You mean it's not a rule that Iowa's basketball season has to end on the Thursday of the Big Ten Tournament? Hell's bells! Why, let's see how far we can extend this season! Yes, for the first time in six (!) years -- and for the first time in the storied history of this blog -- Iowa is playing on the second day of the Big Ten Tournament. Hallelujah.

Our reward for making it past Day One of the BTT? A rematch with the Michigan State squad that beat our brains in earlier this season. So much for the hallelujahs. On paper, this looks like a terrible matchup for Iowa and a game likely to end in heartbreak. But who knows! Maybe Iowa has finally reclaimed some of that old March magic* that was in abundance when Coach [Redacted] was walking the sideline.

* NOTE: works only in Big Ten Tournament situations.

The game's on ESPN at 11am CT. The usual open thread rules apply: no links to illegal online streams, no porn, no politics, no religion, no slurs, no douchebaggery, and so forth. Go Iowa. Michigan State is overdue for a real "SPARTY NOOOOO!" moment this year.