Purdue is looking more and more like an NCAA tournament team. The Boilermakers manhandled Indiana Thursday night and have now beaten the Hoosiers, Michigan State and Illinois - the rest of the Big Ten's middle tier - by double digits. All those games were home, where Purdue is a much different team than it is on the road, but if the Boilermakers can score one more win away from Mackey Arena (at Iowa or Northwestern) and defend its homecourt against Minnesota and Northwestern in the final week, they'll get to nine conference wins, enough for an invite.

That doesn't necessarily mean it's over for Illinois or MSU. Both teams have stronger overall resumes than Purdue, and one should get a chance for a rematch in the 4-5 game of the conference tournament. Illinois, 6-6 right now, has a manageable four-game stretch upcoming (vs. Northwestern and Michigan, at Penn State and Iowa), but expect the car accident that sidelined two players to lead to two more losses. And without Jamar Smith, as bad a season as he was having, Illinois is not as good a team in the eyes of the committee.

I still contend MSU needs two more wins in any shape or form to get in. A victory over a top-five Wisconsin team almost counts double in the committee's eyes, but beating Iowa Saturday and winning at Michigan should do the trick as well, especially if its coupled with a Big Ten tournament win.

As for Iowa and Michigan, they need to win out to stand a chance. The Hawkeyes dug too deep a hole in the non-conference season, while Michigan dug its grave by beating no one of consequence in the first two months. These final two weeks should be interesting.