The first round saw me finish a highly respectable 26-6 (and atop my pool). Here are the latest predictions for the second round.

The power ranking adjustments do call for one change from my previous predictions. I now have Stanford defeating Marquette.

Here are the picks, with projected scores, all the way through the tournament based on the power rankings formula. I will update the picks after each round.

The Illini have been headscratchers all season long. Their power rankings would suggest that they should be about .500 in conference but as we all know they’ve played well below that level. In the Pomeroy rankings, there’s only been a very small difference between Purdue and Illinois all year (which perhaps indicates just how good a job that Matt Painter has done with the Boilermakers).

For their B10 tournament matchup, Purdue was predicted to just be a three point favorite over Illinois (which means they would be even on Illinois’s home court). Illinois finally stepped up and got the big win. I expect them to top Minnesota today later today and actually make it to the finals.

Either way, the Illinois/Minnesota semifinal means headaches for the NCAA selection committee. One of those two teams will be in the finals and neither are projected to have NCAA bids. That means the tournament selection committee will have to work on contingency plans for what happens if one of the two actually claim the Big Ten auto bid.

Regular season ends with Penn State going for its fifth straight home win which I sure most fans thought would be an impossibility once Claxton went down for the season in the third Big Ten game of the season.

Game Predictions:

• Ohio State 64.6 Michigan State 64.3 (I guess OSU wins in OT)
• Indiana 75 Penn State 65
• Purdue 89 Michigan 61

Tonight is senior night for Penn State and the rumor mill is that fallen star Geary Claxton will suit up and make a symbolic start. Supposedly an arrangement has been struck where Michigan will allow PSU to win the jump, the refs will call an immediate time out, and Claxton will be removed from the game. If true, it’s a nice gesture by John Beilein’s squad to give the Happy Valley faithful a chance to honor their star on senior night.

In other action, Ohio State needs a win at Minnesota to improve their NCAA hopes. A loss here would jeopardize their chances for an at large bid.

Game Predictions:

• PSU 70 Michigan 67
• Purdue 76 Northwestern 57
• Ohio State 65 Minnesota 64
• Illinois 58 Iowa 54