The No. 2 Iowa men’s wrestling team will compete in the 2023 Big Ten Wrestling Championships on Saturday and Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the Crisler Center.

The Hawkeyes are heading into the postseason 13-1 with their lone loss coming against Penn State, 23-14, on Jan. 27.

“This is the most exciting time of the year,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said at media availability on Tuesday. “This is where careers and memories and whatever positive is built. Why not springboard yourself into contention for the national championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma? why not?”

The Hawkeyes finished third at the conference tournament last season behind Penn State and Michigan, as four of Iowa’s 10 wrestlers dropped out of the event with injuries.

The Big Ten Championship released pre-seeds, which are voted on by the conference’s coaches, on Feb. 27. Iowa wrestlers are seeded eight or higher in all 10 weight classes, while Penn State leads the conference with four No. 1 seeds. The official bracket will come out Friday following the Big Ten Conference coaches’ meeting but will likely not change much.

Iowa’s two-time Big Ten champion Spencer Lee is one of two Hawkeyes to earn a No. 1 seed. The 125-pounder is heading into the postseason on a 52-match win streak.

Lee is 14-0 on the season with pins against Nebraska’s No. 2 seed Liam Cronin, Purdue’s No. 3 seed Matt Ramos, Wisconsin’s No. 4 seed Eric Barnett, Northwestern’s No. 6 seed Michael DeAugustino, and Illinois’ No. 14 seed Maximo Renteria.

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Iowa’s Real Woods, who will make his Big Ten postseason debut, received the No. 1 seed at 141 pounds. Woods won two Pac-12 titles at 141 pounds at Stanford in 2020 and 2022. Woods is 13-0 this season with seven victories against ranked opponents.

Two Hawkeyes earned No. 3 seeds — 165-pounder Patrick Kennedy will make his postseason debut, while heavyweight Tony Cassioppi will make his fourth Big Ten Tournament appearance.

Kennedy has one Big Ten loss this season to Wisconsin’s No. 1 seed Dean Hamiti, 4-3. Kennedy hasn’t faced Michigan’s No. 2 seed Cameron Amine, who was absent from the Wolverines’ lineup in this year’s dual meet against the Hawkeyes.

Kennedy is 4-2 against ranked opponents this season and said his difficult matches have helped him prepare and feel stronger for March.

Cassioppi is 17-2 on the season, pinning nine of his first 11 opponents. Casioppi lost to Michigan’s No. 1 seed Mason Parris, 9-7, and Penn State’s No. 2 seed Greg Kirkvliet, 4-1, in this year’s dual meets.

Cassioppi medically forfeited the conference heavyweight title match last season and earned third place in 2020 and 2021. A fresh face will be crowned the Big Ten heavyweight champion this year following the departure of Minnesota’s Gable Stevenson, who won three consecutive titles from 2020-22.

Iowa’s 149-pound Max Murin received a No. 4 seed. In his four Big Ten Tournament appearances, Murin has placed third, fifth, and seventh.

Murin has close losses this season against Wisconsin’s No. 2 seed Austin Gomez, 5-3, and Northwestern’s No. 3 seed Yahya Thomas, 3-2.

Iowa’s 157-pound Cobe Siebrecht, 184-pound Abe Assad, and 197-pound Jacob Warner earned No. 5 seeds.

Siebrecht will make his postseason debut on Saturday. The Lisbon, Iowa, native is 10-4 this season with wins against Michigan’s No. 6 seed Will Lewan, Northwestern’s No. 8 seed Trevor Chumbley, Wisconsin’s No. 9 seed Garrett Model, and Minnesota’s No. 11 seed Brayton Lee.

Warner placed third at the Big Ten Championships in 2019-21 and fourth in 2022. He went on to earn 2022 NCAA runner-up, falling to Penn State’s Max Dean, 3-2.

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Dean, a No. 1 seed, beat Warner, 2-0, this season in front of a sold-out Bryce Jordan Center. Then, on Feb. 3, Warner fell to Minnesota’s then-No. 28 Michael Foy, 2-1, on a buzzer-beating takedown in Minneapolis. The two defeats marked the first time in Warner’s career that he’s suffered back-to-back losses.

Despite the rough patch, Warner said he’s kept everything in perspective and believes every obstacle this season has helped prepare him for his final run at an individual title.

The Hawkeyes haven’t had a Big Ten champion at 197 pounds since the weight class was introduced in 1999.

Warner ended the regular season on a two-match win streak, with a dominating 16-1 victory over Michigan’s Brendin Yatooma and a 3-2 decision against Oklahoma State’s Luke Surber.

“What happens in December, January, and February doesn’t really matter,” Warner said on Tuesday. “I know what kind of wrestler I am. I know how tough I am, and when it comes to March, that’s really what it’s about, being tough and gritty.”

Assad placed fourth and seventh at the Big Ten tournament in 2020 and 2022, respectively. He missed Iowa’s dual meets against Penn State, Minnesota, and Michigan this season because of an undisclosed injury. Assad made his return to the mat on Feb. 19 with a victory over Oklahoma State’s then-No. 10 Travis Wittlake, 4-2.

Iowa’s 174-pound Nelson Brands received a No. 7 seed. Brands has four one-point losses this season against ranked opponents. He battled Penn State’s No. 1 seed Carter Starocci and fell, 2-1. He lost to Nebraska’s No. 2 seed Mikey Labriola, 3-2, and Illinois’ No. 5 seed Edmond Ruth, 2-1, in overtime. Nelson Brands has competed in the Big Ten Championships once before, placing fourth as a sophomore in 2021.

Iowa’s 133-pound Brody Teske received a No. 8 seed. Teske, a Northern Iowa transfer, will make his third conference tournament appearance but first in the Big Ten. Teske won a Big 12 title at 125 pounds in 2021 and finished runner-up last season.

The first-round, quarterfinal, semifinal, and wrestleback matches will be on Saturday during Session I and II, starting at 9 a.m. The consolation semifinals and seventh-place bouts will take place during Session III on Sunday at 12 p.m., and first, third, and fifth-place matches will highlight Session IV at 4:30 p.m.

The Big Ten Conference was awarded 88 of the 284 automatic qualifying bids to the national tournament. The tournament champion in each weight class will receive an automatic bid, while the rest of the spots will be awarded based on place-finish.

Sessions I, II, and IV will be televised on Big Ten Network, while all other sessions will be streamed live on BTN+.