...you ain't seen a ray of light since you got here.

It's been a terrible year for Big Ten basketball. Everyone is saying so. They just can't compete with the mighty Big East or... heaven forbid... the invincible ACC. Dick Vitale and Billy "Fudge" Packer spent so much time on their knees in front of Duke, UNC, Wake Forest, and the rest of that league, they ought to be nominated for an AVN award.

But here we are, with half the Final Four set, and what do we see?

One Big Ten team in the Final Four. No Big East or ACC teams in sight.

Two other Big Ten teams with a chance to go to the final four. One ACC team with that chance and no Big East teams left.

The Big Ten has gone 2-0 against the ACC this weekend, including a win over mighty Duke by MSU. And it took a phantom travelling call to get the only ACC team into the Elite 8.

The Big Ten is freaking 10-2 right now. The ACC is 9-4, but as mentioned, they're 0-2 against the Big Ten. The Big East? 7-6 and finished for the tournament.

Of course, the spin has been that the Big Ten has gotten this far by knocking off mostly low seeds. Yes, it's true that Wisconsin beat a #11 (Northern Iowa), a #14 (Bucknell), and a #10 (N.C. State) to get to the Elite 8. But let's not forget that a mighty Big XII team (Kansas) couldn't beat Bucknell. And a Big East power (Connecticut) couldn't beat N.C. State.

MSU has played a #12 (Old Dominion) and a #13 (Vermont) but again, let's not forget that the Big East tourney champs from Syracuse couldn't beat Vermont.

Illinois played a #12 seed (Wisconsin-Milwaukee) in the Sweet 16, but that #12 beat an SEC and Big East team to get there.

Think about how much hype we'd be hearing about the ACC if it had a chance for three Final Four teams. It would be endless-- on every Sportscenter segment on the tourney, on every graphic CBS put up for the "tournament summary." Having three Big Ten teams is just something of a novelty; "That's interesting. Now how 'bout those Heels???"

If Wisconsin beats UNC today (and I'm not saying that's going to happen for sure, but it could) I hope Packer and Vitale can finally admit that the ACC is not nearly the conference they thought it was. But I think we all know they won't.