
NEXT: at Iowa
AVERAGE RANK: 8.6
Zach Pereles | 8 | Will Ragatz | 10 |
Martin Oppegaard | 8 | Isaac Bushnell | 8 |
Josh Burton | 9 | Zach Wingrove | 8 |
Chris Grismer | 10 | Caleb Friedman | 8 |
9

Penn State Nittany Lions
NEXT: vs. No. 16 Purdue
AVERAGE RANK: 9.0
Zach Pereles | 9 | Will Ragatz | 8 |
Martin Oppegaard | 9 | Isaac Bushnell | 9 |
Josh Burton | 8 | Zach Wingrove | 11 |
Chris Grismer | 9 | Caleb Friedman | 9 |
10

Iowa Hawkeyes
NEXT: vs. Illinois
AVERAGE RANK: 9.8
Zach Pereles | 10 | Will Ragatz | 9 |
Martin Oppegaard | 11 | Isaac Bushnell | 10 |
Josh Burton | 10 | Zach Wingrove | 9 |
Chris Grismer | 8 | Caleb Friedman | 11 |
11

Ohio State Buckeyes
NEXT: vs. Nebraska
AVERAGE RANK: 10.8
Zach Pereles | 11 | Will Ragatz | 11 |
Martin Oppegaard | 10 | Isaac Bushnell | 11 |
Josh Burton | 11 | Zach Wingrove | 10 |
Chris Grismer | 11 | Caleb Friedman | 11 |
12

Nebraska Cornhuskers
NEXT: at Ohio State
AVERAGE RANK: 12.1
Zach Pereles | 12 | Will Ragatz | 12 |
Martin Oppegaard | 13 | Isaac Bushnell | 13 |
Josh Burton | 13 | Zach Wingrove | 12 |
Chris Grismer | 12 | Caleb Friedman | 10 |
13

Illinois Fighting Illini
NEXT: at Iowa
AVERAGE RANK: 12.6/span>
Zach Pereles | 13 | Will Ragatz | 13 |
Martin Oppegaard | 12 | Isaac Bushnell | 12 |
Josh Burton | 12 | Zach Wingrove | 13 |
Chris Grismer | 13 | Caleb Friedman | 13 |
14

Rutgers Scarlet Knights
NEXT: at Northwestern
AVERAGE RANK: 14.0
Zach Pereles | 14 | Will Ragatz | 14 |
Martin Oppegaard | 14 | Isaac Bushnell | 14 |
Josh Burton | 14 | Zach Wingrove | 14 |
Chris Grismer | 14 | Caleb Friedman | 14 |