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The hottest team in the state won’t be going to the NCAA tournament, barring an epic conference tournament run. But Illinois is on a roll with a season-best four-game winning streak and looking like a potential spoiler with six regular-season games to play.

Here are our power rankings of the state’s 13 Division I teams (last week’s ranking in parentheses; records through Sunday):

1. Illinois (1) 10-15, 6-8 Big Ten

The Illini entered Monday night’s game at No. 22 Wisconsin seeking a fifth straight conference victory and third win this season against a ranked opponent. After getting their first road win of the season Thursday at Ohio State, beating the Badgers would be another significant step forward for a team that is catching people’s attention.

2. Bradley (8) 15-12, 7-7 Missouri Valley

The Braves are shooting 49.4 percent on 3-pointers during a four-game winning streak that has them just two games out of first place in the Valley. Junior guard Darrell Brown is averaging 22.3 points during the streak, more than seven points above his season average, and is shooting 46.8 percent on 3s for the season.

3. Loyola (3) 16-11, 9-5 Missouri Valley

The Ramblers’ 65-61 loss Sunday to Missouri State ended a 13-game home winning streak in conference play that dated back more than a year, and it complicated the Valley standings. Loyola dropped into a three-way tie for first with Drake and Missouri State with four games remaining until the conference tournament, and four other teams are two games back.

4. DePaul (2) 13-11, 5-8 Big East

The Blue Demons gave up 92 points to Marquette and 91 to Butler in losses last week, the second- and third-most points they’ve allowed this season. After gaining some momentum this season, DePaul can’t let it get away.

5. UIC (6) 14-13, 8-6 Horizon

The Flames’ four-game winning streak ended Saturday with an 81-73 loss at Youngstown State. Junior guard Tarkus Ferguson is second on the team in scoring (15.1 points per game), first in rebounds (6.7), assists (5.1), steals (1.5) and blocks (0.9) and is shooting 37.2 percent on 3-pointers.

6. Southern Illinois (7) 14-13, 7-7 Missouri Valley

The Salukis have come a long way since losing four straight in January. Saturday’s 79-57 rout of Indiana State was their fifth win in eight games. Ball distribution is key for SIU; junior guard Aaron Cook has seven assists in two of the last three games.

7. Northwestern (4) 12-13, 3-11 Big Ten

The Wildcats have to win at least three of their last six games to avoid establishing coach Chris Collins’ worst conference record. They have the Big Ten’s worst offense, averaging 67 points and making 40.9 percent from the field. They rank 184th in the country in Kenpom.com’s offensive efficiency metric. The current six-game losing streak includes losses to lower-tier Big Ten teams Penn State, Rutgers and Nebraska.

8. Illinois State (5) 14-13, 7-7 Missouri Valley

The Redbirds continue to perplex. They have lost four in a row, scoring no more than 65 points in that stretch, and were swept by Bradley and Valparaiso.

9. Northern Illinois (9) 12-14, 5-8 Mid-American

The Huskies have lost five straight, and defense remains an issue. Bowling Green shot 58.7 percent and Western Michigan 50 percent in NIU losses last week.

10. Eastern Illinois (11) 14-13, 7-7 Ohio Valley

The Panthers have lost four of five, giving up an average of 88 points in the defeats.

11. SIU-Edwardsville (10) 8-18, 4-10 Ohio Valley

The Cougars average 14.2 turnovers and have two 18-turnover games in their current four-game losing streak.

12. Western Illinois (12) 8-17, 3-9 Summit

The Leathernecks are on their third four-game skid of the season.

13. Chicago State (13) 3-23, 0-11 WAC

The Cougars haven’t scored 70 points since Jan. 12.

sryan@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @sryantribune