2018 MEN’S B1G CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, February 21st – Saturday, February 24th
- Prelims 11am | Finals 6:30pm
- University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (Central Time Zone)
- Defending Champion: Indiana (results)
- Championship Central
- Fan Guide
- Live Video
- Live Results
- NCAA Qualifying
Minnesota’s Bowen Becker has been on fire all season, and the heightened competition of this week’s 2018 Big Ten Championships has only stoked the flames.
Becker, a junior, obliterated his own school record in the 50 yard freestyle in prelims Thursday, clocking a blistering 18.69 to take a 35/100ths lead over Michigan’s Paul Powers, the 2017 Big Ten champion and (former) Big Ten record holder in the 50 free. Becker was a little off his prelims time Thursday night, but he still got his hand on the wall first, touching in 18.93, while Powers took silver in 19.04, equaling his prelims time.
To finish off Thursday night’s session, Becker blasted a 41.33 as the freestyle leg on Minnesota’s runner-up 400 medley relay. The only swimmer in the field to out-split Becker in the freestyle was Indiana’s Blake Pieroni, who slammed a 41.11 to bring the Hoosiers to victory.
Wednesday night Becker threw down an 18.24-second split to help Minnesota get to the wall ahead of Michigan and nab silver in the 200 medley relay behind Indiana. Becker’s performance so far has been incredible, no doubt, but not unexpected for those who have followed Gopher swimming this season.
Becker will open tonight’s session in the ‘C’ Final of the 100 butterfly after clocking a personal best of 47.20 in prelims, and later finish the evening as part of Minnesota’s 200 freestyle relay.