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March Madness 2019 conference power ranking

By Jacob Lane

CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 15: Duke Blue Devils forward Zion Williamson (1) dunks during the ACC basketball tournament between the Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tar Heels on March 15, 2019, at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC. (Photo by William Howard/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NC - MARCH 15: Duke Blue Devils forward Zion Williamson (1) dunks during the ACC basketball tournament between the Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tar Heels on March 15, 2019, at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC. (Photo by William Howard/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 17: Michigan State Spartans guard Matt McQuaid (20) cuts a piece of the net after the Big Ten Tournament championship game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Michigan Wolverines on March 17, 2019, at the United Center in Chicago, IL. (Photo by Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 17: Michigan State Spartans guard Matt McQuaid (20) cuts a piece of the net after the Big Ten Tournament championship game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Michigan Wolverines on March 17, 2019, at the United Center in Chicago, IL. (Photo by Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

2. Big Ten

Teams: 8, Michigan State (2), Michigan (2), Purdue (3), Wisconsin (5), Maryland (6), Iowa (10), Minnesota (10), Ohio State (11) 

Average seed: 6.12

There were only four teams from the Big Ten last year that made the NCAA Tournament, so in terms of improvement year-over-year, there’s no denying that the Big Ten is at the top.

While there is argument to be made that Michigan State, Big Ten conference champs, deserved to be a one seed, the stronger case is that in terms of bracket placement, they got a raw deal. Typically the number one overall two seed isn’t placed in the same bracket as the number one overall one seed, but that’s exactly what happened with Duke and Michigan State. If the Spartans are even going to make it to a matchup with Duke, they’ll have a lot of work to do first having to go up against the likes of Louisville (a team who already beat them once) and LSU.

Aside from Michigan State, the Big Ten also produced Michigan as a two seed, Purdue as a three seed, and Wisconsin and Maryland as five and six seeds respectively. Not to mention the conference saw Iowa, Minnesota and Ohio State, three teams who finished in the back half of the conference, get in as double digit seeds.

Michigan State, Michigan and Purdue are all as dangerous as any other team in the tournament and are more than capable of extended stays through March.

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