2015–16 Big Ten Conference men's basketball season

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

2015–16 Big Ten Conference men's basketball season
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportBasketball
Number of teams14
TV partner(s)Big Ten Network, ESPN, CBS
2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Regular season championsIndiana
  Runners-upMichigan State
Season MVPDenzel Valentine
Top scorerDenzel Valentine
Tournament
ChampionsMichigan State
  Runners-upPurdue
Finals MVPDenzel Valentine
Basketball seasons
2015–16 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 14 Indiana 15 3   .833 27 8   .771
No. 2 Michigan State 13 5   .722 29 6   .829
No. 18 Maryland 12 6   .667 27 9   .750
No. 12 Purdue 12 6   .667 26 9   .743
No. 25 Iowa 12 6   .667 22 11   .667
Wisconsin 12 6   .667 22 13   .629
Ohio State 11 7   .611 21 14   .600
Michigan 10 8   .556 23 13   .639
Northwestern 8 10   .444 20 12   .625
Penn State 7 11   .389 16 16   .500
Nebraska 6 12   .333 16 18   .471
Illinois 5 13   .278 15 19   .441
Minnesota 2 16   .111 11 20   .355
Rutgers 1 17   .056 7 25   .219
2016 Big Ten tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2015–16 Big Ten men's basketball season began with practices in October 2015, followed by the start of the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November. Conference play began in late December and concluded in March, 2016.

Indiana won the Big Ten regular season by two games over second place Michigan State. Four teams tied for third place.

Denzel Valentine was the Conference Player of the Year and won many national player of the year awards (splitting them with Buddy Hield).[1] Valentine and Jarrod Uthoff were consensus All-Americans, while Yogi Ferrell also received some All-American recognition. Uthoff was named Academic All-America Team Member of the Year, while Shavon Shields and Mike Gessell were also named Academic All-America. Tom Crean was named Big Ten Coach of the Year.

Following the season, Tom Izzo was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. After taking over for Bo Ryan midseason, Greg Gard was named the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award winner.

The Big Ten tournament was held from March 9–13, 2016 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. Michigan State won the tournament championship by defeating Purdue in the championship game. As a result, the Spartans received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Seven Big Ten schools (Michigan State, Indiana, Maryland, Purdue, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan) were invited to the NCAA Tournament marking the sixth consecutive year the Big ten had at least six teams in the Tournament. The conference sent three teams to the Sweet Sixteen (Indiana, Maryland, and Wisconsin), marking the ninth consecutive season multiple Big Ten teams advanced to the Sweet Sixteen.[2] In the previous four seasons, at least one Big Ten team reached the Final Four, however no Big Ten team made it past the Sweet Sixteen.[2] The conference achieved an 8–7 record in the Tournament. Ohio State also received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament, losing in the first round.

Nine Big Ten teams won 20 games on the season marking the first time in history this occurred.[2]

Head coaches

Team Head coach Previous job Year at school Overall record Big Ten record Big Ten titles NCAA Tournaments NCAA Final Fours NCAA Championships
Illinois John Groce Ohio 4th 62–42 24–30 0 1 0 0
Indiana Tom Crean Marquette 8th 121–109 49–77 1 3 1 0
Iowa Fran McCaffery Siena 6th 96–75 42–48 0 2 0 0
Maryland Mark Turgeon Texas A&M 5th 87–50 14–4* 0 1 0 0
Michigan John Beilein West Virginia 9th 166–110 78–66 2 5 1 0
Michigan State Tom Izzo Michigan State (Asst.) 21st 495–199 233–107 7 19 7 1
Minnesota Richard Pitino Florida International 3rd 43–28 14–22 0 0 0 0
Nebraska Tim Miles Colorado State 4th 47–49 21–33 0 1 0 0
Northwestern Chris Collins Duke (Asst.) 3rd 29–36 12–24 0 0 0 0
Ohio State Thad Matta Xavier 12th 299–94 132–60 5 9 2 0
Penn State Pat Chambers Boston University 5th 56–75 16–56 0 0 0 0
Purdue Matt Painter Purdue (Assoc.) 11th 212–124 101–75 1 7 0 0
Rutgers Eddie Jordan Los Angeles Lakers (Asst.) 2nd 10–22 2–16 0 0 0 0
Wisconsin Bo Ryan* UW–Milwaukee 15th 357–125 172–68 4 14 2 0

Notes:

  • Year at school includes 2015–16 season.
  • Overall and Big Ten records are from time at current school and are before the beginning of the season.
  • Turgeon's ACC conference record excluded since Maryland began Big Ten Conference play in 2014–15
  • On December 16, 2015, following a win versus Texas A&M–Corpus Christi, Bo Ryan officially retired as head coach of Wisconsin.[3] Greg Gard took over on interim basis.

Preseason

Thomas Bryant, Indiana
Deyonta Davis, Michigan State
Diamond Stone, Maryland

In late October some schools celebrated Midnight Madness.[4] The Big Ten teams would begin their seasons between November 13 and 15.[5]

According to the Big Ten media, Melo Trimble was the preseason conference player of the year and he was joined on the All-Big Ten preseason team by James Blackmon, Jr., Yogi Ferrell, Jarrod Uthoff, Jake Layman, Caris LeVert, Denzel Valentine, A. J. Hammons, Nigel Hayes, and Bronson Koenig. Valentine, Hammons, Hayes and Trimble were all unanimous selections.[6] According to the Big Ten Network, the preseason All-Big Ten team was composed of Trimble, Ferrell, Hayes, LeVert, and Valentine. Trimble, Ferrell, and Hayes were unanimous.[7]

Preseason watchlists

Below is a table of notable preseason watch lists.

Wooden Naismith Robertson Cousy West Erving Malone Abdul-Jabbar Olson Tisdale
James Blackmon, Jr. IND
Green tickY
Green tickY
Thomas Bryant IND
Green tickY
Yogi Ferrell IND
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
A. J. Hammons PUR
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Nigel Hayes WIS
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Bronson Koenig WIS
Green tickY
Green tickY
Jake Layman MD
Green tickY
Green tickY
Caris LeVert MICH
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Diamond Stone MD
Green tickY
Rasheed Sulaimon MD
Green tickY
Caleb Swanigan PUR
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Melo Trimble MD
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Denzel Valentine MSU
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Green tickY
Troy Williams IND
Green tickY
Green tickY

The following players were selected to the 5 major positional preseason 20-man watch lists announced by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame:[8][9]

Ferrell, Hayes, Valentine and Trimble were selected to the 30-man Lute Olson Award preseason watchlist.[10]

Blackmon, Ferrel, Hammons, Hayes, Koenig, Layman, LeVert, Trimble, Valentine and Williams all made the initial 50-man John R. Wooden Award watch list on November 17.[11] On December 2, the 50-man Naismith College Player of the Year watchlist, 33-man Robertson Trophy watchlist and 18-man Wayman Tisdale Award watchlist were announced. Naismith honorees were Ferrel, Hammons, Hayes, LeVert, Swanigan, Trimble, and Valentine.[12][13] Robertson honorees were Ferrel, Hayes, LeVert, Trimble, and Valentine.[14][15] Swanigan was the lone Tisdale honoree from the Big Ten.[14][15] Iowa's Mike Gesell, Maryland's Varun Ram, Michigan's Spike Albrecht, Nebraska's Shavon Shields, Purdue's Rapheal Davis, Rutgers' Greg Lewis and Wisconsin's Hayes were named Allstate Good Works Team nominees.[16][17]

Preseason All-American teams

CBS AP TSN USA
Today
SB
Nation
Blue
Ribbon
Athlon
Sports
Bleacher
Report
NBC BigTen.org BTN Sports
Illustrated
Lindy's
Sports
James Blackmon, Jr. Green tickY
Yogi Ferrell 2nd 2nd 3rd Green tickY Green tickY
A. J. Hammons Green tickY
Nigel Hayes 2nd 1st 3rd 3rd 3rd Green tickY Green tickY 2nd 1st
Bronson Koenig Green tickY
Jake Layman Green tickY
Caris LeVert 3rd Green tickY Green tickY
Melo Trimble 2nd 3rd 1st 1st 3rd 2nd Green tickY Green tickY 2nd 3rd
Jarrod Uthoff Green tickY
Denzel Valentine 3rd 3rd 2nd Green tickY Green tickY 2nd

On October 6, CBS Sports announced its preseason All-American team, which included Trimble and Hayes on its 2nd team and Valentine on its 3rd team.[18] Sporting News selected Hayes to its preseason All-American first team, Ferrell to its second team, and Trimble to its third team.[19] Trimble was an Athlon Sports Preseason All-American 1st team selection, while Hayes, Ferrell and LeVert were 3rd team selections.[20] Lindy's Sports did not name an All-America team, but did rank all college basketball players by position and presented a top 25 list at each position. It included Hayes as the top power forward and Trimble as the third best point guard.[21] Hayes, Valentine and Trimble were second team selections by Sports Illustrated.[22] On November 3, NBC Sports included Valentine and Trimble on its preseason All-American 2nd team.[23] Trimble, Ferrell and Hayes were 1st, 2nd and 3rd team selections respectively by USA Today.[24] Trimble, Valentine and Hayes were all third team selections by Bleacher Report.[25] Trimble was one vote shy of tying Ben Simmons for the fifth and final spot on the Associated Press pre-season All-American team.[26] No Big Ten player made the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook preseason All-America first team.[27]

Preseason polls

Maryland was the unanimous selection by the Big Ten Network to top the preseason conference rankings.[7]

The Big Ten had 5 teams ranked in the preseason Coaches' Poll (Maryland at No. 3, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 15 Indiana, No. 17 Wisconsin and Purdue, which was tied for No. 24) and six in the preseason AP Poll (Maryland at No. 3, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 15 Indiana, No. 17 Wisconsin, No. 23 Purdue and No. 25 Michigan).[28][29]

According to Athlon Sports, the preseason top 25 included Maryland (No. 4), Michigan State (No. 12), Purdue (No. 16), Indiana (No. 17), Wisconsin (No. 19), and Michigan (No. 22).[30] CBS Sports listed Maryland (No. 4), Michigan State (No. 11), Indiana (No. 13), Wisconsin (No. 17), and Purdue (No. 26) in its preseason rankings.[31] Sporting News ranked five Big Ten Teams among its Top 25: Indiana (No. 3), Indiana (No. 15), Michigan (No. 18), Wisconsin (No. 20) and Michigan State (No. 23).[32] Lindy's Sports ranked Maryland number 1, Indiana number 4, Purdue number 21 and Michigan State number 23 in its top 25. Michigan was among the other 15 teams mentioned (at number 33).[33] NBC Sports ranked Maryland 2, Michigan State 9, Indiana 14, Michigan 17, Purdue 21 and Wisconsin 25.[34] ESPN's 10-person panel selected Maryland number 1, Indiana 14, Michigan State 15, Wisconsin 17, Michigan 22, and Purdue 24.[35] Sports Illustrated ranked all 351 teams. The following teams were in its top 25: Maryland 5, Indiana 14, and Michigan State 15 (but also listed 3 Big Ten teams in positions 26–28).[36] Bleacher Report ranked Maryland 4, Indiana 12, Michigan State 13 and Purdue 18.[37] Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook selected Maryland 2, Indiana 13, Michigan State 15, Michigan 17 and Purdue 19.[38] The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) ranked 1. Maryland (8); 13. Indiana; 15. Michigan State; 18. Purdue; 23. Michigan; and 25. Wisconsin.[39]

AP Coaches CBS[31] NBC[34] Sporting
News
[32]
Sports
Illustrated
[36]
Blue Ribbon
Yearbook
[38]
Bleacher
Report
[37]
Athlon
Sports
[30]
Lindy's
Sports
ESPN[35] USBWA[39]
Illinois
Indiana 15 15 13 14 15 14 13 12 17 4 14 13
Iowa
Maryland 3 3 4 2 3 5 2 4 4 1 1 1
Michigan 25 17 18 17 22 22 23
Michigan State 13 13 11 9 23 15 15 13 12 23 15 15
Minnesota
Nebraska
Northwestern
Ohio State
Penn State
Purdue 23 24T 26 21 19 16 21 24 18
Rutgers
Wisconsin 17 17 17 25 20 18 19 17 25

Regular season

Conference schedules

Before the season, it was announced that the Big Ten Network would televise 75 games including 9 straight Wednesday doubleheaders and regular Saturday and Sunday doubleheaders.[40] The schedule also included an extensive slate of ESPN Inc. family of networks (ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU) Tuesday and Thursday night of the conference season coverage and CBS Sports scheduled games for Saturday or Sunday afternoons starting January 10, 2016. CBS will carry the semifinals and finals of the 2016 Big Ten Conference men's basketball tournament, marking the 19th consecutive year that they have covered the Big Ten Conference men's basketball tournament.[41] All teams begin a balanced 18-game conference game schedule during the week of December 28 – January 3 in which teams play home and away against 5 teams, home against 4 teams and away against the remaining 4 opponents.[42] On January 30, the conference scheduled its inaugural annual "Super Saturday – College Hoops & Hockey" doubleheader featuring a basketball game between Michigan and Penn State followed by a hockey game between the teams from the same schools at Madison Square Garden.[43]

Rankings

The Big Ten had 5 teams ranked (Indiana, Maryland, Michigan State, Purdue, and Wisconsin) and 3 others (Iowa, Michigan, and Ohio State) receiving votes in the preseason Coaches' Poll.[28] It had 6 teams ranked (Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, and Wisconsin)in the preseason AP Poll and 1 other (Iowa) receiving votes.[29] Wisconsin dropped from the ranking by Week 2, while Michigan dropped in Week 3, and Indiana went unranked in Week 4. Michigan State ascended to the number 1 ranking in the fifth week of the season and has retained the number 1 ranking for three consecutive weeks.[44]

Legend
    Improvement in ranking
  Drop in ranking
  Not ranked previous week
RV Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll
(Italics) Number of first place votes
  Pre/
Wk 1
Wk
2
Wk
3
Wk
4
Wk
5
Wk
6
Wk
7
Wk
8
Wk
9
Wk
10
Wk
11
Wk
12
Wk
13
Wk
14
Wk
15
Wk
16
Wk
17
Wk
18
Wk
19
Final
Illinois AP N/A*
C
Indiana AP 15 14 13 RV RV RV RV 25 19 22 RV 22 18 12 10 14 N/A
C 15 15 14 RV RV RV RV RV RV 25 23 17 21 22 21 15 11 10 12 9
Iowa AP RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV 19 16 9 3 5 4 (11) 4 8 16 20 25 N/A
C RV RV RV RV RV RV 23 19 9 4 7 5 (3) 6 8 15 18 24 25
Maryland AP 3 (14) 3 (14) 2 (6) 2 (4) 6 6 4 4 3 3 7 8 4 2 (13) 6 10 14 18 18 N/A
C 3 (5) 3 (3) 2 (3) 2 (3) 9 (1) 7 4 4 3 3 5 7 3 2 (11) 5 9 12 15 17 12
Michigan AP 25 24 RV RV RV RV RV RV RV N/A
C RV 25 RV RV RV RV RV RV
Michigan State AP 13 13 3 3 (2) 1 (62) 1 (64) 1 (64) 1 (64) 5 4 (1) 11 12 10 8 8 6 2 (2) 2 (2) 2 (2) N/A
C 13 13 4 3 1 (26) 1 (28) 1 (29) 1 (27) 5 (1) 4 10 11 10 9 (1) 9 7 3 (1) 3 (1) 2 (1) 7
Minnesota AP N/A
C
Nebraska AP N/A
C
Northwestern AP RV RV RV RV N/A
C RV
Ohio State AP N/A
C RV
Penn State AP N/A
C
Purdue AP 23 21 16 11 11 9 14 14 20 24 22 21 18 18 17 20 15 13 12 N/A
C 24T 23 15 11 11 8 13 14 18 24 22 21 16 16 16 19 13 13 10 19
Rutgers AP N/A
C
Wisconsin AP 17 RV RV RV RV RV RV N/A
C 17 RV RV RV RV 25 RV 23

*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings

Players of the week

Throughout the conference regular season, the Big Ten offices named one or two players of the week and one or two freshmen of the week each Monday.

Week Player of the week Freshman of the week
November 16, 2015[45] Joey King, MINN Caleb Swanigan, PUR
Alex Olah, NU
November 23, 2015[46] Denzel Valentine, MSU Thomas Bryant, IND
November 30, 2015[47] Denzel Valentine (2), MSU Deyonta Davis, MSU
December 7, 2015[48] A. J. Hammons, PUR Jordan Murphy, MINN
December 14, 2015[49] Jarrod Uthoff, IOWA Caleb Swanigan (2), PUR
Melo Trimble, MD
December 21, 2015[50] Malcolm Hill, ILL Nicholas Baer, IOWA
Caris LeVert, MICH
December 28, 2015[51] Bryn Forbes, MSU Corey Sanders, RUT
A. J. Hammons (2), PUR
January 4, 2016[52] Diamond Stone, MD Diamond Stone, MD
January 11, 2016[53] Mike Gesell, IOWA Thomas Bryant (2), IND
January 18, 2016[54] Peter Jok, IOWA JaQuan Lyle, OSU
Ethan Happ, WIS
January 25, 2016[55] Yogi Ferrell, IND Ethan Happ (2), WIS
February 1, 2016[56] A. J. Hammons (3), PUR Deyonta Davis (2), MSU
Ethan Happ (3), WIS
February 8, 2016[57] Denzel Valentine (3), MSU Corey Sanders (2), RUT
February 15, 2016[58] Denzel Valentine (4), MSU Glynn Watson, Jr., NEB
February 22, 2016[59] Troy Williams, IND Jordan Murphy (2), MINN
Brandon Taylor, PSU
February 29, 2016[60] Yogi Ferrell (2), IND Jalen Coleman-Lands, ILL
March 7, 2016 Bryn Forbes[61] (2), MSU Caleb Swanigan[62] (3), PUR

On November 17 in the Champions Classic, Denzel Valentine led Michigan State over Kansas by posting the first triple-double of the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season with 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists.[63][64] On January 5, Diamond Stone was named national freshman of the week by the United States Basketball Writers Association.[65]

Conference matrix

This table summarizes the head-to-head results between teams in conference play. Each team played 18 conference games, and at least 1 against each opponent.

Illinois Indiana Iowa Maryland Michigan Michigan St Minnesota Nebraska Northwestern Ohio St Penn St Purdue Rutgers Wisconsin
vs. Illinois 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 0–2 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 2–0
vs. Indiana 0–2 0–2 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–2 0–2 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 0–1 1–1
vs. Iowa 0–1 2–0 1–0 0–2 0–2 0–1 0–1 0–1 1–0 1–1 0–2 0–1 1–0
vs. Maryland 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–2 0–1 1–1 0–1 1–1
vs. Michigan 0–1 1–0 2–0 1–1 1–0 0–2 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–2 1–1 0–1 1–0
vs. Michigan St 0–1 0–1 2–0 0–1 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–2 1–0 0–2 1–1
vs. Minnesota 2–0 2–0 1–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 1–1 1–0
vs. Nebraska 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 2–0 0–2 1–0
vs. Northwestern 0–1 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 0–2 0–2 2–0 1–1 1–0 0–1 0–1
vs. Ohio State 0–2 1–0 0–1 2–0 0–1 2–0 0–1 0–1 0–2 0–1 1–0 0–2 1–0
vs. Penn State 0–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–0 0–1 1–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–0
vs. Purdue 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–1 0–1 0–2 0–1 0–1 0–1 0–1 0–2
vs. Rutgers 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0
vs. Wisconsin 0–2 1–1 0–1 1–1 0–1 1–1 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–0 0–1
Total 5–13 15–3 12–6 12–6 10–8 13–5 2–16 6–12 8–10 11–7 7–11 12–6 1–17 12–6

Midseason watchlists

LeVert, Trimble, Uthoff and Valentine were among the 25 players included in the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List on January 13.[66] On January 19, 30 Senior CLASS Award candidates were named including Rapheal Davis, Mike Gesell, Shavon Shields, and Valentine.[67] The January 25, 20-man Oscar Robertson Trophy midseason watch list included Ferrell, Trimble, Uthoff, and Valentine, while the 10-man Integris Wayman Tisdale Award midseason watch lists named Stone and Swanigan.[68][69] On February 1, Ferrell and Trimble were among the 10 mid-season finalists for the Cousy Award.[70][71] On February 2, Malcolm Hill and Levert were among the 10 mid-season finalists for the West Award.[72][73] On February 3, Valentine and Hayes were among the 10 mid-season finalists for the Erving Award.[74] On February 5, Hammons was among the 10 mid-season finalists for the Jabbar Award.[75] Shavon Shields was named an Allstate NABC Good Works Team selections on February 9.[76] Mike Gesell, Jarrod Uthoff, Colby Wollenman and Shavon Shields were named 2015-16 CoSIDA Academic-All District selections on February 11, making it two straight seasons that each was among the 40 finalists for the 15-man Academic All-America team.[77] On that same day Ferrell, Hammons, Trimble, Uthoff and Valentine were included in the Naismith Award Late season Top 35 Watch List.[78] Ferrell, Trimble, Uthoff and Valentine were included in the Wooden Award Late season Top 20 Watch List on February 12.[79] On the same day, Tom Izzo, Bo Ryan and Lefty Driesell were named finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[80] On February 18, Valentine was named one of 10 senior finalists for the 2015-16 Senior CLASS Award.[81] On February 29, Valentine and Uthoff were among the 11 finalists for the Robertson Trophy.[82] Valentine was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Player of the Year Trophy on March 20,[83] while Crean was named one of four finalist for Naismith Coach of the Year.[2][84] Valentine and Ferrell were among the 10 finalist for the Wooden Award on March 29.[85]

Honors and awards

Michigan State Spartans men's basketball's Tom Izzo was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[86] After taking over for Bo Ryan midseason, Greg Gard was named the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award winner.[87]

Valentine earned numerous National Player of the Year awards: NABC Player of the Year,[88] Basketball Times,[89] Sports Illustrated,[90] USA Today,[91] and NBC Sports.[92] He earned the Senior CLASS Award as the outstanding senior student-athlete in Division I men's basketball.[93] Valentine was recognized as the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award winner.[94] He also earned the Lute Olson Award as the most outstanding non-freshman men's college basketball player in NCAA Division I competition.[95]

Uthoff was named Academic All-America Team Member of the Year and was joined on the Academic All-America first team by Shields. Gessell was named to the second team.[96]

Valentine, Uthoff and Ferrell received broad support as 2016 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans. USA Today and ESPN named Valentine (1st team), Ferrell (2nd team) and Uthoff (3rd team) All-Americans.[97][98] NBC Sports and Sporting News selected Valentine (1st team), Ferrell (2nd team) and Uthoff (2nd team).[99][100] USBWA named Valentine a first team selection and Uthoff a second team selection.[101] Sports Illustrated named Valentine a first team selection and Ferrell, Uthoff and Trimble as honorable mentions.[102] NABC and Associated Press named Valentine to their first teams and Ferrell and Uthoff to their third teams.[88][103] CBS Sports selected Valentine to its first team and Ferrell to its third team.[104]

With an average attendance of 12,555 fans per game, including home games and the 2016 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament, the Big Ten Conference led the nation in men's basketball attendance for the 40th consecutive season according to the NCAA.[105]

All-Big Ten Awards and Teams

On March 7, The Big Ten announced most of its conference awards.[106][107] Valentine was also named the Big Ten Athlete of the Year on June 22.[108]

Honor- Coaches Media
Player of the Year Denzel Valentine, Michigan State Denzel Valentine, Michigan State
Coach of the Year Tom Crean, Indiana Tom Crean, Indiana
Freshman of the Year Ethan Happ, Wisconsin Ethan Happ, Wisconsin
Defensive Player of the Year A. J. Hammons, Purdue Not Selected
Sixth Man of the Year Max Bielfeldt, Indiana Not Selected
All Big Ten First Team Yogi Ferrell, Indiana Yogi Ferrell, Indiana
Denzel Valentine, Michigan State Denzel Valentine, Michigan State
Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa
A. J. Hammons, Purdue A. J. Hammons, Purdue
Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin
All Big Ten Second Team Malcolm Hill, Illinois Malcolm Hill, Illinois
Peter Jok, Iowa Peter Jok, Iowa
Melo Trimble, Maryland Melo Trimble, Maryland
Bryn Forbes, Michigan State Bryn Forbes, Michigan State
Shavon Shields, Nebraska Matt Costello, Michigan State
All Big Ten Third Team Matt Costello, Michigan State Shavon Shields, Nebraska
Diamond Stone, Maryland Diamond Stone, Maryland
Troy Williams, Indiana Troy Williams, Indiana
Thomas Bryant, Indiana Brandon Taylor, Penn State
Bronson Koenig, Wisconsin Ethan Happ, Wisconsin
Derrick Walton, Michigan
All Big Ten Honorable Mention Derrick Walton, Michigan
Brandon Taylor, Penn State Thomas Bryant, Indiana
Ethan Happ, Wisconsin Bronson Koenig, Wisconsin
Robert Carter Jr., Maryland Robert Carter Jr., Maryland
Jake Layman, Maryland Jake Layman, Maryland
Rasheed Sulaimon, Maryland Rasheed Sulaimon, Maryland
Zak Irvin, Michigan Zak Irvin, Michigan
Andrew White III, Nebraska Andrew White III, Nebraska
Bryant McIntosh, Northwestern Bryant McIntosh, Northwestern
Keita Bates-Diop, Ohio State Keita Bates-Diop, Ohio State
Marc Loving, Ohio State Marc Loving, Ohio State
Jae'Sean Tate, Ohio State Jae'Sean Tate, Ohio State
Vincent Edwards, Purdue Vincent Edwards, Purdue
Not Selected Mike Gesell, Iowa
Adam Woodbury, Iowa
Tre Demps, Northwestern
Rapheal Davis, Purdue
Caleb Swanigan, Purdue
Corey Sanders, Rutgers
All-Freshman Team Thomas Bryant, Indiana Not Selected
Diamond Stone, Maryland
Ethan Happ, Wisconsin
Caleb Swanigan, Purdue
Jordan Murphy, Minnesota
All Defensive Team Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa Not Selected
Yogi Ferrell, Indiana
Rapheal Davis, Purdue
A. J. Hammons, Purdue
Ethan Happ, Wisconsin

NABC

The National Association of Basketball Coaches announced their Division I All-District teams on March 25, recognizing the nation's best men's collegiate basketball student-athletes. Selected and voted on by member coaches of the NABC, the selections on this list were then eligible for NABC Coaches' All-America Honors. The following list represented the District 7 players chosen to the list.[109]

USBWA

On March 8, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association released its 2015–16 Men's All-District Teams, based upon voting from its national membership. There were nine regions from coast to coast, and a player and coach of the year were selected in each. The following lists all the Big Ten representatives selected within their respective regions.[110]

Postseason

Big Ten tournament

Session Game Time* Matchup# Score Television Attendance
First round – Wednesday, March 9
1 1 4:30 pm #13 Minnesota vs. # 12 Illinois 52–85 ESPN2 16,528
2 7:00 pm #14 Rutgers vs. #11 Nebraska 72–89 BTN
Second round – Thursday, March 10
2 3 12:00 pm #8 Michigan vs. #9 Northwestern 72–70OT BTN 15,707
4 2:30 pm #5 Iowa vs. #12 Illinois 66–68
3 5 6:30 pm #7 Ohio State vs. #10 Penn State 79–75 ESPN2 15,751
6 9:00 pm #6 Wisconsin vs. #11 Nebraska 58–70
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 11
4 7 12:00 pm #1 Indiana vs. #8 Michigan 69–72 ESPN 18,355
8 2:30 pm #4 Purdue vs. #12 Illinois 89–58
5 9 6:30 pm #2 Michigan State vs. #7 Ohio State 81–54 BTN 15,942
10 9:00 pm #3 Maryland vs. #11 Nebraska 97–86
Semifinals – Saturday, March 12
6 11 1:00 pm #4 Purdue vs. #8 Michigan 76–59 CBS 18,339
12 3:30 pm #2 Michigan State vs. #3 Maryland 64–61
Championship – Sunday, March 13
7 13 3:00 pm #2 Michigan State vs. #4 Purdue 66–62 CBS 16,429
*Game times in Eastern Time. The United States began Daylight saving time at 2:00 am on Sunday, March 13.
Thus, times were in Eastern Standard Time except the Championship game which was in Eastern Daylight Time.
#-Rankings denote tournament seed

NCAA tournament

The Big Ten Conference had seven bids to the 2016 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.[111]

Seed Region School First Four Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet 16 Elite Eight Final Four Championship
2 Midwest Michigan State n/a eliminated by (15) Middle Tennessee 81–90
5 East Indiana n/a defeated (12) Chattanooga 99–74 defeated (4) Kentucky 73–67 eliminated by (1) North Carolina 86–101
5 South Maryland n/a defeated (12) South Dakota State 79–74 defeated (13) Hawaii 73–60 eliminated by (1) Kansas 63–79
5 Midwest Purdue n/a eliminated by (12) Arkansas–Little Rock 83–85 (2OT)
7 South Iowa n/a defeated (10) Temple 72–70 eliminated by (2) Villanova 87–68
7 East Wisconsin n/a defeated (10) Pittsburgh 47–43 defeated (2) Xavier 66–63 eliminated by (6) Notre Dame 56–61
11 East Michigan defeated (11) Tulsa 67–62 eliminated by (6) Notre Dame 63–70
W–L (%): 1–0 (1.000) 4–3 (.571) 3–1 (.750) 0–3 (.000) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) Total: 8–7 (.533)

National Invitation tournament

Ohio State earned the lone NIT bid for the conference.[112]

Seed Bracket School First round Second round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
3 Monmouth Ohio State defeated (6) Akron 72–63 OT eliminated by (2) Florida 66–74
W–L (%): 1–0 (1.000) 0–1 (.000) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) Total: 1–1 (.500)

2016 NBA draft

The following all-conference selections were listed as seniors or graduate students: Yogi Ferrell, Denzel Valentine, Jarrod Uthoff, A. J. Hammons, Bryn Forbes, Shavon Shields, Matt Costello and Brandon Taylor. The following players were invited to the NBA Draft Combine: Robert Carter, Deyonta Davis, Hammons, Jake Layman, Caris LeVert, Diamond Stone, Caleb Swanigan, Melo Trimble, Valentine, Nigel Hayes, and Troy Williams.[113][114]

Rnd. Pick Player Pos. Team School
1 14 Denzel Valentine G Chicago Bulls Michigan State (Sr.)
1 20 Caris LeVert SG Brooklyn Nets (from Indiana) Michigan (Sr.)
2 31 Deyonta Davis PF/C Boston Celtics (from Philadelphia via Miami) Michigan State (Fr.)
2 40 Diamond Stone PF/C New Orleans Pelicans (from Sacramento, traded to Los Angeles Clippers) Maryland (Fr.)
2 46 A. J. Hammons C Dallas Mavericks Purdue (Sr.)
2 47 Jake Layman SF Orlando Magic (from Chicago) Maryland (Sr.)

Notes

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