Purdue Basketball Ends Big Ten's 14-Team Era with Most Wins
Now that the 14-team era is officially over for the Big Ten, we can anoint Purdue as the best men's basketball team of the 10-year stretch. That's not an opinion, either.
During the conference's 14-team era (2014-2024), no Big Ten basketball team had more wins than Matt Painter's Boilermakers. Purdue ended with a 137-54 record in league games, which equates to a .717 winning percentage over the 10-year period.
It wasn't particularly close, either. The Boilers had 15 more victories than the second-placed team, Michigan State. The Spartans had a 122-69 (.639) record over the last 10 seasons.
Wisconsin ranked third at 120-72 (.625), Maryland finished fourth with a 107-85 record (.557) and Michigan ended in fifth at 105-84 (.556).
🍽️ Eating W’s.
— Purdue Men's Basketball (@BoilerBall) July 17, 2024
Purdue closes out the 14-team @B1GMBBall era with the most victories in league play. pic.twitter.com/Vbk2t2LaZs
In that stretch, Purdue also won four Big Ten regular season championships (2017, 2019, 2023 and 2024) and a Big Ten Tournament title (2023). The Boilermakers have played the NCAA Tournament in each of the nine seasons (canceled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic) and reached the Sweet 16 five times.
Purdue also appeared in two Eight Eights and played in the Final Four and National Championship Game in 2024. The Boilers enjoyed their best season last year, posting a 34-5 record.
Painter has undoubtedly built one of the top programs in college basketball. The Boilermakers are consistently in the hunt to win Big Ten titles and are almost always a lock to play in the NCAA Tournament.
Even though the 14-team era of the Big Ten is over, Purdue is in a good position to continue its success into the brave new world, in which Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington are members of the conference.
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DUSTIN SCHUTTE