Big Ten men's college basketball power rankings for January 19

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There is some movement in the Big Ten basketball rankings this week; however, the consensus notion is that the Cornhuskers are now the best team in the Big Ten. They are sitting in the driver's seat to win this conference. All Nebraska has to do is win, and that is what the Huskers have been doing of late. Right behind them is a handful of teams that are stacking wins and continuing to build momentum. The USC Trojans are far from that standard right now.

Here are my Big Ten basketball power rankings for men's hoops after the past week of Big Ten Conference play:

1. Nebraska Cornhuskers, 18-0

The Cornhuskers are the best team in the Big Ten and arguably one of the best teams in the country. They have a deep squad, and they are only getting better each game. Unlike other teams, such as Michigan, they have taken care of teams they are supposed to, in the fashion they are supposed to.

2. Purdue Boilermakers, 17-1

Purdue is one of the hottest basketball teams in the country as they currently have a 9-game winning streak. They got two huge wins under their belt this past week, knocking off USC and Iowa. Purdue is as complete as they come, and if they faced off against Michigan today with how they are playing, they would come out on top.

3. Michigan Wolverines, 16-1

Confidence in this team is dwindling, even with them still winning games. The fashion in which they are winning leaves a lot of room for concern. They almost lost to Penn State, and Wisconsin humbled them not too long ago. They have recovered from that loss, but this does not feel like the same team that beat Auburn by 30 points.

4. Michigan State Spartans, 16-2

Michigan State and Illinois are neck and neck with each other. Both teams deserve credit for what they have done. I like Michigan State just a tad more. They proved to be as dominant as the other three teams ahead of them as they blew out both Washington and Indiana this past week. Sitting at 16-2 and Duke, plus a 2-point loss to the Cornhuskers, are their only two blemishes; they are sitting at a very good spot right now.

5. Illinois Fighting Illini, 15-3

Illinois has been winning games convincingly, as it should, and this is a team that deserves more consideration for being one of the better teams in this conference. They just keep winning, and they have the talent to play with anyone. Purdue on Saturday will be a great test to show how good they are and I think they will rise to the occasion for that match.

6. Wisconsin Badgers, 13-5

The Badgers have been scorching as of late, and they have one of the biggest wins this season in the conference with their upset over Michigan. Winning 4 straight games has this team riding a wave of momentum, and Nick Boyd and John Blackwell are playing confident ball. They have what it takes to make the Big Ten even more interesting.

7. Iowa Hawkeyes, 13-5

Bennett Stirtz got back on the right track and delivered the Hawkeyes an efficient 27-point game the other night. This team will go as far as he can take them, and when he is rolling like that, this team is a force to be reckoned with.

8. Ohio State Buckeyes, 12-5

The other night, the Buckeyes showed what they can be when they are at their best, as three of their top guys each had 20-point outings, leading to an impressive win over the Bruins. The Buckeyes will need more of that for their upcoming slate and to get a postseason bid.

9. USC Trojans, 14-4

The Trojans are sitting at 14-4, which would be considered a great start to the season, but they have still really struggled in conference play. The Trojans are 3-4 against Big Ten teams, really failing to prove they should be looked at as a potential contender in this conference. This team has talent, but they need to start stacking wins in the Big Ten if they want to have any hope at meaningful basketball late in this season.

10. Indiana Hoosiers, 12-6

The Hoosiers had a very poor week, as they lost all the momentum they built up. They are on a 3-game losing streak and now head into a matchup tomorrow against the Michigan Wolverines. Lamar Wilkerson can get hot any night, but it will take more than that to potentially get the upset over the Wolverines. The game will at least be close, to say the least.

11. Minnesota Golden Gophers, 10-8

The Gophers have now lost 3 straight games and have put themselves in a position where they need to win their next two games or split. The Gophers will face off against Ohio State and Nebraska. The rest of their season will be based on how their game versus Ohio State plays out. Big game for the Gophers. At least this is a team that can play with anybody on any given night; they proved that with their close losses to Illinois and Wisconsin this past week.

12. UCLA Bruins, 12-6

The Bruins looked like they were trending in the right direction last week, but then they got humbled by the Buckeyes on the road. The Bruins could be a potential outside-looking-in team, but it will take some key wins on their schedule to avoid that. This team seems more headed for the bottom of the Big Ten.

13. Washington Huskies, 10-8

The Michigan teams handled the Huskies this past week, and now the Huskies have fallen to 2-5 in the Big Ten. They have a matchup vs Oregon on the horizon, but their next game, unfortunately, is against the Cornhuskers, the hottest team in the Big Ten. It is safe to bookmark another loss in this team's near future.

14. Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 9-9

Rutgers seems to be turning the corner just a little bit. They got embarrassed by Illinois, but they picked up games that were in their favor, such as Oregon and Penn State. The last game, they gave a really good Wisconsin Badgers team a run for their money in a 96-87 loss. The Scarlet Knights will look to do the same vs Iowa and try to knock off Indiana next.

15. Oregon Ducks, 8-10

The Oregon Ducks got embarrassed by Nebraska but put up a tough fight against Michigan. They are without their top two players, and that will make it increasingly harder to right the ship for this season. The Ducks will face off against Michigan State on Tuesday and hope to give the Spartans a run for their money, just like they did with Michigan.

16. Maryland Terrapins, 8-10

Maryland got their biggest win since November 15th, and responded perfectly to their loss to USC earlier last week. The Terrapins embarrassed Penn State and will look to use that game as the momentum needed to put up a fight against Illinois and Michigan State coming up on the road.

17. Northwestern Wildcats, 8-10

The Wildcats remain at the bottom of the standings for another week. This team, just like Penn State, is 0-7 on the season in the Big Ten. Nick Martinelli is 2nd in the highest points per game average in the country with 23.7, but even that has not saved this team from a disastrous start to this season.

18. Penn State Nittany Lions, 9-9

There is a new worst team in the Big Ten, and what a season it has been for Penn State so far. They lost to UCLA at home last week, and then they followed that up by getting embarrassed by Maryland. After a 0-7 start in the Big Ten, hope is running thin for this squad.

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Big Ten men's basketball power rankings for Monday, January 19

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