Northwestern Basketball

Northwestern travels to Penn State Sunday in the first of two matchups this season. The Wildcats will host the Nittany Lions on February 24th. Northwestern arrives in Happy Valley losing four of their last five. After early conference wins over Michigan State, Illinois and Wisconsin, Penn State has lost three in a row.

After trailing by 15 in the second half at Michigan Wednesday, NU closed to within one late. However Michigan finished the game on an 8-0 run to capture a 75-66 win. Michael Thompson led the surge with 17. Drew Crawford and JerShon Cobb continue to play well as they had 16 and 14 respectively.

John Shurna struggled for the second game in a row after missing Northwestern’s near upset of Ohio State two weeks ago. Shurna only has 12 points in the last two games while only attempting 10 shots. For Northwestern to be successful going forward they are going to need their star at full strength.

The point guard will be a decisive factor on Sunday. Penn State's Talor Battle has played for USA Basketball at the World University Games and has emerged as a likely All Big Ten First Team performer in 2011. Battle has three 30 point games this season and ranks third in the Big Ten in scoring in conference games.

Battle and Thompson are 1-2 in the conference in three-point field goals made per game. Thompson ranks eighth in the Big Ten in scoring, seventh in assists and third in steals.

Penn State sits one game ahead of Northwestern in the standings. They are tied for sixth with Minnesota and Michigan. Northwestern has a good chance to move up after the next four games. After Penn State, they host Iowa on Thursday, then travel to Indiana before the return trip from the Nittany Lions.

Penn State represents a challenge as another team that will play more deliberately then NU has the past two seasons. They average 64.0 PPG compared to NU’s 74.7.The Lions are stronger on defense, while Northwestern runs a more efficient offense. Rebounding and defense continue to plague the Wildcats. Michigan shot 51.7 percent and out rebounded Northwestern by seven.

Northwestern and Penn State tips off at 2:30pm CST on the Big Ten Network with Tom Hart and Tim Doyle providing the Play-by-Play and analysis.

The last time Northwestern Wildcats hoops were actually relevant was way back in 1934 when they tied for second-place in the Big Ten, but since then they´ve vanquished from the national basketball scene.

As a young Wildcat fan I can only remember depressing moments, but apparently Northwestern Basketball once was a name of respect in the NCAA; according to the Helms Athletic Foundation, in 1931 NU was the National Champion and won the Big Ten. 

Yet those days seemed had longed passed, especially at the turn of the century when the Wildcats finished with a record of 5-25. Surprisingly, things started to turn around when, after firing head-coach Kevin O´Neill after that dreadful season and signing Bill Carmody.

Carmody over the next 10 seasons improved the Wildcats so much that in 2009 he commanded the team to their first ever 20-win season and back-to-back seasons with a NIT appearance.

Northwestern has played so well over the last couple of years, this preseason everybody from Dick Vitale to Sports Illustrated put them down as the dark-horse to — finally— reach the NCAA Tournament.

Led by John Shurna and Drew Crawford— whom are the top scorers in the conference with 22.7 and 20.7 PPG average— Northwestern is currently 3-0.

NU has an easy schedule in November and most of December, but on New Year´s Eve they´ll start conference play against No. 9 Purdue, following that game they´ll face No. 2 Michigan State and after that one they´ll play at No. 16 Illinois.

They´ll be lucky to win at least one of the games. And their schedule doesn´t get any easier as the season progresses. They play against Top 25 teams five other times and the Big Ten has become stronger.

Nevertheless the Wildcats can do something special this season and I think with the aforementioned players and Guard Michael Thompson, Northwestern will get 20 wins again.

If they can keep up the level of play and confidence, they can get deep into the Big Ten Tournament and get a 65 through 68 bid in the NCAA Tournament.

Although there will be many bumps on the road, I think the Wildcats will finally get to the"Big Dance."

Northwestern Fans are and will be left wondering "What Happened?" and "Why?," as the news that star basketball Kevin Coble won't return for his fourth and final season at Northwestern.

NU coach Bill Carmody told the Chicago Tribune Wednesday night that Coble had informed him about his decision to finish up his degree in December, but would not be returning to the team this fall.

Coble had missed last season due to surgery on his left foot, but had led the Wildcats in scoring and rebounding in his first three seasons.

Northwestern, who made a surprise run to the NIT last season even without Coble, has six of its top seven players from last season back, and the return of Coble made many feel that they had enough to make their first NCAA tournament in school history.

While the 'Cats should still be competitive as they were last year, Coble's decision still hurts and will leave a lot of raised eyebrows.

But why would he leave a team that he is the unquestioned leader of and is on the verge of making team history?

Coble hadn't been cleared by doctors yet, but stated that he was still on rehab schedule, which makes me think that perhaps there was more to the injury than he is letting on. He's smart, he does go to Northwestern, so he knows that there is probably not much of an NBA career awaiting him, and if he ends up permanently hurting his foot, it affects him for the rest of his life.

Maybe it's not all worth it in his mind? Maybe it's something else? Maybe he'll change his mind and come back?

Whatever the reason is Northwestern fans will still be wondering what could have been?

When it comes to lack of basketball prowess, Northwestern is no longer alone in the Big Ten.

I doubt anyone was more excited to hear about the addition of Nebraska than Bill Carmody and his players. Nebraska is one of three schools, along with Northwestern and South Florida, who have never won an NCAA Tournament game.

At least Nebraska has made it to the NCAA Tournament. The Cornhuskers did relatively well for themselves in the 1990s under Danny Nee, making the Big Dance from 1991-1994 and then again in 1998. They also made the tournament in 1986.

Like Northwestern, Nebraska faced the unfortunate double-whammy of playing in a strong basketball conference and not being a very good basketball school itself. Still, it managed to win the NIT in 1996, something Northwestern has yet to claim.

Adding the Cornhuskers could make Pat Fitzgerald's life more difficult, but it could help Carmody finally end Northwestern's NCAA Tournament drought for 2011.

The good news for Northwestern is that Kevin Coble will be back. He was hands-down the best player on the Wildcats' roster heading into the 2009-2010 season.

But after suffering a season-ending injury, someone had to step up and fill his role. That person was John Shurna, who quickly and quietly became Northwestern's go-to scorer. His height poses matchup problems for the entire conference, including Nebraska.

Michael Thompson is a quality point guard who can light it up from beyond the arc. Drew Crawford was arguably the Wildcats' best player during several late-season games and easily showed he was the most athletic player on the roster.

Of course, Jershawn Cobb will be joining the Wildcats next season.

He's the best recruit to come to Northwestern in recent memory and could be the wild card this squad needs to make it over the hump. Since Coble and Thompson are both in their final seasons in Evanston, it really is win-now for the Wildcats.

Having Nebraska to (hopefully) beat up on will only help matters. Northwestern faltered down the stretch in 2010 against teams they were supposed to beat. With Coble back and the other players getting that experience under their belts, it is not likely to happen again.

Throw Nebraska in with Penn State, Iowa, and Indiana as members of the bottom of the Big Ten. Northwestern needs to edge out Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois if they want to finish in the conference's top five and qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

Adding one school won't drastically impact Northwestern's outlook for 2010-2011.

But it does give the Wildcats hope. When it comes to miserable basketball, they've got company. 

Jeremy Nash and I are members of the Class of 2010. We've both seen the Northwestern men's basketball team grow tremendously since our freshman year.

There's one big difference: Nash actually was part of the team and had a crucial role in helping Northwestern to two of the best seasons in program history. I just had the privilege of watching the turnaround.

Flash back to Jan. 27, 2008. This was possibly the low point of Nash's time at Northwestern. The Wildcats, after starting Big Ten play 0-6 and in desperate need of a win, traveled to Champaign to take on the struggling Illinois Fighting Illini, who were 1-6 in Big Ten play at the time.

They ran Northwestern off the court by a final score of 70-37.

Northwestern finished the year with one Big Ten victory.

Flash forward to Jan. 23, 2010. Nash, who hails from the South Side of Chicago, grew up hearing all about Illinois basketball and how great it was. When he ended up at Northwestern, Illinois was the team circled on the calendar every year. This was his last chance to beat them—and beat them he did. Nash scored a career-high 22 points in a performance for the ages. 

In one of the greatest sequences I've witnessed during my four years at Northwestern, Nash hit a dagger three-pointer from the left wing to give NU the lead late in the game. Then, in typical Nash fashion, he took a charge on the other end.

He got up, spread his arms out, and screamed at the top of his lungs as he ran around the court like a madman.

Welsh Ryan Arena nearly exploded from the decibel levels reached at that moment.

I honestly think that game will be the one thing NU basketball-related I will never forget when I look back at my time as a student here 30 years from now.

Something tells me Nash feels the same way. There's nothing sweeter than finally beating your rival, in front of your fans, in the middle of the race to the NCAA tournament.

Flash back to freshman year. Nash was the forgotten man in a recruiting class that featured Kevin Coble and Jeff Ryan as he averaged 2.4 points per game.

Flash forward to senior year. Coble and Ryan both went down with injuries. It was up to Nash to be the team leader.

After only making seven three-pointers his freshman year, Nash knocked down 39 of them as a senior. He filled in at the shooting guard spot and played his typical tenacious defense at the top of the 1-3-1 zone defense.

If Nash ever had a calling card, it was defense. That's how he earned minutes when he was still trying to find his way as an underclassmen. Northwestern's defense struggled in general this year, but not Nash. He led the team in steals with 58.

When you talk about leaving a legacy, you talk about what people will remember about you for years down the road.

I believe Nash's legacy will be as the man who laid the groundwork for Northwestern's first NCAA tournament bid.

No, they did not make it during his time in Evanston. But how many games would they have won the past two years without him?

They sure as heck wouldn't have won the Illinois game this year. There are many other games I remember when Nash just thoroughly confused the opposition's ball-handlers at the top of the key, causing many a turnover that led to Northwestern points.

Nash's role as a mentor cannot be overlooked. I spoke with Juice Thompson this year for a story I did about Senior Day, and he told me that playing with Nash in the backcourt had really opened his eyes to the impact good defense can have on the game.

It will be hard to replace Nash's D next season. But even though the rest of NU struggled this year on that end of the floor, I think you will see a renewed focus next year.

Strangely, Nash's departure might make the Wildcats focus more on that aspect of the game—simply because they won't be able to rely on him to force the turnovers anymore.

His passion and determination to win this season was admirable. His improvement during the past four years was significant. And while the ultimate goal was not attained, the groundwork has been laid.

Kudos to you, Jeremy Nash. Maybe we'll see you coaching the 1-3-1 here in the near future.

I took a lot of heat this past week when I told my friends that quite frankly I didn't care whatsoever about the NIT. I was accused of "not supporting the team," and of "throwing them under the bus." I was not pleased with the NIT bid and upon watching these recent NCAA tournament games, I've even less pleased with the reaction of the Northwestern student body towards the bid.

Everyone is acting like the NIT bid was some great accomplishment that should be celebrated. It was the first 20-win season in NU history. It was the first time NU has EVER been in back to back postseason tournaments. They did it without Kevin Coble, who was lost for the year due to injury. These are undeniable facts.

But quite frankly I had higher expectations for this team. After they beat Notre Dame, Iowa State, and NC State in a row, there was no doubt in my mind they should make the NCAA tournament. Even right after Coble and Ryan went down at the very beginning of the year, I said they'd still make the tournament. People called me delusional at the time.

Then Northwestern started winning, a lot. They won so much they actually debuted in the AP top 25 for the first time since the Nixon administration. That didn't last long as they lost a heart breaker to Illinois in overtime, but in my opinion, the new bar had been set, Kevin Coble or no Kevin Coble.

No matter what your initial expectations were for the team, their play through the first few months of the season should have made you realize that this team had the talent to make the Big Dance. Thus, that should have been the new expectation, not some vague hope.

But when a team loses four of seven to Penn State, Iowa, and Indiana down the stretch, they don't deserve to make the NCAA Tournament. That was the biggest source of my disappointment. Those three teams are simply awful squads, and if Northwestern wins four more games this year, they're probably dancing, despite their weak schedule and lack of signature wins.

So pardon me, but no, I was not pleased with a NIT bid. I also would argue that the NIT is absolutely meaningless when you compare it to the NCAA Tournament. One dramatic win in the NCAA tournament and you're immortal in the minds of college basketball fans. All you have to say is "Valpo", and fans will immediately remember Bryce Drew's amazing game-winner against Ole Miss years ago.

This year, watching Quincy Pondexter of UW lead the Huskies to a dramatic win over Marquette, I realized he'd be a campus legend for all-time. Only the most committed NU basketball historians could tell me who led NU to their last win in the NIT .

One win in the NIT, no matter how dramatic or entertaining the game, isn't remembered by anyone outside your school. This brings me to the argument a lot of my friends were making.

"This is Northwestern, Aaron. A win in the NIT would mean a lot for the players and the program, especially considering our history."

I reject wholeheartedly the premise that a poor history justifies lowering our expectations. I don't care what the past NU teams did, I only care about the current version of the Wildcats. In my evaluation of THIS team, I saw the talent necessary to make the NCAA Tournament.

You can agree or disagree with that, but as I said before, if they had taken care of business late in the season against the teams they should beat, we wouldn't be having this discussion right now.

History is an unfortunate burden that is really weighing down both the football and basketball programs right now. When a school hasn't won a bowl game since 1949 or has never made the NCAA Tournament, believe me, the players know it. Fans see it as nearly an impossible task, so they lower their expectations.

I still hear people calling the Outback Bowl a moral victory. No, no, and HELL no. No one who truly supports NU athletics should consider the Outback Bowl...or the NIT...a moral victory.

I believe it does a great disservice to the players, our peers, when you say "Congratulations on making the NIT." That is the equivalent of walking up to Zeke Markshausen and telling him "Congrats on almost winning the Outback Bowl."

This team's goal was to make the NCAA Tournament. They did not want to be in the NIT. It must be such a letdown to work so hard all year, and find yourself "rewarded" for your efforts in a trip to Rhode Island for a game no one in this country besides your most die-hard fans will see or care about.

I listened to Dave Eanet call the game. I hoped they'd win. I was frustrated when they didn't because I have a ton of school pride. But in the end, the result of that game was meaningless. Even winning the whole NIT doesn't mean much. Ask Penn State.

The only tournament that matters in college basketball is the NCAA Tournament. Until Northwestern makes that, the players will not be satisfied, and if we are even half-decent fans, neither should we. 

On Monday night, two schools who had never tasted the Big Dance had a chance to punch their first ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

Those two schools, William and Mary of the Colonial Conference and Wofford of the Southern Conference, had a chance to do so in the championship game of their respective conference.

In the end, Wofford would be the lucky ones, defeating App. State in the SoCon tournament for their first NCAA Tournament bid.

Why do I bring up Wofford in this column?

Because Wofford, which joined the Southern Conference in 1997-98, will be doing something that Northwestern University, which is on a list with William and Mary, Army, The Citadel, and St. Francis (NY), won't be doing.

Dancing in March.

I know that sounds like sour grapes, but at one point this year it seemed like Northwestern was going to make it.

Ranked in the top 25 for the first time since Richard Nixon was in office, Northwestern gets a big win against Purdue at home, followed by another big win against rival Illinois in Welsh-Ryan Arena in January.

But as my co-host Marty Mar said on last Wednesday, it's all about winning on the road against the best teams after the start of the New Year.

Northwestern didn't do that.

They fought well against Wisconsin and Michigan State on the road but then, coupled with those losses, the Wildcats lost to a 21-loss Iowa team, Penn State, and Indiana on the road.

Compare those losses with the ones against Wisconsin and Michigan State on the road and you get a typical Northwestern team that always seems to be the team that can break the cycle of futility in basketball and then poof, the chance goes up in smoke.

That my friend, is Northwestern basketball.

Going into this morning, a website that looks at the NIT picture showed Northwestern, which has an RPI of 117 going into the Big 10 tournament, as a team heading into CBI territory.

Quite a fall from where they were in December and early January, don't you think?

On a night where Kentucky convincingly got their revenge on South Carolina, other teams were in action as well.

Who made the best of Thursday night? Who missed a late season opportunity?

Winners

Kentucky (27-1, 12-1)

Devan Downey had 26 points, but it was all about the Wildcats at Rupp last night. An 82-61 victory over the Gamecocks helped avenge their only loss of the season.

Northwestern (18-10, 7-9)

It was a night to remember for Northwestern. Their 74-57 victory over Iowa last night was their 18th win of the season and a new school record for wins in a single season.

Wofford (22-8, 14-3)

Wofford’s win over Charleston last night put them one game up with one game to go in the Southern Conference. They won 74-68 at home.

Morehead State (20-9, 14-3)

Nothing like finally handing Murray State their first loss in the OVC. Kenneth Faried recorded a double-double in the win.

Gonzaga (23-5, 11-2)

The Zags clinched at least a share of their 10th straight West Coast Conference regular season title with an 88-51 thumping of Santa Clara.

Losers

Tulsa (19-9, 8-5)

A non-conference game in late February at Duke? It probably would have been a huge boost if they had won, but they were never really in it, and it came at a point where the Golden Hurricanes need the Ws.

Indiana (9-18, 3-12)

Even playing at home against a ranked opponent isn’t enough to get Indiana playing well. They were smacked at Assembly Hall by 32 last night by Wisconsin.

College of Charleston (19-10, 13-4)

With the regular season conference championship up for grabs, the Cougars couldn’t win at Wofford. They will seek revenge in the Southern Conference Tournament.

Murray State (26-4, 16-1)

They probably didn’t have much of a chance for an at-large bid anyway, but now there is absolutely zero chance after they lost to Morehead State last night. They will have to earn their NCAA bid despite 26 wins.

The Northwestern men's basketball team clearly has the talent to compete with anyone in the Big Ten. Next year, with the additions of Kevin Coble back from injury and Rivals.com four-star recruit Jershon Cobb, they'll have top tier Big Ten talent.

But they still might not make the NCAA Tournament.

This team lacks any player who consistently wants the ball with the game on the line. I want to preface this argument by saying that I am not questioning the team's effort. This team plays really hard all of the time, and I admired their resiliency in coming back against Wisconsin in the Kohl Center.

But all of NU's players are too...nice.

Basketball is something they are all really good at, and have been practicing all their lives to compete at the highest level. But if it doesn't work out, it's not that big of a deal.

Tim Doyle might have said it best after Greg Oden overwhelmed NU center Vince Scott a few years ago. "Greg is going to be a NBA center, Vince is going to be an investment banker."

Obviously the difference there was talent, but the point is: NU's greatest blessing is also their biggest curse. Basketball is not the be all end all for these players. The players are all very respectful and nice to their opponents. I think I've seen one scuffle during my four years here and that was between Craig Moore and Devan Dumes.

I'd like to see some attitude for once.

I don't want to say nice guys finish last, but I will say nice guys rarely win championships in basketball.

Watch Kentucky play basketball. I'm disgusted by their antics, but when the game is on the line those other Wildcats find a way to win almost every time. The talent differential between Kentucky and their competition isn't as great as many people seem to think; they've been in more close games than I can count.

I think they're very immature and might slip up in the tournament. But they have a bunch of alpha males who want the ball when it matters most.

That's an extreme example, but for Northwestern when it's a one-possession game with the clock winding down under a minute, there is no one on this team that demands the ball.

This has hurt them three times this year, twice against Wisconsin, and the other time at Minnesota.

That quite simply is the difference between the NCAA Tournament and the NIT.

The first time against the Badgers, Trevon Hughes gave NU a good look at what they don't have. The point guard struggled all game, but when it mattered the most he basically single-handily willed Wisconsin to the victory.

Everyone is familiar with Hughes' story thanks to the BTN's excellent show The Journey, but needless to say he came from the school of hard knocks. He was extremely immature as a kid, so immature he was sent to military school to get him away from the people he was associating himself with on the streets.

Compare his story to John Shurna's and you get my point. Hughes' way out of his situation on the east coast was basketball. Shurna's extracurricular activity is basketball. Hughes' team is going to the NCAA Tournament, Shurna's is not.

Obviously, Shurna has hit some huge shots in his NU career. He helped spur the comeback against Minnesota and hit a buzzer beater last year against Ohio State.

But he looked more sad than angry Sunday when NU came up short against Wisconsin again. Northwestern players always look sad when they lose.

I want to see some anger.

I don't think it's possible with these players. It's funny how what society should view as a good thing (well-rounded, realizing it's just a game, not being completely consumed by it), is ultimately NU's downfall.

But basketball is great because it really only takes one superstar to change things completely. Look at Ohio State with Evan Turner compared to when he's not on the floor.

Will Northwestern ever find that one player who combines superior talent like Shurna and Crawford with that consistent burning desire to win at all costs? I think Nash has that desire now that he's a senior and realizing that time is running out, but he simply doesn't have the talent to back it up every game.

It's certainly going to be difficult to find that special player, especially with regards to the Princeton Offense. It's a successful system, but it's not exactly one where stars can put up huge numbers.

Carmody has often compared his offense to a democracy.

Unfortunately, with the clock ticking towards zero, sometimes you need a dictatorship.

I won’t get into the futility of Northwestern Wildcats basketball.

Actually, maybe I will—105 seasons of basketball, two Big Ten championships, no 20-win seasons, and, more importantly, no NCAA Tournament appearances.

Moving on from the past, the Wildcats played by far the most important regular-season game in their basketball history today.

A win against the Minnesota Golden Gophers means the Wildcats may still have a shot at making the big dance, along with a chance to tie the school record for wins in a season (17). Lose, and it would be another year of waiting for Northwestern and their fans.

It took an overtime period Sunday, but the Northwestern Wildcats tied the record for most wins in a season with their 17th by beating Minnesota at Welsh-Ryan Arena, 77-74.

Here’s their remaining schedule:

Feb. 17 vs. Penn State

Feb. 21 @ Wisconsin

Feb. 25 vs. Iowa

Feb. 28 @ Penn State

March 3 vs. Chicago State

March 6 @ Indiana

Outside of Wisconsin, the rest of the schedule should produce easy wins. However, with the way Iowa played against the Wildcats in Iowa City earlier this year, along with the snake-bitten ways of this program, the Wildcats have to get the ball rolling now if they want to obtain their first 20-win season in school history.

Sunday’s win against Minnesota was that first step.