A few years ago, I debated a former sports editor over the merits of a Big Ten basketball championship.
He claimed it didn't matter much. He argued that the only thing anyone cared about these days was how a team did in the NCAA Tournament.
While there's no doubt tournament success is more important, his contention that a league title was virtually meaningless struck a nerve. During my years as a beat writer, 10 talented Ohio State teams coached by Eldon Miller never won a Big Ten championship. The experience was imprinted on my brain: Winning a Big Ten title was impressive. Finishing on top of a tough league after what was then an 18-game schedule was hard, hard work.
In this Final Four or Bust era, there is no debating that conference titles aren't what they used to be. But if the title Ohio State won last night is meaningless, why was it one of those rare nights when Value City Arena seemed a worthy successor to St. John Arena? Why did the fans storm the court? And why did the air carry an electric charge when a grinning Evan Turner kissed the gold basketball on top of the Big Ten championship trophy while the fans were chanting "one more year"?
Although the building wasn't sold out, the fans who were there were into it. The students were chanting all night. No one was knitting. Even some of the old guard, who tend to nap through the snoozers, were on their feet.
And why not? The Buckeyes' 73-57 win over Illinois gave them a championship they weren't supposed to win and a place in the Big Ten basketball hierarchy that few give them credit for.
If you venture outside the state's borders - heck, maybe if you just leave Franklin County - there aren't many people who think of the Buckeyes as possibly the conference's predominant basketball school. Even when they reach the Final Four - it has happened twice in the past 11 years - it's hard to escape football's long, dark shadow. If you asked fans to name the Big Ten's basketball powers, it's a good bet OSU would rank behind Michigan State, Indiana and maybe even Illinois, Purdue and Wisconsin.
The facts suggest otherwise. The Buckeyes won a share of their third title in five years, all under coach Thad Matta. In the past eight years, Michigan State has won one, Indiana hasn't won any and Wisconsin has won two. Illinois has also won three (and four in the past 10 years), but has gone zero for the past five.
Even more impressive is the way Matta has done it: one with former coach Jim O'Brien's players, one with a freshman class that included one-and-dones Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr. and Daequan Cook, and one with this maturing group that is all Matta's own. Ohio State's recent Big Ten basketball dominance is obviously no fluke.
Eventually, we get back to where we started, though. Michigan State's reputation has been built primarily on Final Four appearances. Under coach Tom Izzo, the Spartans have been there five times in the past 11 seasons, including last year.
Which suggests that as impressive as this Big Ten title is, bigger prizes lie ahead. If the Buckeyes lose early in the NCAA Tournament and Michigan State makes another run to the Final Four, no one will remember where they both finished in the conference.
"This feels great," Turner said. "But it's not over yet. We've got a couple more trophies to worry about."
It was a nod to reality, a sign he knows it takes more than three league titles in five years to alter perception.
Unfortunately, perception is reality, even when it's wrong.
Bob Hunter is a sports columnist for The Dispatch.
bhunter@dispatch.com