- The Big Ten Conference race enters its stretch drive this week, with a three-way tie atop the conference standings and three weeks to go in the regular season. One of the more notable matches of the weekend (and one that will have an impact on this year’s Big Ten title) takes place Sunday afternoon, when No. 4 Nebraska travels to No. 6 Ohio State for a 4:30 p.m. (ET) first serve live on the Big Ten Network and the FOX Sports app. It’s one of two Top 25 matches on BTN’s #B1GBlockParty this week, with No. 15 Purdue playing host to No. 16 Penn State Saturday night (8 p.m. ET).
- For the second consecutive week and third time this season, both Wisconsin and Nebraska are earning first-place votes in the American Volleyball Coaches (AVCA) Top 25 poll, headlining a group of six Big Ten Conference schools among the top 16 (four in the top 10) and two others receiving votes. The Big Ten remains the national leader among all conferences with four top-10 and six top-25 programs, while no other conference in the country has more than two top-10 programs or four top-25 squads. The full AVCA poll can be found on page 2 of this release.
- Another clear sign of the strength and depth of the Big Ten Conference this season lies in this week’s NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) rankings. The Big Ten has three schools in the top 10 and eight in the top 40 of the NCAA RPI report, far and away the most from any conference in the country (no other conference has more than two top-10 RPI teams or six top-40 RPI programs). Like the AVCA poll, this week’s RPI rankings are listed on page 2 of this release.
- The Big Ten Conference also continues to be the most popular conference in the country in terms of attendance, placing a remarkable nine schools among the top 19 in the latest NCAA attendance rankings released Thursday. Nebraska leads the country at 8,184 fans per match, just ahead of Wisconsin (8,027), with Minnesota fourth (4,765), Ohio State sixth (3,573) and Michigan State seventh (3,473). Illinois is next at No. 14 (2,635), followed by No. 16 Michigan (2,471), No. 17 Purdue (2,364) and No. 19 Penn State (2,336). By comparison, no other conference in the country has more than two schools in the top 19 of…
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