Come Thursday afternoon when his baseball team takes the field at Purdue, Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb said he will tell his players the same thing he’s told them all season.

“Play hard,” Hartleb said. “We’ve talked about playing at an even keel at all year. They know what’s at stake, we’re not going to do anything different or special. We’ve done the same thing basically every week, every game. They know what’s on the line, I don’t have to say special things.”

What’s on the line when the Illini conclude their regular season this weekend with a three-game series in West Lafayette, Ind., is a Big Ten title. Illinois (32-16) currently sits in a second-place tie in the Big Ten at 15-6, one-half game back of conference leader Minnesota, which is 15-5. Ohio State is also 15-6 in conference play, and Indiana is in the hunt as well at 14-6.

Senior third baseman Dominic Altobelli is happy to have an opportunity to play for a conference title in his last season.

“That’s been our goal since the beginning of the season,” Altobelli said. “We’re excited for it. (For) all of us seniors, this is our last chance to win the Big Ten regular season.”

Early in the season, a game between Indiana and Minnesota was canceled because of inclement weather. Because the regular season ends Saturday and the Big Ten Tournament begins Wednesday, that game will not be made up, leaving the top of the Big Ten standings messy.

To claim the Big Ten title outright and grab the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament, Illinois likely would need to sweep Purdue and have Minnesota and Ohio State each lose a game. The Gophers travel to eighth-place Penn State and the Buckeyes host ninth-place Iowa this weekend.

“It would have been nice to go into this weekend with a half-game lead at least, but it is what it is,” Altobelli said. “We’re in a good position still.”

Almost as important as winning the Big Ten is finishing in one of the top two spots in conference, as the top two teams receive byes on the first day of the six-team, double-elimination Big Ten Tournament.

“Anytime you get a bye, you have your No. 1 (pitcher) going against somebody else’s No. 2 (pitcher), and that’s huge,” Hartleb said.

As usual, Phil Haig will start the opener for the Illini. The sophomore lefty is 6-2 on the year with a 4.48 ERA and tossed eight strong innings last Friday against Ohio State in a no-decision.

“I guess it’s kind of added pressure from your coach,” Haig said of starting the opener. “You got to go out and set the tone for the weekend. I think I embrace that.”

With senior Ben Reeser out with a back injury, freshman Will Strack is penciled in as the Friday starter. He is 5-0 with a 3.40 ERA. Freshman Bryan Roberts, who is 5-3 with a 6.00 ERA, will start the series finale Saturday.

Purdue is led by Dan Black at the plate. The junior is batting .307 with 13 home runs and 44 RBIs. Senior outfielder Brandon Haveman complements him with a .403 batting average and 31 runs scored. Despite some struggles, Matt Bischoff is Purdue’s No. 1 starter. He is 3-4 with a 5.44 ERA and a team-high 74 strikeouts.

Purdue (22-23, 9-11) has a lot to play for this weekend as well. Currently, the Boilermakers lead Michigan by 1 1/2 games for last berth in the Big Ten Tournament, but the Wolverines have a good chance to move up with a three-game set at last-place Northwestern.

“They’re going to be hungry…If you look at the history of Purdue, they’re a very tough team,” Hartleb said.