2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament

The 2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament was a postseason men's basketball tournament for the Big Ten Conference of the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season which took place March 10–14, 2021. The tournament was originally to be held at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. However, on February 9, the tournament was moved to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana to better deal with testing concerns raised by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[1]

2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season2020–21
Teams14
SiteLucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
ChampionsIllinois (3rd title)
Winning coachBrad Underwood (1st title)
MVPAyo Dosunmu (Illinois)
TelevisionBTN, CBS
← 2020
2022 →
2020–21 Big Ten Conference
men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Michigan 14 3   .824 23 5   .821
No. 2 Illinois 16 4   .800 24 7   .774
No. 8 Iowa 14 6   .700 22 9   .710
No. 20 Purdue 13 6   .684 18 10   .643
No. 7 Ohio State 12 8   .600 21 10   .677
Wisconsin 10 10   .500 18 13   .581
Rutgers 10 10   .500 16 12   .571
Maryland 9 11   .450 17 14   .548
Michigan State 9 11   .450 15 13   .536
Indiana 7 12   .368 12 15   .444
Penn State 7 12   .368 11 14   .440
Northwestern 6 13   .316 9 15   .375
Minnesota 6 14   .300 14 15   .483
Nebraska 3 16   .158 7 20   .259
Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Illinois defeated Ohio State 91–88 in overtime in the championship game to win the tournament. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Seeds

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All 14 Big Ten schools participated in the tournament. Teams were seeded by conference record, with a tiebreaker system used to seed teams with identical conference records. The top 10 teams received a first round bye and the top four teams received a double bye. Tiebreaking procedures remained unchanged from the 2020 tournament.[2]

Seed School Conference Tiebreak 1
1 Michigan 14–3
2 Illinois 16–4
3 Iowa 14–6
4 Purdue 13–6
5 Ohio State 12–8
6 Wisconsin 10–10 1–0 vs. Rutgers
7 Rutgers 10–10 0–1 vs. Wisconsin
8 Maryland 9–11 1–0 vs. Michigan State
9 Michigan State 9–11 0–1 vs. Maryland
10 Indiana 7–12 1–0 vs. Penn State
11 Penn State 7–12 0–1 vs. Indiana
12 Northwestern 6–13
13 Minnesota 6–14
14 Nebraska 3–16

Schedule

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Session Game Time* Matchup# Television Attendance Score
First round – Wednesday, March 10
1 1 6:30 pm No. 13 Minnesota vs. No. 12 Northwestern BTN 5,909 51–46
2 9:00 pm No. 14 Nebraska vs. No. 11 Penn State 66–72
Second round – Thursday, March 11
2 3 11:30 am No. 9 Michigan State vs. No. 8 Maryland BTN 6,206 57–68
4 2:00 pm No. 13 Minnesota vs. No. 5 Ohio State 75–79
3 5 6:30 pm No. 10 Indiana vs. No. 7 Rutgers 6,769 50–61
6 9:00 pm No. 11 Penn State vs. No. 6 Wisconsin 74–75
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 12
4 7 11:30 am No. 8 Maryland vs. No. 1 Michigan BTN 7,634 66–79
8 2:00 pm No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Purdue 87–78OT
5 9 6:30 pm No. 7 Rutgers vs. No. 2 Illinois 7,735 68–90
10 9:00 pm No. 6 Wisconsin vs. No. 3 Iowa 57–62
Semifinals – Saturday, March 13
6 11 1:00 pm No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 5 Ohio State CBS 8,000 67–68
12 3:50 pm No. 2 Illinois vs. No. 3 Iowa 82–71
Championship – Sunday, March 14
7 13 3:30 pm No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 2 Illinois CBS 8,000 88–91OT

*Game times in Eastern Time. #Rankings denote tournament seeding.

Bracket

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First round
Wednesday, March 10
BTN[3]
Second round
Thursday, March 11
BTN
Quarterfinals
Friday, March 12
BTN
Semifinals
Saturday, March 13
CBS
Championship
Sunday, March 14
CBS
1Michigan79
8Maryland688Maryland66
9Michigan State571Michigan67
5Ohio State68
4Purdue78
5Ohio State795Ohio State87*
12Northwestern4613Minnesota755Ohio State88
13Minnesota512Illinois91*
2Illinois90
7Rutgers617Rutgers68
10Indiana502Illinois82
3Iowa71
3Iowa62
6Wisconsin756Wisconsin57
11Penn State7211Penn State74
14Nebraska66

* denotes overtime period

Game summaries

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First round

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BTN
March 10
6:30 pm
No. 13 Minnesota 51, No. 12 Northwestern 46
Scoring by half: 27−20, 24−26
Pts: Tre' Williams, 14
Rebs: Eric Curry, 12
Asts: Marcus Carr, 6
Pts: Miller Kopp, 9
Rebs: Pete Nance, 11
Asts: Boo Buie, 3
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 5,909
Referees: Larry Scirotto, Bo Boroski, Rob Riley
BTN
March 10
9:00 pm
No. 14 Nebraska 66, No. 11 Penn State 72
Scoring by half: 37−23, 29−49
Pts: Trey McGowens, 13
Rebs: Derrick Walker, 7
Asts: Derrick Walker, 6
Pts: Jamari Wheeler, 19
Rebs: John Harrar, 14
Asts: John Harrar, 4
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 5,909
Referees: Kelly Pfeifer, D.J. Carstensen, Paul Szelc

Second round

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BTN
March 11
11:30 am
No. 9 Michigan State 57, No. 8 Maryland 68
Scoring by half: 30−34, 27−34
Pts: Malik Hall, 19
Rebs: Aaron Henry, 9
Asts: Rocket Watts, 4
Pts: Eric Ayala, 21
Rebs: Eric Ayala, 9
Asts: Eric Ayala, 4
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 6,206
Referees: Steve McJunkins, Rob Riley, Bo Boroski
BTN
March 11
2:00 pm
No. 13 Minnesota 75, No. 5 Ohio State 79
Scoring by half: 27−39, 48−40
Pts: Marcus Carr, 24
Rebs: Tre' Williams, Brandon Johnson 8
Asts: Marcus Carr, Isaiah Ihnen 4
Pts: Duane Washington Jr., Justice Sueing, 16
Rebs: Justice Sueing, 7
Asts: CJ Walker, 6
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 6,206
Referees: Kelly Pfeifer, D.J. Carstensen, Paul Szelc
BTN
March 11
6:30 pm
No. 10 Indiana 50, No. 7 Rutgers 61
Scoring by half: 32−33, 18−28
Pts: Trayce Jackson-Davis, 19
Rebs: Trayce Jackson-Davis, 9
Asts: Rob Phinisee, 7
Pts: Ron Harper Jr., Jacob Young 13
Rebs: Myles Johnson, 13
Asts: Geo Baker, 7
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 6,769
Referees: Lewis Garrison, Courtney Green, Paul Szelc
BTN
March 11
9:00 pm
No. 11 Penn State 74, No. 6 Wisconsin 75
Scoring by half: 31−41, 43−34
Pts: Sam Sessoms, 18
Rebs: John Harrar, 10
Asts: Myreon Jones, 4
Pts: Aleem Ford, 17
Rebs: Tyler Wahl, 5
Asts: D'Mitrik Trice, 9
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 6,769
Referees: Donnie Eppley, Rob Kueneman, Larry Scirotto

Quarterfinals

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BTN
March 12
11:30 am
No. 8 Maryland 66, No. 1 Michigan 79
Scoring by half: 38−40, 28−39
Pts: Eric Ayala, 19
Rebs: Aaron Wiggins, 7
Asts: Aaron Wiggins, 5
Pts: Mike Smith, 18
Rebs: Austin Davis, 8
Asts: Mike Smith, 15
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 7,634
Referees: Edwin Young, Donnie Eppley, Larry Scirotto
BTN
March 12
2:00 pm
No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Purdue  (OT)
Scoring by half: 49−31, 23−41 Overtime: 15−6
Pts: Duane Washington Jr., 20
Rebs: Justice Sueing, 10
Asts: CJ Walker, 7
Pts: Trevion Williams, 26
Rebs: Trevion Williams, 14
Asts: Trevion Williams, 5
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 7,634
Referees: Rob Kueneman, Courtney Green, Bo Boroski
BTN
March 12
6:30 pm
No. 7 Rutgers 68, No. 2 Illinois 90
Scoring by half: 28−47, 40−43
Pts: Ron Harper Jr., 21
Rebs: Myles Johnson, 5
Asts: Jaden Jones, 2
Pts: Ayo Dosunmu, 23
Rebs: Kofi Cockburn, 12
Asts: Ayo Dosunmu, 6
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 7,735
Referees: Steve McJunkins, Kelly Pfeifer, Paul Szelc
BTN
March 12
9:00 pm
No. 6 Wisconsin 57, No. 3 Iowa 62
Scoring by half: 32−26, 25−36
Pts: D'Mitrik Trice, 19
Rebs: Aleem Ford, Micah Potter, 8
Asts: Jonathan Davis, Brad Davison, 3
Pts: Luka Garza, 24
Rebs: Luka Garza, 9
Asts: Connor McCaffery, 6
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 7,735
Referees: Lewis Garrison, Rob Riley, D.J. Carstensen

Semifinals

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CBS
March 13
1:00 pm
No. 1 Michigan 67, No. 5 Ohio State 68
Scoring by half: 27−26, 40−42
Pts: Hunter Dickinson, 21
Rebs: Hunter Dickinson, Brandon Johns Jr., 8
Asts: Mike Smith, Franz Wagner, 4
Pts: Duane Washington Jr., 24
Rebs: Duane Washington Jr., 6
Asts: Duane Washington Jr., CJ Walker, 4
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 8,000
Referees: Donnie Eppley, Courtney Green, Paul Szelc
CBS
March 13
3:30 pm
No. 2 Illinois 82, No. 3 Iowa 71
Scoring by half: 45−37, 37−34
Pts: Kofi Cockburn, 26
Rebs: Da'Monte Williams, 9
Asts: Ayo Dosunmu, 9
Pts: Luka Garza, 21
Rebs: Luka Garza, 12
Asts: Jordan Bohannon, 6
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 8,000
Referees: Lewis Garrison, Rob Riley, Bo Boroski

Championship

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CBS
March 14
3:30 pm
No. 5 Ohio State 88, No. 2 Illinois 91 (OT)
Scoring by half: 35−40, 42−37 Overtime: 11−14
Pts: Duane Washington Jr., 32
Rebs: Duane Washington Jr., 8
Asts: CJ Walker, 6
Pts: 3 tied, 16
Rebs: Ayo Dosunmu, Kofi Cockburn, 9
Asts: André Curbelo, 5
Lucas Oil Stadium
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 8,000
Referees: Kelly Pfeifer, D.J. Carstensen, Larry Scirotto

All-Tournament Team

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[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Statement on Relocation of the 2021 Big Ten Conference's Men's Basketball Tournament". BigTen.org. Big Ten Conference. February 9, 2021. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  2. ^ "Big Ten Basketball Tournament Tiebreakers". Big Ten Conference. October 26, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
  3. ^ "Big Ten Announces 2020-21 Men's Basketball Schedule". BigTen.org. Big Ten Conference. November 18, 2020. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
  4. ^ Big Ten Media Guide 2022-23