There is no doubt that the Big Ten Conference is one of the most elite basketball conferences in the nation.  But with the recent struggles of University of Wisconsin-Madison and The Ohio State University, the question must be asked, is the conference really as dominant as we think it is?

Wisconsin started the season 16-0, climbing to as high as No. 3 in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25, but has since dropped four of its last five games.  Before their recent struggles, Wisconsin was 191-18 at home inside the Kohl Center.  In their last two games at home, though, Wisconsin is 0-2.

The Badgers’ first home loss of the season came at the hands of the University of Michigan Wolverines Jan. 18 following a loss to Indiana University in Bloomington.  Wisconsin also lost their next game, on the road at University of Minnesota, before getting back on track with a win at Purdue University.  Then, on Jan. 29, came the Badgers’ most puzzling defeat of the season.

Hosting Northwestern University, a 10-11 team that they had beaten by 27 points earlier in the month, Wisconsin came out and laid an egg.  The Badgers were colder than a Madison winter breeze, shooting just 26 percent from the field and 20 percent from three-point range.  Northwestern fifth-year senior Drew Crawford dropped 30 points in the Wildcats’ 65-56 win, giving first-year head coach Chris Collins his first road win against a ranked team, the team’s first win in Madison since 1996.

MORE COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Creighton's Doug McDermott stands alone among best players

Wisconsin is not the only Big Ten team that has found itself slipping in the rankings. Ohio State, a team that has also lost four out of its last five games, is in the same boat.

The Buckeyes, much like the Badgers, started off the season hot, winning their first 15 games.  They then lost their next four games, two against ranked teams in Michigan State University and University of Iowa, and two against unranked Big Ten foes in Minnesota and University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  The Buckeyes salvaged a home victory against University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign before getting back to their losing ways in a 71-70 overtime loss to Penn State University Jan. 29, Ohio State’s first home loss to an unranked team in 81 games.

So what is the reason for Wisconsin and Ohio State’s recent struggles?  Many would credit their defeats to the quality of the Big Ten.  It is true that no Big Ten game is a given, but home losses to Northwestern and Penn State, perennial conference bottom feeders?  They are inexcusable.

The road does not get much easier for either team as we enter the pivotal college basketball month of February.  Each team has four games remaining against ranked Big Ten opponents, starting with the most important one of all Feb. 1.  Ohio State will travel to Madison to battle Wisconsin in a game that is immensely important for both teams.  The winner will add another Top 25 win to their résumé while the loser will likely drop from the rankings.

Luckily, with so many ranked teams in the Big Ten, there are many opportunities for teams pick up solid, résumé-building wins.  But, this is both a blessing and a curse.

As Wisconsin and Ohio State know, it is easy to climb up the rankings, but even easier to fall.