Entering NCAA Tournament play, Big Ten teams composed 13.2% of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament field.

But of the nine teams that made the 2022 NCAA Tournament, none will represent the conference in the Final Four in New Orleans this weekend.

Purdue and Michigan were both knocked out in the Sweet 16 last week, with No. 11 seed Michigan losing 63-55 to No. 2 seed Villanova and No. 3 seed Purdue suffering a 67-64 upset loss to No. 15 seed Saint Peter’s.

The last Big Ten team to reach the Final Four was Michigan State, which in 2019 lost to Texas Tech in the national semifinal in Minneapolis. Michigan State also is the last Big Ten team to win a national title in 2000.

Sporting News and Big Ten college basketball analyst Mike DeCourcy said it shouldn’t come as a shock no Big Ten teams made the Final Four this year, given the highest-seeded teams, Purdue and Wisconsin, were both No. 3 seeds.

“They didn’t have a single team on the top two lines, and they didn’t warrant it,” DeCourcy said on the Indiana Sports Beat with Jim Coyle. “What they had was a lot of good teams, some very good teams. Now should Purdue have beaten Saint Peter’s? Yes, but I’m just talking about the original perception that you get nine teams in you are supposed to do X.”

On the women’s side, one Big Ten team, third-seeded Michigan, reached the Elite Eight but lost 62-50 to No. 1 seed Louisville in the Wichita Regional Final. Michigan showed some jitters in its first Elite Eight appearance in program history, turning the ball over 22 times and going 0-for-8 from the field in the final five minutes.

It will likely mark the end of the brilliant career of Michigan All-American senior forward Naz Hillmon, who will likely declare for the WNBA draft rather than take her extra COVID season. Hillmon, who averaged 21 points and 9.6 rebounds, is projected as one of the top two picks in this year’s draft.

“Playing next to Naz, an All-American, she is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of player,” Michigan guard Danielle Rauch told the Ann Arbor News following the loss. “I got to play with the greatest player in Michigan women’s basketball history, and she is also my best friend.”

Three other Big Ten women’s teams — Indiana, Maryland and Ohio State — were knocked out of the tournament in the Sweet 16. It marked the second straight year the Big Ten had four teams reach the Sweet 16, but the league is still seeking its first final Final Four appearance since Maryland in 2014.

CURBELO ENTERS PORTAL

Illinois sophomore point guard Andre Curbelo announced he’s entering the transfer portal Monday, a surprise given the playing time he’s received the first two years at the school.

Curbelo had an up-and-down sophomore season in which he averaged 7.5 points and 3.1 assists. He appeared in just 19 of the 33 games Illinois played this season, missing close to two months from late November through late January with a concussion.

At times, Curbelo struggles with his decision-making at the point guard spot, posting an assist-to-turnover ratio of 60 to 53. His speed with the basketball is his biggest asset, but in shooting 32.9% from the field, his shot selection left much to be desired.

Curbelo should find plenty of suitors on the transfer market, but the next coach will need to reign him in when it comes to the balance of running offense and hunting for his own shots.