Currently, the Big Ten basketball schedule involves playing 20 games with play against 7 teams involving home-and-home series for a for a total of 14 games plus playing one game against the other 6 teams split between 3 home and 3 away games. There are three in-state series that will be guaranteed home-and-homes: Illinois and Northwestern, Indiana and Purdue, and Michigan and Michigan State
In the Big Ten were to go to two 7-team divisions for basketball, teams could play their 12 games against their 6 division opponents (home and home) and then play one home-and-home series against a designated rival team in the other division for 2 more games and then play the other 6 non-division teams for 1 game split between 3 at home and 3 away to build the same 20 game conference schedule. There would still be room to allow for some protected rivalries with NU and Illinois being in the same division, Michigan and Michigan State being in the same division, and Indiana and Purdue being able to be assigned as each other cross-division rivalry to play a home-and-home series.
The benefits I see in going to divisions in basketball would be:
1. Intermediate Championships
A division championship would provide a meaningful intermediate goal for teams to reach. With 14 teams in the league, the difficulty in claiming a league championship is harder with more teams in the past. Wasn't it great for NU to win the 2018 Big Ten West title in football?
2. Conference Tournament Raised in Importance
The conference tournament would be more meaningful. Since the regular season would determine division championships, there would no longer be the potentially duplicative regular season and conference tournament champions. The actual single, definitive Big Ten champion would be the conference champion that won the Big Ten tournament.
3. Potentially Reduce Travel Time and Costs
More regional divisions and play might help reduce travel costs.
This thinking assumes the basketball divisions would be the same that are used for Big Ten football. Alternative basketball scheduling could include playing a full round robin schedule playing all other teams twice with or without divisions.
EAST
Rutgers
Maryland
Penn State
Ohio State
Michigan
Michigan State
Indiana
WEST
Nebraska
Iowa
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Northwestern
Illinois
Purdue
In the Big Ten were to go to two 7-team divisions for basketball, teams could play their 12 games against their 6 division opponents (home and home) and then play one home-and-home series against a designated rival team in the other division for 2 more games and then play the other 6 non-division teams for 1 game split between 3 at home and 3 away to build the same 20 game conference schedule. There would still be room to allow for some protected rivalries with NU and Illinois being in the same division, Michigan and Michigan State being in the same division, and Indiana and Purdue being able to be assigned as each other cross-division rivalry to play a home-and-home series.
The benefits I see in going to divisions in basketball would be:
1. Intermediate Championships
A division championship would provide a meaningful intermediate goal for teams to reach. With 14 teams in the league, the difficulty in claiming a league championship is harder with more teams in the past. Wasn't it great for NU to win the 2018 Big Ten West title in football?
2. Conference Tournament Raised in Importance
The conference tournament would be more meaningful. Since the regular season would determine division championships, there would no longer be the potentially duplicative regular season and conference tournament champions. The actual single, definitive Big Ten champion would be the conference champion that won the Big Ten tournament.
3. Potentially Reduce Travel Time and Costs
More regional divisions and play might help reduce travel costs.
This thinking assumes the basketball divisions would be the same that are used for Big Ten football. Alternative basketball scheduling could include playing a full round robin schedule playing all other teams twice with or without divisions.
EAST
Rutgers
Maryland
Penn State
Ohio State
Michigan
Michigan State
Indiana
WEST
Nebraska
Iowa
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Northwestern
Illinois
Purdue