John Beilein knows his team’s work isn’t finished.

The Michigan men's basketball coach also refuses to speculate about how much more it will take for the Wolverines to make their first tournament appearance in more than 10 years.

But in his press conference yesterday, he gave some hints on how he thinks the NCAA Tournament selection committee should evaluate tournament-worthy teams.

“I know, traditionally, teams that have as many wins in the top-50 wins, in the top-100 wins, things like that, and finish strong, have done well as far as selection,” Beilein said.

Beilein was slyly pleading Michigan’s case.

According to ESPN, the Wolverines have the 10th-best strength of schedule and have beaten six top-50 RPI teams and 10 top-100 RPI teams. They have also finished strong, winning four of their last six games.

Beilein would prefer not to leave anything to chance by winning the Big Ten Tournament and earning the conference's automatic bid. But he also knows how difficult that will be.

The seventh-seeded Wolverines open the Big Ten tournament against No. 10 seed Iowa on Thursday.

A loss would put their tournament hopes in jeopardy. A win would push Michigan one step closer to Selection Sunday.

"You cannot count on anything,” Beilein said. “You have to go in there and say, ‘Listen, all these games are very important.’ … You are the only one that can control your destiny right now. There are so many other things that are going on that are out of your control.”

MVP?: Sophomore forward Manny Harris may have stolen the spotlight this season, but junior forward DeShawn Sims has made a strong case to be Michigan's most valuable player.

Harris leads the team in points and assists per game. But Sims has been the go-to player in all of the Wolverines’ big wins this season.

UCLA: Sims nailed a dunk in the final seconds to seal the win and scored 18 points.

Duke: Sims outmuscled the Blue Devils for 28 points and 12 rebounds.

Purdue: Sims scored a career-high 29 points and hit a late 3-pointer that put the final nail in the Boilermakers’ coffin.

Minnesota: Sims had the hot hand early and late in the game, scoring 24 points with seven from the free-throw line.

The junior has hit his stride down the stretch. In his last five games, he has averaged 19 points per game.

“He has been one of our better practice players from January on,” Beilein said. “I just like what his attitude has been. He’ll have his moments, but his overall attitude has been really good about wanting to be the best player he can be, and he has worked really hard at that.”

The 6-foot-8 forward is playing more aggressively and his turnaround jumper has given teams fits.

Following Saturday’s 67-64 win over Minnesota, Sims was asked about his improved scoring numbers. He simply responded, “That's my thing.”

Third scorer: All season, Beilein has said Sims and Harris need some company as Michigan's top scorers.

On Saturday, redshirt freshman guard Laval Lucas-Perry was the team's third scoring weapon with 19 points.

But Lucas-Perry isn’t the only freshman guard to show up big on the stat sheet this season. Zack Novak and Stu Douglass have both scored 20 points in a game and are known to burn down the nets with their long-distance shooting.

With Lucas-Perry just one point short, Michigan almost has five players who have scored 20 points or more this season. In all of Beilein’s 31 years of coaching, he can’t remember having a team with that many go-to scorers.

“As long as you know you have enough guys to do it, you just are hoping you can just push the right buttons at that time,” Beilein said. “That someone will emerge at the right time.”

Big Ten's best: Last night, Harris was named as a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches and media. He was a second-team selection last year. Sims was picked on the second team by the media and third team by the coaches.

Michigan State guard Kalin Lucas was awarded Big Ten Player of the Year, and his coach, Tom Izzo, was selected as Coach of the Year by the coaches. Penn State coach Ed Dechellis was given the honor by the media.