It appears Purdue cannot be caught.

Halfway through the Big Ten season, the Boilermakers hold a 2-game edge (in the loss column) on 2nd-place, as everyone else in the conference keeps beating each other up. Can anyone emerge as a threat? Maybe Indiana, as the Hoosiers have surged to win 5 straight and will welcome in the Boilermakers to Assembly Hall on Saturday.

Let’s take a look at our Week 13 B1G basketball power rankings:

14. Minnesota

Record: 7-13 overall, 1-9 in the Big Ten | Last week: 14

Injuries aren’t helping the Gophers fight their way out of the basement of the Big Ten. In the past 2 games — Minnesota has run its losing streak to 5 — starters Dawson Garcia and Pharrel Payne missed time, further limiting an already limited squad.

13. Nebraska

Record: 10-12, 3-8 | Last week: 13

Since its win over Ohio State nearly 2 weeks ago, Nebraska hasn’t been competitive, let alone won again, losing games by 11, 15 and 19 points. Injuries aren’t helping, as starters Juwan Gary and Emmanuel Bandoumel are out. In a search for answers, Fred Hoiberg put his son Sam Hoiberg in against Maryland Saturday, and the redshirt freshman responded with 15 points, more than doubling his previous season total.

12. Ohio State

Record: 11-10, 3-7 | Last week: 11

Ohio State has played its way off the bubble, which is hard to believe considering the Buckeyes were once 10-3 and ranked in the Top-25 this season. But since then, they’ve won only 1 of 8, sinking deeper and deeper out of the NCAA Tournament picture. Ohio State is a cautionary tale in the transfer era: Too many newcomers (transfers and freshmen) — and OSU has 7 — can make for a difficult puzzle to assemble, even with talented pieces.

11. Wisconsin

Record: 12-8, 4-6 | Last week: 7

Three weeks ago, Wisconsin was 11-2 and ranked 14th in the country, but not much has gone right since then, with the Badgers having lost 6 of their past 7 games. Unless they can right the ship, and soon, then they’ll be left out of the NCAA Tournament. Wisconsin have lost 3 straight, including to Illinois at home Saturday, when a close game with 10 minutes left turned into a blowout loss. The Badgers’ biggest problem: Consistent scoring. They haven’t scored more than 70 since a win over Western Michigan on Dec. 30.

10. Michigan

Record: 11-10, 5-5 | Last week: 8

Michigan’s performance at Penn State on Sunday, when the Wolverines lost by 18 points, left some long-time UM beat-writers calling it an embarrassment. Jett Howard returned, and was fantastic, but that was the only positive for a Michigan team that allowed the Nittany Lions a 33-6 run to take control. Michigan has lost 5 of its past 7 and is 0-9 in Quad 1 games this season, negative trends as the calendar turns to the final month of the regular season.

9. Penn State

Record: 14-7, 5-5 | Last week: 9

After Penn State coach Micah Shrewsberry called out his team for being “soft” following a 20-point loss at Rutgers, the Nittany Lions responded by picking up their most convincing win of the year, blowing out Michigan — PSU led by as many as 32 — on Saturday. Penn State is on the bubble, seemingly bouncing in and out of tourney projections on a daily basis. A big road victory would help pad the résumé, to say the least, and the Nittany Lions have the chance Wednesday, as they travel to No. 1 Purdue.

8. Maryland

Record: 14-7, 5-5 | Last week: 12

After winning 2 straight games, Maryland could get on a run as it enters the 2nd half of its Big Ten schedule. Four of its remaining 10 come against Minnesota, Nebraska and Ohio State, the 3 programs that are lagging behind the rest in the Big Ten standings. Point guard Jahmir Young had a great week, first turning in 22 points, 8 rebound and 5 assists vs. Wisconsin, then going for 18, 3 and 7 vs. Nebraska. It’ll be a giant showdown Tuesday when hot Indiana comes to town.

7. Iowa

Record: 13-8, 5-5 | Last week: 6

Offense beat defense on Sunday, as Iowa put up 93 points against a Rutgers’ defense that gives up less than 60. The win gave the Hawkeyes a sweep of the Scarlet Knights this season. It was a good recovery by Iowa, after the Hawkeyes had missed a chance at a big road victory at Michigan State earlier in the week. But the Hawkeyes are great when they are aggressive offensively, as they were vs. Rutgers, getting to the line 34 times (and hitting 29). The game also marked the return of Patrick McCaffery, who had sat most of the month to deal with anxiety issues.

6. Michigan State

Record: 14-8, 6-5 | Last week: 5

Michigan State doesn’t have a strategy to slow Zach Edey, so probably a good thing the Spartans are done with the Boilermakers this regular season. The lack of interior depth is problematic, to say the least, which is most glaring against Purdue but elsewhere also. The issue is personnel, with a starting center in Mady Sissoko, who stands 6-9, 240 pounds and a backup in Jaxon Kohler who is about the same.

5. Northwestern

Record: 15-5, 6-3 | Last week: 10

One of the surprise teams in the Big Ten, Northwestern keeps plugging along, as it now owns sole possession of 2nd place in the league. It’s been 6 seasons since the Wildcats made their magical 1st NCAA Tournament appearance, winning a 1st-Round game then taking No. 1-seed Gonzaga down to the final minute. Maybe it’s time the Wildcats go dancing again. If so, it’ll be a credit to coach Chris Collins, who built around his veteran guards after key front-court departures in the offseason.

4. Illinois

Record: 15-6, 6-4 | Last week: 4

When Illinois is dialed in, as it has been the past 2 games, the Fighting Illini are a difficult out. They blitzed the Badgers in the final 10 minutes on Saturday, turning a close game into a blowout. Guard Jayden Epps, who has emerged (at least right now) as the best of the Illini’s talented freshmen, continues to play well, as his 15-point performance vs. Wisconsin marked his 7th game in the past 9 when he’s scored in double-figures.

3. Rutgers

Record: 14-7, 6-4 | Last week: 2

Rutgers’ usually reliable defense got torched — again — by Iowa, as the Hawkeyes are the only team to score more than 75 vs. the Scarlet Knights this season, and they’ve now done it twice. Rutgers is capable of beating just about anyone, as the Knights proved earlier this year with a win at Purdue, but only if it forces teams to play its style. If Rutgers keeps the game in the half-court and is efficient on offense, then it’s good. If not … things like Iowa happen.

2. Indiana

Record: 15-6, 6-4 | Last week: 3

Winners of 5 straight, Indiana has re-emerged as the biggest threat to Purdue’s dominance in the Big Ten this season, with a looming showdown Saturday in Bloomington. Big man Trayce Jackson-Davis has taken his game to a new level — and the previous level was pretty darn high — and would likely be the front-runner for Big Ten Player-of-the-Year if it wasn’t for Edey. Their matchup Saturday could be epic.

1. Purdue

Record: 21-1, 10-1 | Last week: 1

Purdue might have turned in its most dominant performance of the season Sunday when it blasted Michigan State. Edey was unstoppable on the inside, finishing with a career-high 38 points ,13 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and a block (without a turnover). But the supporting cast, probably the best in the country, was great too. David Jenkins Jr., a scorer in his previous 3 NCAA stops (he has more than 1,800 career points), got loose for 3 3-pointers, giving the Boilermakers yet another perimeter threat.