According to multiple reports, the Big Ten is expected to move the men's basketball conference tournament from Chicago to Indianapolis.
Anthony Calhoun of WISH-TV (Indianapolis) was the first to report the news.
The Big Ten men’s basketball tournament is scheduled to be played March 10-14.
The talk about the potential move had begun a few weeks ago around the time that the NCAA announced that the entire NCAA Tournament would be hosted in Indianapolis as well.
The NCAA Tournament will take place in Mackey Arena, Assembly Hall, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indiana Farmers Coliseum and Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Big Ten's move is a result of COVID and the protocols that the NCAA and conference has for each program. Because of the lack of time from the end of the Big Ten Tournament to the beginning of the NCAA Tournament, having the teams already in Indianapolis will limit the potential for COVID cases to pop up due to travel.
Indiana head coach Archie Miller previously commented on the possibility.
"I think it does make sense if that were to happen. It protects the teams who are in the tournament with less travel," Miller said. "I think Indianapolis being where everything is going to be held makes some sense if that were to happen. I think that is definitely something that has been discussed and has been thrown around that if it happens, it will be a good move.
"I think there are some teams here who have gone through some things the last couple of weeks and look at it (Big Ten Tournament) and say this could really be something that could derail us as we have an opportunity to approach post-season."
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