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The Big Ten Tournament final will feature a matchup between Purdue and Penn State on Sunday afternoon.
The Boilermakers and Nittany Lions took very different paths to get to this game.
For top-seeded Purdue, it only had to win 2 matchups to get to this game. The Boilermakers defeated Rutgers on Friday and Ohio State on Saturday to reach the final.
As the No. 10 seed, Penn State’s path to the final included a trio of upsets. Penn State beat 3 tournament-bound teams to get to this matchup: No. 7 Illinois, No. 2 Northwestern and No. 3 Indiana. The Nittany Lions entered this week on the bubble, but now will almost certainly be part of the NCAA Tournament field of 68 — win or lose on Sunday.
Here’s a look at the bracket for the 2023 Big Ten Tournament:
It's 𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙈𝙋𝙄𝙊𝙉𝙎𝙃𝙄𝙋 𝙂𝘼𝙈𝙀 𝘿𝘼𝙔 tomorrow‼️ #B1GMBBT pic.twitter.com/JylBEFDc1o
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) March 11, 2023
Here’s the schedule and TV information for the Big Ten Tournament final:
Championship Game (Sunday)
- Game 13: Purdue vs. Penn State — Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS
Big Ten Tournament history
Purdue is no stranger to the Big Ten Tournament title game. This is the Boilermakers 4th trip to this stage in the last 7 years, excluding 2020 (COVID-19).
However, Purdue lost all 3 of its most recent B1G Tournament title appearances. It’s only win in this spot came back in 2009 against Ohio State. Robbie Hummel was named Most Outstanding Player.
For Penn State, it has never won the Big Ten Tournament. The Nittany Lions have only played in this game once before, losing to Ohio State in 2011.
Penn State being a No. 10 seed gives it a chance to make history in another way. Since the Big Ten Tournament began in 1998, no team worse than a No. 8 seed has won the whole thing. Penn State is the third double-digit seed to reach the final and the 1st since Illinois in 2008.
Spenser is the news manager at Saturday Road and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.