CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Asked for the umpteenth time to back Big Ten basketball against criticism that its defense-first style is boring, conference Commissioner Jim Delany suddenly found an extra 10 minutes in his schedule.

Delany talked at length with reporters at the University of Illinois on Wednesday about what he sees as the Big Ten’s emphasis on superior defense, and his belief that the conference’s reputation won’t hurt it Sunday when the NCAA Tournament berths are announced.

“People don’t want to play our teams,” he said as the Big Ten prepared to open its conference tournament Thursday in Indianapolis. “Do you think people want to play Michigan State? … I don’t think so.”

The seventh-ranked Spartans are one of only two conference teams (along with No. 24 Purdue) in the Top 25. Michigan State is the Big Ten’s highest-scoring team and at 72.2 points a game, the only one that tops 70 on average.

But the Big Ten has 11 teams that can play defense, Delany said.

Illinois, the conference’s top defensive team, gives up 56.5 points a game. Michigan, 10th in the Big Ten defensively, allows 63.7 points a game. Indiana, worst in the conference, gives up just over 70.

“Some people don’t guard anybody, they want to have 80 possessions,” Delany said. “Our coaches say ‘guard.'”

The Big Ten could get more than seven teams in the NCAA Tournament, Delany said.

His desire to see more Big Ten teams in the postseason aside, Delany has no interest in seeing the 64-team NCAA field expanded, even though many of his coaches, like Illinois’ Bruce Weber, disagree.

“We keep adding teams to Division I, but we don’t expand,” Weber said during a news conference Tuesday.

“At least expand the play-in games. I can’t see where it hurts anything.”