Detroit News Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings: Week of Dec. 18

1. Michigan State (10-1, 2-0) – The Spartans got everything they could handle in a victory over Oakland, a win that might not be impressive to some but was one Tom Izzo was happy to get. The Spartans now get back to work in finishing up the non-conference schedule that offers few roadblocks as Houston Baptist and Long Beach State are up this week. Last week: 1.

2. Purdue (11-2, 2-0) – The struggles in the Bahamas are fading quickly as the Boilermakers have now won seven straight following a dismantling of Butler over the weekend. No, it’s not a vintage Butler team, but Purdue’s defense was suffocating and the balance is there offensively as the Boilermakers have just two tune-ups left before conference play resumes. Last week: 2.

3. Michigan (10-3, 1-1) – Put no stock in the blowout victory over Detroit Mercy on Saturday, that was simply a superior team taking care of business. What was impressive last week for the Wolverines was the road win over Texas. The Longhorns were missing their top scorer, but UM lost Moritz Wagner late and still got a win over a solid Power Five team. Two more likely easy games should give Wagner time to be ready to jump back into Big Ten play. Last week: 6.

4. Maryland (10-3, 1-1) – It was a slow week for the Terrapins, who had a fairly lackluster win over Catholic and look forward to a couple more pushovers before Big Ten play gets rolling after the first of the year. The Terps are young and don’t have a truly notable win yet, which makes them a bit of an unknown heading into conference play. Last week: 3.

5. Ohio State (9-3, 2-0) – Not much happened this week to bolster the Buckeyes’ resume as they beat Appalachian State. The bigger test comes Saturday when they host North Carolina. That should give a pretty good indication of whether the Buckeyes will hang around the top of the Big Ten standings or settle somewhere in the middle of the pack. Last week: 4.

6. Minnesota (9-3, 1-1) – Still waiting the be impressed by the Golden Gophers, a team that many still believe can make a run at the Big Ten championship. That might be pushing it if the last couple of weeks are any indication. Coming off three losses in four games, the Gophers beat Drake by one at home this week, the same Drake team that got drilled by Iowa. Last week: 5.

7. Northwestern (8-4, 1-1) – The Wildcats were busy this week trying to pad the number in the win column. They did that by dispatching Chicago State, Valparaiso and DePaul. But it was hardly a perfect week as the DePaul win came tougher than expected with Vic Law battling illness and Bryant McIntosh missing 15 shots. This is still a good team, it’s just struggling to show that on a consistent basis. Last week: 8.

8. Indiana (6-5, 1-1) – The Hoosiers entered Saturday’s game against Notre Dame having lost three of four, so of course, the win over the Fighting Irish was exactly what everyone expected. But as we said last week, it’s gonna be one of those years for the Hoosiers, who can look great one night and awful the next. Show the grit they did against the Irish and there can be a lot more good nights for the Hoosiers. Last week: 10.

9. Rutgers (10-3, 0-2) – The Scarlet Knights showed grit in their loss a couple of weeks ago to Michigan State, enough to believe things are starting to turn around in Piscataway. They proved that on Saturday by knocking off No. 15 Seton Hall, the first win over a ranked opponent since early 2015. Corey Sanders and freshman Geo Baker are creating an impressive backcourt tandem. Last week: 11.

10. Nebraska (7-5, 1-1) – The record says the Cornhuskers should be ranked lower, but a closer look at their losses shows this is a better team than the win total shows. They had Kansas on the ropes before falling to a last-minute three and the loss to Creighton went down to the wire. The Huskers need to learn how to close games, but they’re gonna be a problem for plenty of Big Ten foes. Last week: 9.

11. Penn State (9-3, 1-1) – The Nittany Lions entered Sunday’s game having not won two in a row in a month but remedied that by cruising past George Mason. Penn State should rack up a few more wins over the next couple of weeks, but finding some consistency in the Big Ten is the next step for a young but talented team. Last week: 7.

12. Wisconsin (5-7, 1-1) – The Badgers got a win at home over Western Kentucky, but it came thanks, in part, to a questionable charging call at the end of the game. That call can be debated, but what can’t be is the fact the Badgers are a team without much optimism moving forward. Injuries have played a role, but even getting guard D’Mitrik Trice back at some point might not make much difference. Last week: 13.

13. Illinois (8-5, 0-2) – The Fighting Illini got down big to New Mexico State, rallied to take a second-half lead and then gave it up late. There’s enough there to think the Illini will cause some problems this season in the Big Ten, but the lack of any sort of offensive consistency means they’ll likely be stuck near the bottom of the standings. Last week: 12.