Wolverines Earn Double Bye, No. 3 Seed for Big Ten Tournament
3/9/2025 7:57:00 PM | Men's Basketball
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- After tying for second place in the Big Ten with a 14-6 conference record, the University of Michigan men's basketball team earned the No. 3 seed for the 2025 Big Ten Tournament, which will be played at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis.
Michigan tied with Maryland for the runner-up spot but lost the tiebreaker due to the Terrapins' 71-65 regular-season win at Crisler Center. Michigan State secured the No. 1 seed after winning the league by three games with a 17-3 record, while UCLA claimed the No. 4 seed.
With a top-four finish in conference play, U-M earned a double-bye for the third time (2019, 2021, and 2025). The Wolverines will advance directly to the quarterfinals and begin play on Friday (March 14).
In the bottom quarter of the tournament bracket, Michigan will face the winner of the second-round game. No. 11 seed Rutgers plays No. 14 seed USC on Wednesday (March 12), with the winner advancing to face No. 6 seed Purdue on Thursday (March 13). The winner of that matchup will take on U-M in the quarterfinals.
If Michigan advances to the semifinals, its potential opponents include No. 2 seed Maryland, No. 7 seed Illinois, No. 10 seed Ohio State, or No. 15 seed Iowa.
During the regular season, Michigan split its series with Purdue, falling 91-64 (Jan. 24) in West Lafayette before securing a comeback 75-73 win (Feb. 11) at Crisler Center. The Wolverines also completed a season sweep of Rutgers, winning 66-63 (Feb. 1) in Piscataway before securing a dramatic 84-82 victory (Feb. 27) in Ann Arbor, where Nimari Burnett hit a game-winning three-pointer on a broken inbounds play. Against USC, Michigan won 94-75 (Jan. 4) in its lone regular-season meeting during a West Coast road trip.
Michigan holds a 29-23 record in Big Ten Tournament play and has won three championships (1998*, 2017, and 2018). Along with Iowa (2001, '02), U-M is one of only two teams to win four games in four days twice (2017, 2018). The Wolverines are one of six programs with multiple Big Ten Tournament titles. Additionally, U-M holds the record for the lowest-seeded champion (No. 8 in 2017) and owns the longest consecutive tournament win streak at 10 games (2017-19).
2025 Big Ten Tournament Seeding
Indianapolis, Ind. (Gainbridge Fieldhouse)
1. Michigan State (17-3)
2. Maryland (14-6)
3. Michigan (14-6)
4. UCLA (13-7)
5. Wisconsin (13-7)
6. Purdue (13-7)
7. Illinois (12-8)
8. Oregon (12-8)
9. Indiana (10-10)
10. Ohio State (9-11)
11. Rutgers (8-12)
12. Minnesota (7-13)
13. Northwestern (7-13)
14. USC (7-13)
15. Iowa (7-13)
Non-qualifying teams: Nebraska (7-13), Penn State (6-14), and Washington (4-16)
