The Big Ten regular season brought multiple surprises over the last few months.
Purdue gave up its spot atop the conference for the first time in two years, while Michigan State staked its claim as the conference’s best team and won the Big Ten regular season title for the first time in five seasons.
Maryland was perhaps the biggest surprise in the Big Ten this season, rising eight spots from the preseason media poll projections to earn the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. Indiana was projected to be the second-best team in conference but finished ninth with an NCAA Tournament berth in question.