COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The bracket for the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament has been announced and the Buckeyes now have an idea of what is in store this week.
On Friday, Ohio State, as the No. 1 seed, will face the winner of Thursday’s game between No. 8 Maryland and No. 9 Illinois. Tipoff is set for 12:30 p.m. Should the Buckeyes advance, they would play its semifinal on Saturday at 2 p.m.
The tournament starts Wednesday with play-in games No. 12 Purdue facing No. 13 Northwestern and No. 11 Minnesota facing No. 14 Rutgers.
In addition to the Maryland vs. Illinois game, Thursday will see No. 5 Nebraska face the winner of the Purdue/Northwestern contest; No. 7 Penn State facing No. 10 Wisconsin; and No. 6 Michigan playing the winner of the Minnesota/Rutgers game.
In addition to the Buckeyes, No. 2 Iowa, No. 3 Indiana, and No. 4 Michigan State all earned byes into the quarterfinals, which begin Friday.
The semifinals will be played on Saturday, and the final on Sunday at noon.
The Buckeyes clinched the Big Ten title and the top seed when the team beat Michigan on Feb. 28.
Ohio State finished the regular season with a 25-4 overall record and 16-2 in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes fell to Iowa in the regular season finale Sunday 93-83.
View the full bracket and schedule below:
Wednesday, March 6 – First Round
Game 1: 6:30 p.m. – No. 12 Purdue vs. No. 13 Northwestern
Game 2: 25 minutes after Game 1 – No. 11 Minnesota vs. No. 14 Rutgers
Thursday, March 7 – Second Round
Game 3: 12:30 p.m. – No. 8 Maryland vs. No. 9 Illinois
Game 4: 25 minutes after Game 3 – No. 5 Nebraska vs. Purdue/Northwestern
Game 5: 6:30 p.m. – No. 7 Penn State vs. No. 10 Wisconsin
Game 6: 25 minutes after Game 5 – No. 6 Michigan vs. Minnesota/Rutgers
Friday, March 8 – Quarterfinals
Game 7: 12:30 p.m. – No. 1 Ohio State vs. Maryland/Illinois
Game 8: 25 minutes after Game 7 – No. 4 Michigan State vs. Game 4 winner
Game 9: 6:30 p.m. – No. 2 Iowa vs. Penn State/Wisconsin
Game 10: 25 minutes after Game 9 – No. 3 Indiana vs. Game 6 winner
Saturday, March 9 – Semifinals
Game 11: 2 p.m. – Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner
Game 12: 25 minutes after Game 11 – Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner
