After seemingly eons (or at least three years) of waiting for Northwestern get a road win over an opponent who was respectable, Northwestern pulled out a very solid 74-70 win over Illinois on Sunday. For the record, I want to note that if you check my prediction while I thought it would be a lower scoring game, despite my feelings about how disappointing NU has been this season, I did predict that the Wildcats would win this contest. Now as to the team itself, this was a great win for NU and it was critical that NU got solid production from all six players who played meaningful minutes. It wasn’t always in points as David Curletti got one point and Alex Marcotullio got two, but those guys impacted the game on defense and with rebounding while John Shurna, Reggie Hearn, Dave Sobolewski, and Drew Crawford combined to score enough points to push the ‘Cats to victory.
I think Illinois did NU something of a favor in not subbing all that much and thus not gaining any significant advantage due to NU’s lack of depth and by not giving the ball to Myers Leonard every time down the court. However, NU took advantage of that much more than they might of in the past and ran the offense with total perfection in the second half which resulted in many easy looks for John Shurna who finished 11-of-15 from field and moved into second place on NU’s all-time scoring chart. It also caused NU to avoid any prolonged scoring drought which stretched for 5-10 minutes as we saw the first time these teams played.
The well run offense also led to some chances for Dave Sobolewski to get to the basket and aside from missing a couple free throws I actually thought this was his most assertive offensive game since NU’s big win over Michigan State (I’d note that him being so assertive and NU winning big games probably isn’t a coincidence). He not only drove the lane late in the shot clock but in fact tried to make things happen by attacking the goal at many times in many ways. As a result, Reggie Hearn benefited with some open threes which he knocked down in the first half and with some very nice backdoor layups as well. I also thought that Drew Crawford played a pretty good overall game. He didn’t seem to force as many shots and he led NU with four assists in the game.
In the end, though, I think this game was won on defense. Yes, Illinois might have won if they’d given Leonard more shots, but the ‘Cats coaching staff did nice job calling switching defenses which at times seemed to confuse Illinois. I also thought that for the most part NU at least made it difficult for Illinois to get the pass they wanted. Yes, sometimes they got that pass, but it wasn’t easy and they were forced to really work. That paid off once NU made them work equally hard on defense and is part of the reason for the late backdoors. Those backdoors and Shurna’s attacking the glass also led to NU scoring more points in the paint despite Leonard’s dominate performance. That’s huge and it shows that Northwestern can be more than a three point shooting team. That’s a good lesson for NU long term and while this game isn’t the type of win that makes NU as nationally relevant as the Michigan State win, it is a game that will keep NU fans interested and hopefully help fill Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thursday when Iowa comes to town.
Showing posts with label Illinois. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Illinois. Show all posts
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
In-State Rivalry Gives NU Another Chance to Win on the Road
Northwestern is looking for their first win at Illinois since 1999 on Sunday and despite the fact that NU is only 3-6 in the Big Ten, they’ve got a chance. Yes, NU is still suffering with injuries to JerShon Cobb, Luka Mirkovic, and Nick Fruendt, but Illinois is still a team that NU matches up decently well with. The biggest problem for NU is Illinois center Myers Leonard, especially if 6-11 Luka Mirkovic can’t go. However at times Illinois seems to forget that Leonard is on the court and relies on jump shots from D.J. Richardson and Brandon Paul in order to win games. It has been enough at times for the Illini who scrapped by this week with a 42-41 win over Michigan State and have pulled out a number of other close games and home and on the road. In fact, Illinois should probably be even better than they are, but they aren’t and this is a team Northwestern can beat.
For Northwestern to win this game the ‘Cats need a solid effort from their center spot. I’m hoping we’ll see a version of Davide Curletti which is closer to what he was against Michigan State than what he has been in other games. They also need a big game from Drew Crawford. Crawford’s played well of late and if he has a really solid game (especially converting on drives and free throws) he can help push NU to victory. Of course, John Shurna must play a big role and I honestly think he’s a tough matchup for Illinois as long as NU isn’t forced to stick him at center for long stretches. Finally, NU has to get solid on defense. Whether it’s the 1-3-1 or the man-to-man, Northwestern can force Illinois into bad shots and turnovers. We’ve seen that in the past. The key is to do so and then take advantage which NU did not when the two teams played in Evanston. If NU can do that, they might just have a chance to pull off an upset. I predict: Northwestern, 61 Illinois, 58
For Northwestern to win this game the ‘Cats need a solid effort from their center spot. I’m hoping we’ll see a version of Davide Curletti which is closer to what he was against Michigan State than what he has been in other games. They also need a big game from Drew Crawford. Crawford’s played well of late and if he has a really solid game (especially converting on drives and free throws) he can help push NU to victory. Of course, John Shurna must play a big role and I honestly think he’s a tough matchup for Illinois as long as NU isn’t forced to stick him at center for long stretches. Finally, NU has to get solid on defense. Whether it’s the 1-3-1 or the man-to-man, Northwestern can force Illinois into bad shots and turnovers. We’ve seen that in the past. The key is to do so and then take advantage which NU did not when the two teams played in Evanston. If NU can do that, they might just have a chance to pull off an upset. I predict: Northwestern, 61 Illinois, 58
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Cold Shooting Second Half Dooms Wildcats
First of all let’s start and the end. Drew Crawford was simply far too soft when taking the last shot. Tossing up a fadeaway lob isn’t going to work when a 7-1 shot blocker is in the middle of the court.
The game really was lost though when NU went through a 3-for-20 shooting stretch in the second half. Illinois played somewhat better defense than they did in the first half, but really I thought Northwestern just missed a lot of shots they were capable of making. At times a few of the shots might have been somewhat forced from Crawford or Shurna, but they were trying to make plays at a time when NU needed baskets. In hindsight maybe they shouldn’t have forced as many shots, but you can’t know it’s going end up a one point game when you’re trailing by five or seven in the middle of the contest.
On the positive side Northwestern played really good defense all night. They had a few lapses on ball pressure, but overall I was impressed. I actually might say it was one of the best defensive games I’ve seen from a Bill Carmody team at Northwestern. It’s a shame it all went for nothing tonight, but let’s not forget that NU can’t shoot as badly as they did this evening all year. If the defense stays intense the ‘Cats will pull a couple upsets this season.
Another negative was the end of the first half. Not so much the fact that Illinois closed on a 5-0 run, though, that seemed to get them some momentum. But the real issue I have is that NU on its last possession just looked lost yet Bill Carmody didn’t call his timeout that doesn’t carry over. NU had all five TOs left, they were going to lose one going to half two anyway, they were lost on offense, but Carmody simply let John Shurna turn the ball over. Again, Carmody couldn’t have known it would be a one point game, but why not use the timeout? You lose it anyway.
That doesn’t seem like much, but I’m not sure what else to say. Oh year, free throw shooting was awful and that’s another area where one point might have been made up, but alas was not. A solid first half, a terrible second half, some poor decisions at really bad times in both and the result is a tough loss. Obviously, you have these games at times and you can overcome them if you hand someone else a tough loss along the way. The problem is that Northwestern hasn’t really shown the ability to hand those tough losses out over their history, but they sure can sustain them.
I guess one thought which should also be mentioned, though, I hate the idea it can be used as an excuse is that new rims went into Welsh-Ryan yesterday that many reported were unkind to shooters. I do think we saw a lot of shots go in and rim out today and it looked like Bill Carmody had something say on that matter a few times and even after the game when talking with AD Jim Phillips (okay, I don't what Carmody was saying, but he seemed upset). This can't be an excuse, but doesn't it seem odd to anyone else to make such a change in the middle of the year? I'd love to hear thoughts on this.
I’m hoping we’ll see NU come back in a big way a week from tonight at Michigan. If not NU still has 14 games in the Big Ten after that so all isn’t totally lost. Still, you can’t help but feel like it is after tonight and I can’t help but think the frustration level for NU fans after a loss to Michigan will be sky high. That’s understandable because at a certain point the years upon years of tough losses result take a toll. I thought it was a good NU crowd tonight even with the Illini fans inside Welsh-Ryan. I expect a very green Welsh-Ryan when Michigan State arrives on Jan. 14 and I can’t blame people. At some point we all just need to say enough is enough. Personally, I’m getting very close to saying that myself.
The game really was lost though when NU went through a 3-for-20 shooting stretch in the second half. Illinois played somewhat better defense than they did in the first half, but really I thought Northwestern just missed a lot of shots they were capable of making. At times a few of the shots might have been somewhat forced from Crawford or Shurna, but they were trying to make plays at a time when NU needed baskets. In hindsight maybe they shouldn’t have forced as many shots, but you can’t know it’s going end up a one point game when you’re trailing by five or seven in the middle of the contest.
On the positive side Northwestern played really good defense all night. They had a few lapses on ball pressure, but overall I was impressed. I actually might say it was one of the best defensive games I’ve seen from a Bill Carmody team at Northwestern. It’s a shame it all went for nothing tonight, but let’s not forget that NU can’t shoot as badly as they did this evening all year. If the defense stays intense the ‘Cats will pull a couple upsets this season.
Another negative was the end of the first half. Not so much the fact that Illinois closed on a 5-0 run, though, that seemed to get them some momentum. But the real issue I have is that NU on its last possession just looked lost yet Bill Carmody didn’t call his timeout that doesn’t carry over. NU had all five TOs left, they were going to lose one going to half two anyway, they were lost on offense, but Carmody simply let John Shurna turn the ball over. Again, Carmody couldn’t have known it would be a one point game, but why not use the timeout? You lose it anyway.
That doesn’t seem like much, but I’m not sure what else to say. Oh year, free throw shooting was awful and that’s another area where one point might have been made up, but alas was not. A solid first half, a terrible second half, some poor decisions at really bad times in both and the result is a tough loss. Obviously, you have these games at times and you can overcome them if you hand someone else a tough loss along the way. The problem is that Northwestern hasn’t really shown the ability to hand those tough losses out over their history, but they sure can sustain them.
I guess one thought which should also be mentioned, though, I hate the idea it can be used as an excuse is that new rims went into Welsh-Ryan yesterday that many reported were unkind to shooters. I do think we saw a lot of shots go in and rim out today and it looked like Bill Carmody had something say on that matter a few times and even after the game when talking with AD Jim Phillips (okay, I don't what Carmody was saying, but he seemed upset). This can't be an excuse, but doesn't it seem odd to anyone else to make such a change in the middle of the year? I'd love to hear thoughts on this.
I’m hoping we’ll see NU come back in a big way a week from tonight at Michigan. If not NU still has 14 games in the Big Ten after that so all isn’t totally lost. Still, you can’t help but feel like it is after tonight and I can’t help but think the frustration level for NU fans after a loss to Michigan will be sky high. That’s understandable because at a certain point the years upon years of tough losses result take a toll. I thought it was a good NU crowd tonight even with the Illini fans inside Welsh-Ryan. I expect a very green Welsh-Ryan when Michigan State arrives on Jan. 14 and I can’t blame people. At some point we all just need to say enough is enough. Personally, I’m getting very close to saying that myself.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Game vs Illinois Might Answer Some Questions For NU
I have no idea what to make of this Northwestern team and based on the various comments I’ve read from fans and the media neither does anyone else. Right now Northwestern is 11-3 through 14 games. They’ve played 10 teams they were almost certainly better than and won those 10 games. They’ve played two teams (Ohio State and Baylor) who they were almost certainly worse than and lost those games. And they’ve played two teams (Creighton and Seton Hall) who they were probably about even with and split those two games. Being able to consistently beat teams they are better than is a good step in the right direction for NU and losing to teams that are better is no shame, but the key to making the NCAA Tournament is going to be posting a better than .500 record against teams who NU matches up with evenly. The best way to that better than .500 mark is to win the contests at Welsh-Ryan and steal a couple on the road. In the end that would probably give NU 9 or 10 Big Ten wins and the result would be the NCAA Tournament.
The above paragraph becomes important because Illinois is one of those teams that NU is pretty even with. Sure, Illinois might have more flat out talent, but when the teams hit the court (especially in Evanston) the combination of a home court advantage and a more fine-tuned offensive system should even it out for NU. That means as Glenn said in the comment to the picture below, this really is a must-win game for NU!
The 12-3 Illini enter this contest coming off a road loss to Purdue and holding just a 3-3 record away from home. In other words, the Illini have been strong at Assembly Hall, but average away. NU holds that strong 46-3 record versus unranked opponents at home since 2008.
This is a pressure game for Illinois as well with them losing to Purdue and barely beating Minnesota at home. Their once promising could slip away if they drop this contest to the ‘Cats. It’s also a big game for Bruce Weber who despite his 205-89 career record is taking a lot of heat from Illinois fans for the team’s lack of postseason success and inability to compete for the league title in recent years. If Illinois is going to compete for anything this year they need to focus on getting 7-1 center Myers Leonard the ball. Leonard puts up 13.4ppg and 8.3rpg, but he shoots 61% from the floor. If he got the ball more he could average 20ppg with ease. The problem is it seems at times Illinois isn’t sure what type of team they are. Are they inside team with Leonard scoring in the post and Brandon Paul (12.3ppg) driving the lane or are they a jump shooting team with D.J. Richardson (40.6% 3PT) and Paul taking outside jump shots? What they should probably be is an inside-outside team that gets Leonard going early and then kicks to ball outside for open looks because aside from Richardson nobody on the Illini has much success shooting from the arc. The numbers look like this for the rest of Illinois’s projected starters:
Paul…28.4%
Leonard…25%
Sam Maniscalco…30.4%
Tyler Griffey…28.6%
To me that means NU should start in the 1-3-1 until Illinois proves they’re going to have an above average shooting game. The ‘Cats need to pressure the ball in that 1-3-1 and clog driving lanes, but a solid 1-3-1 that forces outside shots from people not named D.J. Richardson could be a recipe for success.
On offense I think we can probably assume Luka Mirkovic isn’t going to have a ton of success scoring on the block versus Leonard. That’s fine. Move Luka to the high post and let him distribute the ball to Shurna and Crawford who can attack the basket matched up on Griffey and Richardson respectively. If that works Illinois will have to sag into the lane and then the Wildcats can look again to Dave Sobolewski and Alex Marcotullio to boost the scoring from behind the arc.
Finally, I’ll say that the last key to this game for NU is intensity. That’s why Alex Marcotullio has to be a big factor. Without referees Big Ten basketball would basically be a street fight (it almost is anyway) and Alex is the only NU player who when you look at him has a facial expression that looks as if he just stepped off the set of Rocky V. If Alex can get the rest of the ‘Cats to have the same intensity on defense and the glass that he has I expect to see a Northwestern win. I predict: Northwestern, 70 Illinois, 65
The above paragraph becomes important because Illinois is one of those teams that NU is pretty even with. Sure, Illinois might have more flat out talent, but when the teams hit the court (especially in Evanston) the combination of a home court advantage and a more fine-tuned offensive system should even it out for NU. That means as Glenn said in the comment to the picture below, this really is a must-win game for NU!
The 12-3 Illini enter this contest coming off a road loss to Purdue and holding just a 3-3 record away from home. In other words, the Illini have been strong at Assembly Hall, but average away. NU holds that strong 46-3 record versus unranked opponents at home since 2008.
This is a pressure game for Illinois as well with them losing to Purdue and barely beating Minnesota at home. Their once promising could slip away if they drop this contest to the ‘Cats. It’s also a big game for Bruce Weber who despite his 205-89 career record is taking a lot of heat from Illinois fans for the team’s lack of postseason success and inability to compete for the league title in recent years. If Illinois is going to compete for anything this year they need to focus on getting 7-1 center Myers Leonard the ball. Leonard puts up 13.4ppg and 8.3rpg, but he shoots 61% from the floor. If he got the ball more he could average 20ppg with ease. The problem is it seems at times Illinois isn’t sure what type of team they are. Are they inside team with Leonard scoring in the post and Brandon Paul (12.3ppg) driving the lane or are they a jump shooting team with D.J. Richardson (40.6% 3PT) and Paul taking outside jump shots? What they should probably be is an inside-outside team that gets Leonard going early and then kicks to ball outside for open looks because aside from Richardson nobody on the Illini has much success shooting from the arc. The numbers look like this for the rest of Illinois’s projected starters:
Paul…28.4%
Leonard…25%
Sam Maniscalco…30.4%
Tyler Griffey…28.6%
To me that means NU should start in the 1-3-1 until Illinois proves they’re going to have an above average shooting game. The ‘Cats need to pressure the ball in that 1-3-1 and clog driving lanes, but a solid 1-3-1 that forces outside shots from people not named D.J. Richardson could be a recipe for success.
On offense I think we can probably assume Luka Mirkovic isn’t going to have a ton of success scoring on the block versus Leonard. That’s fine. Move Luka to the high post and let him distribute the ball to Shurna and Crawford who can attack the basket matched up on Griffey and Richardson respectively. If that works Illinois will have to sag into the lane and then the Wildcats can look again to Dave Sobolewski and Alex Marcotullio to boost the scoring from behind the arc.
Finally, I’ll say that the last key to this game for NU is intensity. That’s why Alex Marcotullio has to be a big factor. Without referees Big Ten basketball would basically be a street fight (it almost is anyway) and Alex is the only NU player who when you look at him has a facial expression that looks as if he just stepped off the set of Rocky V. If Alex can get the rest of the ‘Cats to have the same intensity on defense and the glass that he has I expect to see a Northwestern win. I predict: Northwestern, 70 Illinois, 65
Monday, January 2, 2012
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Wildcats Edge Illini 71-70
I’ll have even more thoughts later on today’s win, but I have to say this it was great fun game at Welsh-Ryan Arena today for CBS sports and the NU fans. The wasn't always played cleanly, but both teams played hard and the contest came right down to the end with a number of players having key roles in the outcome on both sides.
Juice Thompson was great with 22 points and a ton of clutch three point shots for NU and Brandon Paul stepped up in big way for Illinois whenever it looked as if the Wildcats would run away. The Wildcats also got outstanding efforts for JerShon and their post players. Cobb at times showed why I think he'll be a great weapon for NU in the future as he created his own shot at will even when being defended by All-Big Ten guard Demtri McCamey. NU's post guys, Luka Mirkovic and Davide Curletti had some bad moments, but both did another good job in a battle with bigger and stronger players. Illinois was only a couple times able to totally force their will on NU down low and that was in large part due to Luka and Davide, though, they also got help defending the post from Drew Crawford, Mike Capocci, and Cobb. Luka still drives me nuts at times, but I think he's getting a little better in terms of defense and being more consistent on offense. He missed some shots today, but seemed for the most part to shoot at the right time and not force moves when they had no chance of being finished. I still wish he'd being a little more aggressive overall, but he is getting closer to the potential fans know he has. I’m also really glad he made at least one free throw at the end as NU’s free throw shooting wasn’t all spectacular today. I was really worried when Drew Crawford missed two in a row at what I thought was a key situation.
Actually, other than letting Brandon Paul go nuts from three all of NU’s defense was very solid. The ‘Cats put pressure on the ball and forced Illinois into a number of turnovers. A couple times Thompson and Cobb just picked the pocket of various Illini guards. This was huge for me to see because it shows that the flashes of solid defense we saw vs Ohio State weren’t just aberrations. NU might be making a change in how they play defense overall.
I wasn’t totally thrilled with how NU handled the end of the game. I personally feel that you don’t want to foul so early. I’d wait until about 5 seconds or less remained. Especially if you aren’t a great free throw shooting team. If Luka missed his first free throw at the end we might still be playing.
I think the clutch play of Juice Thompson has to be the major takeaway from this game. Juice has been clutch in the past, but the last two games he mostly lighted it up in the second half. Juice showed up for all 40 minutes today and he’s why NU won. John Shurna was clearly still hurt and Drew Crawford disappeared in the second half, but Juice was always ready for a big shot. If NU is to pull more upsets along the way, it’ll take the same effort from Juice, but he’s going to need to get some more support as well. I liked seeing Cobb step up, but I hope really hope Shurna improves in the next couple days and Crawford goes to Michigan and remembers what it’s like to play a full game. Still, a great win for NU and a great game by Juice.
Juice Thompson was great with 22 points and a ton of clutch three point shots for NU and Brandon Paul stepped up in big way for Illinois whenever it looked as if the Wildcats would run away. The Wildcats also got outstanding efforts for JerShon and their post players. Cobb at times showed why I think he'll be a great weapon for NU in the future as he created his own shot at will even when being defended by All-Big Ten guard Demtri McCamey. NU's post guys, Luka Mirkovic and Davide Curletti had some bad moments, but both did another good job in a battle with bigger and stronger players. Illinois was only a couple times able to totally force their will on NU down low and that was in large part due to Luka and Davide, though, they also got help defending the post from Drew Crawford, Mike Capocci, and Cobb. Luka still drives me nuts at times, but I think he's getting a little better in terms of defense and being more consistent on offense. He missed some shots today, but seemed for the most part to shoot at the right time and not force moves when they had no chance of being finished. I still wish he'd being a little more aggressive overall, but he is getting closer to the potential fans know he has. I’m also really glad he made at least one free throw at the end as NU’s free throw shooting wasn’t all spectacular today. I was really worried when Drew Crawford missed two in a row at what I thought was a key situation.
Actually, other than letting Brandon Paul go nuts from three all of NU’s defense was very solid. The ‘Cats put pressure on the ball and forced Illinois into a number of turnovers. A couple times Thompson and Cobb just picked the pocket of various Illini guards. This was huge for me to see because it shows that the flashes of solid defense we saw vs Ohio State weren’t just aberrations. NU might be making a change in how they play defense overall.
I wasn’t totally thrilled with how NU handled the end of the game. I personally feel that you don’t want to foul so early. I’d wait until about 5 seconds or less remained. Especially if you aren’t a great free throw shooting team. If Luka missed his first free throw at the end we might still be playing.
I think the clutch play of Juice Thompson has to be the major takeaway from this game. Juice has been clutch in the past, but the last two games he mostly lighted it up in the second half. Juice showed up for all 40 minutes today and he’s why NU won. John Shurna was clearly still hurt and Drew Crawford disappeared in the second half, but Juice was always ready for a big shot. If NU is to pull more upsets along the way, it’ll take the same effort from Juice, but he’s going to need to get some more support as well. I liked seeing Cobb step up, but I hope really hope Shurna improves in the next couple days and Crawford goes to Michigan and remembers what it’s like to play a full game. Still, a great win for NU and a great game by Juice.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
State Rivalry Ready for Showcase Saturday at Welsh-Ryan and on National TV
NU's Nick Fruendt and U of I's Bill Cole last year at Welsh-RyanThe state of college basketball in the state of Illinois is so-so at best this year. The University of Illinois is 15-7 and ranked #24 in the nation, but the rest of the state’s teams have been very disappointing. Northwestern’s 13-8 record features no victories of substance and their failure to execute in crunch time against Michigan State (X2) and Ohio State have a number of fans already conceding that this will not be the ‘Cats year to make tournament history. The state’s non-Big Ten teams aren’t much better. The third best team in the state based on RPI is Southern Illinois who is just about .500 overall, but who would be in the play-in game of the MVC tournament. Basically, 2010-11 hasn’t been a great year in Illinois hoops, but the game Saturday between Northwestern and Illinois still has major significance for both teams.
For the Wildcats the game is yet another chance to post a win against a team that is better than bad to average. For U of I, it is a chance to win on the road against a conference foe, something critical to tournament seeding, but something the Fighting Illini haven’t done anywhere except last place Iowa (though Michigan State says that’s still impressive). Which event would mean more? Well, at this point Illinois, despite causing their fans some undo frustration at times, is still in the NCAA Tournament as probably a mid-tier seed. Northwestern has also caused fans some frustration, but unlike U of I, isn’t in the NCAA Tournament at this point. In fact, they probably aren’t even in the top half of the NIT. Therefore, I think this game is more critical for Northwestern. Ideally, that would translate to a strongly pro-NU crowd in Welsh-Ryan, but I doubt that will be the case. NU tried to limit ticket sales to pro-NU fans for this CBS telecast by attaching tickets to this contest to other games, but they tried the same for the Wrigley Field disaster and plenty of Illini fans made it inside the Friendly Confines. Part of that is because of the ticket brokers and scalpers and part of that is because NU fans bring their Illini friends/family members/co-workers to games with them. Regardless, I’d expect a neutral site environment on Saturday. Hopefully, NU’s student sections will be fairly full and will help drown out any rowdy I-L-L-I-N-I chants.
As far as the game itself, Illinois won handily in Champaign about a month ago. During that contest John Shurna labored due to his injured ankle and the Illini’s guards didn’t miss. Now, Shurna’s status for the contest is uncertain due to a concussion just over a week ago at Minnesota, but Illinois’s guards had hit something of a shooting slump until Tuesday at home against Penn State. In that contest, U of I found early three point baskets against Penn State’s 1-3-1 zone, much like they did NU’s on Jan. 6th and used those early makes to open passing lanes inside to Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale. Given that Illinois is a 40% three point shooting team with 40%-plus guys in Demetri McCamey, D.J. Richardson, and Bill Cole, I seriously doubt that NU will even attempt to play their own 1-3-1 again. Instead, you’ll likely see the Wildcats go switching man-to-man and much like the game plan vs Ohio State, keep their guards on the perimeter for the most part. That’ll mean Illinois will have to either attempt contested threes or will have to put the game into the hands of Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis. Against the Ohio State duo of Jared Sullinger and Dallas Lauderdale the Wildcats inside defenders Luke Mirkovic, Davide Curletti and Mike Capocci did a good job being physical. The Buckeye duo got points, but they had to work for them. NU also did a good job of being judicious with the double team action and therefore not letting Ohio State’s John Diebler and William Buford get open threes. I expect to see the same Saturday. Davis and Tisdale are going to get points, but if McCamey, Richardson, and Cole don’t, I think NU will consider it a victory defensively.
On the other side of the court, I think NU will slow the game down of offense as they did versus Ohio State. Some fans are worried about NU playing this type of game because they remember old Wildcats teams doing this and playing close, but struggling to post wins. Things are different with this group, though. In, say, 2006-07 the Wildcats would play slow and with shot clock running down the ball had to go to Kevin Coble. If anybody else took that late shot, even if it was a wide open look, it was really a victory for the defense. Now, though, when NU runs the clock down it really doesn’t matter who gets the open look—and in NU’s offense an open look will exist. That makes this team much tougher to defend and though it’s hard to argue with playing quick when you look at huge wins over Georgia Tech, Iowa, and Indiana, it seems to make sense when Juice Thompson says NU is better when they slow it down because anybody on NU’s roster can make a jumper and most teams hate to play 30 seconds of defense. Plus, if NU continues to go to the class with all five players they might make teams play close to 60 seconds of consecutive defense.
This year has been a tough one to pick games, but it really shouldn’t be. NU has basically followed the script as they are still 13-0 against teams who have RPIs worse than their own and 0-8 against teams with better RPIs. Therefore, the script for this game says Illini victory, but a couple things might through the script off. One reason is because of how poorly Illinois has played in road Big Ten games. Not only are they just 1-3 overall, they haven’t really played well in their three losses. That could through the script away and make one lean towards NU, especially after Northwestern used the raucous home environment to take Ohio State to wire. Of course, there is also the issue with John Shurna. Will Shurna play? Does it even help NU if he does? After all, Mike Capocci’s physical defense would seem a better option against Mike Davis than Shurna’s questionable health. Of course, Capocci’s 11 points vs OSU were a season high and Shurna can go for 30 in the blink of an eye if he’s healthy. My guess is that Shurna plays, but gets less minutes because of Capocci’s much needed defense. Still, some productive minutes by Shurna will be critical because NU has been in a shooting slump and he can lift the team out of that. If Shurna plays I think that takes pressure off of Drew Crawford and production from Crawford generally equals wins for NU. I predict: Northwestern, 55 Illinois, 51
Friday, January 7, 2011
Hammer Time! Illinois Lights up NU Defense with School Record Numbers
Let me start this post by saying I made a road trip to Champaign, Illinois for this contest. Even if I hadn’t, I’d consider NU’s play unacceptable for a team which wants to compete for the NCAA Tournament and a top-5 finish in the Big Ten, but having actually seen the game in person, I have to admit I feel an even deeper frustration with the current state of Northwestern basketball than I might have from merely viewing the contest on television. I think that’s the advantage of seeing games in person. When watching a contest on TV you’re stuck with what the director and producer of the broadcast show you and what the commentators choose to talk about. When you see a game in person you’re free to form your own opinions about what you see. After tonight, I’ve formed some new opinions on where Northwestern’s basketball program stands and I have to admit many of them aren’t all that positive.
The trip did have some positive so I’ll mention those first. I went to the game with some friends and we had good time. I especially enjoyed our pregame meal at La Bamba in Champaign. My chicken burrito was excellent and the medium Pepsi was just the right about of beverage. That pretty much covers the good elements of the night as far as I can recall. Also, JerShon Cobb played a decent game. He shows flashes of being a highly skilled player. Cobb’s inconsistency from three point range is a concern, but he’s hardly the only Wildcat with that problem.
Illinois played a good game tonight. They came out hot from three point range and thanks to some very good inside play (especially inside passing) from Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis they also found their way into the heart of NU’s zone for easy baskets. The game was essentially over after four possessions when Illinois made three consecutive threes and then Luka Mirkovic fouled Mike Tisdale to setup a three point play. To some extent I wasn’t surprised with Illinois scoring points as NU isn’t a strong defensive team, but the ease with which Illinois scored was ridiculous—Northwestern essentially looked like the JV team trying to scrimmage the Varsity squad. Every player on the Illinois roster seemed more skilled, physical and in possession of a better basketball IQ than Northwestern’s players. I can accept NU being out skilled. That’s the nature of where NU’s recruiting is right now, but if you’re going to be at a skill disadvantage you better be tougher and smarter—that’s how Wisconsin wins. Northwestern wasn’t and isn’t. The Wildcats let Illinois push them around all night. The best example was when Mike Tisdale backed down Davide Curletti with so much force I thought Tisdale might not knock the wind out of Curletti. Also, Northwestern never really seemed to make much effort on defense to really guard the Illini players closely. Richardson and McCamey had a number of wide open shots in the run to start the game while the majority of NU’s looks were contested. If nothing else I’d like to see demonstrate a little more toughness and intensity when they play.
Part of the reason for those shots was also the way Illinois passed the ball. It seemed the Ilini had an assist on nearly every shot and Bruce Weber had schooled his team on exactly how to attack Northwestern’s 1-3-1 zone as Illinois scored on the first four possessions in which NU tried to play their standard comeback/turnover causing defense. No question exists that when players execute coaches look good, but you have to give some credit to Weber and his staff since they were clearly well prepared for this game. I thought it was telling on the postgame interview that Weber made the point of saying how now after having coached against Northwestern for the better part of a decade there aren’t a lot of surprises and it has become much easier to game plan for NU. Of course that’s true of any conference opponent, but given the fact much of the success of the Princeton Offense and 1-3-1 zone are predicated on their uniqueness it has to be a concern. Has Northwestern become to predictable to the rest of the Big Ten? In a post earlier fellow NU blog Lake the Posts the point was made that Bill Carmody has fattened his record against suspect non-conference foes. That may be true, but it’s true for all coaches. Every BCS school plays a number of cupcake teams. My fear isn’t that Carmody’s record looks good because he beats Mount St. Mary’s, my fear is that people look at Carmody’s teams winning in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge 4 of the last 5 years and use those wins as a measuring stick of NU’s competiveness against good teams. Sure, those also count as top-50/100 wins, but the important top-50/100 wins come in conference games and NU is now 0-3 in such contests versus Big Ten opponents and based on their effort tonight I’m not looking for a ton of success in the rematches down the road with Michigan State or Illinois unless the attitude NU takes drastically changes. Anybody who reads this blog regularly knows I’ve been more positive about Bill Carmody than many NU fans, but what I saw tonight was just so unacceptable for what was supposed to be an NCAA Tournament that I can say for sure this is without a doubt, for me at least, the worst I’ve felt about NU basketball since the end of the 1-17 last place in the Big Ten 07-08 season. The good news is I think even Carmody himself would admit that this team isn’t currently playing to their ability level and as head coach it’s his job to make them do so. He certainly doesn’t want to be embarrassed like he was tonight again, if it’s this frustrating for fans to watch such a game, it has to be many times more so for the coach because he knows fans, administrators, and media are looking to evaluate him based on each game.
Yes, John Shurna is hurt and I liked that Carmody sat him much of the second half, but NCAA teams aren’t one person teams. Purdue lost their best player for the season and they’re ranked #10 in the nation. Last year Wisconsin lost Jon Leuer for a portion of the Big Ten season and posted several big wins because Jordan Taylor stepped up to fill that void. Shurna’s injury is a great chance to see Drew Crawford and Juice Thompson step up in a big way, but that hasn’t really happed. Crawford had a decent game vs Michigan State and Juice played three good minutes vs the Spartans, but overall those two guys haven’t elevated their play. In fact, they’ve almost disappeared. Crawford was a non-factor tonight (as he was vs Purdue) and Thompson seemed clearly frustrated (one of the things that might not have been evident on TV). I don’t blame him really, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to show such frustration when your opponents can see it and then know they’ve got you on the ropes.
Speaking of on the ropes, that’s where NU’s season is right now. At 9-4 (0-3 Big Ten) NU desperately needs to post a win versus Indiana at home on Sunday. If they can’t it might not be healthy for any of us NU fanatics to venture back to Welsh-Ryan or turn on the Big Ten Network.
The trip did have some positive so I’ll mention those first. I went to the game with some friends and we had good time. I especially enjoyed our pregame meal at La Bamba in Champaign. My chicken burrito was excellent and the medium Pepsi was just the right about of beverage. That pretty much covers the good elements of the night as far as I can recall. Also, JerShon Cobb played a decent game. He shows flashes of being a highly skilled player. Cobb’s inconsistency from three point range is a concern, but he’s hardly the only Wildcat with that problem.
Illinois played a good game tonight. They came out hot from three point range and thanks to some very good inside play (especially inside passing) from Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis they also found their way into the heart of NU’s zone for easy baskets. The game was essentially over after four possessions when Illinois made three consecutive threes and then Luka Mirkovic fouled Mike Tisdale to setup a three point play. To some extent I wasn’t surprised with Illinois scoring points as NU isn’t a strong defensive team, but the ease with which Illinois scored was ridiculous—Northwestern essentially looked like the JV team trying to scrimmage the Varsity squad. Every player on the Illinois roster seemed more skilled, physical and in possession of a better basketball IQ than Northwestern’s players. I can accept NU being out skilled. That’s the nature of where NU’s recruiting is right now, but if you’re going to be at a skill disadvantage you better be tougher and smarter—that’s how Wisconsin wins. Northwestern wasn’t and isn’t. The Wildcats let Illinois push them around all night. The best example was when Mike Tisdale backed down Davide Curletti with so much force I thought Tisdale might not knock the wind out of Curletti. Also, Northwestern never really seemed to make much effort on defense to really guard the Illini players closely. Richardson and McCamey had a number of wide open shots in the run to start the game while the majority of NU’s looks were contested. If nothing else I’d like to see demonstrate a little more toughness and intensity when they play.
Part of the reason for those shots was also the way Illinois passed the ball. It seemed the Ilini had an assist on nearly every shot and Bruce Weber had schooled his team on exactly how to attack Northwestern’s 1-3-1 zone as Illinois scored on the first four possessions in which NU tried to play their standard comeback/turnover causing defense. No question exists that when players execute coaches look good, but you have to give some credit to Weber and his staff since they were clearly well prepared for this game. I thought it was telling on the postgame interview that Weber made the point of saying how now after having coached against Northwestern for the better part of a decade there aren’t a lot of surprises and it has become much easier to game plan for NU. Of course that’s true of any conference opponent, but given the fact much of the success of the Princeton Offense and 1-3-1 zone are predicated on their uniqueness it has to be a concern. Has Northwestern become to predictable to the rest of the Big Ten? In a post earlier fellow NU blog Lake the Posts the point was made that Bill Carmody has fattened his record against suspect non-conference foes. That may be true, but it’s true for all coaches. Every BCS school plays a number of cupcake teams. My fear isn’t that Carmody’s record looks good because he beats Mount St. Mary’s, my fear is that people look at Carmody’s teams winning in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge 4 of the last 5 years and use those wins as a measuring stick of NU’s competiveness against good teams. Sure, those also count as top-50/100 wins, but the important top-50/100 wins come in conference games and NU is now 0-3 in such contests versus Big Ten opponents and based on their effort tonight I’m not looking for a ton of success in the rematches down the road with Michigan State or Illinois unless the attitude NU takes drastically changes. Anybody who reads this blog regularly knows I’ve been more positive about Bill Carmody than many NU fans, but what I saw tonight was just so unacceptable for what was supposed to be an NCAA Tournament that I can say for sure this is without a doubt, for me at least, the worst I’ve felt about NU basketball since the end of the 1-17 last place in the Big Ten 07-08 season. The good news is I think even Carmody himself would admit that this team isn’t currently playing to their ability level and as head coach it’s his job to make them do so. He certainly doesn’t want to be embarrassed like he was tonight again, if it’s this frustrating for fans to watch such a game, it has to be many times more so for the coach because he knows fans, administrators, and media are looking to evaluate him based on each game.
Yes, John Shurna is hurt and I liked that Carmody sat him much of the second half, but NCAA teams aren’t one person teams. Purdue lost their best player for the season and they’re ranked #10 in the nation. Last year Wisconsin lost Jon Leuer for a portion of the Big Ten season and posted several big wins because Jordan Taylor stepped up to fill that void. Shurna’s injury is a great chance to see Drew Crawford and Juice Thompson step up in a big way, but that hasn’t really happed. Crawford had a decent game vs Michigan State and Juice played three good minutes vs the Spartans, but overall those two guys haven’t elevated their play. In fact, they’ve almost disappeared. Crawford was a non-factor tonight (as he was vs Purdue) and Thompson seemed clearly frustrated (one of the things that might not have been evident on TV). I don’t blame him really, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to show such frustration when your opponents can see it and then know they’ve got you on the ropes.
Speaking of on the ropes, that’s where NU’s season is right now. At 9-4 (0-3 Big Ten) NU desperately needs to post a win versus Indiana at home on Sunday. If they can’t it might not be healthy for any of us NU fanatics to venture back to Welsh-Ryan or turn on the Big Ten Network.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Northwestern vs Illinois: Game Preview
Illinois enters Thursday night’s game with a 12-3 overall record while Northwestern enters with a 9-3 record. To many of those watching the pregame show on ESPN2 it might seem they’re in for a matchup of two similar teams, but the truth is it seems these two squads are moving in opposite directions. After Illinois lost a big showdown non-conference match with Missouri they rallied to post two straight Big Ten wins versus Iowa and Wisconsin. After Northwestern lost a big showdown non-conference game with St. John’s they beat Mount St. Mary’s but in doing so saw star player John Shurna go down with a debilitating ankle injury and then promptly lost two Big Ten games to Purdue and Illinois. Now, Illinois has a chance to start a serious run at the Big Ten title with a victory while Northwestern hopes simply to tread water in the Big Ten instead of drowning.
Why is Illinois 2-0 in the league and Northwestern 0-2? Some people would say an easier schedule, which might be a factor, but I think a lot of has to due more with depth on the Illini roster and that is the first key factor in looking at Thursday’s game. The Illini athletic department game notes list a starting five for Thursday of McCamey, Richardson, Cole, Davis, and Tisdale, but in other contests Coach Bruce Weber has started Brandon Paul and Jereme Richmond in addition to using Tyler Griffey and Meyers Leonard a lot off the bench. Northwestern’s game notes list a starting five of Thompson, Cobb, Crawford, Shurna, and Mirkovic. The only other Wildcat to start a game has been Alex Marcotullio, but he wouldn’t have started if not for JerShon Cobb beginning the year with a hip injury. What does this information tell us? That Illini essentially have seven “true” starters (Paul and Richmond were both Illinois High School Player of the Year) and two regular reserves that might start for a number of other teams (I certainly would consider Meyers Leonard if the Illini wanted to trade him for Mirkovic). On ther other hand, Northwestern really only has the five starters and often times Mirkovic is simply filling space because he’s 6-11. Making matters worse for NU, the lack of depth forced a clearly injured John Shurna to play 39 minutes on Monday against Michigan State. I know people will say Shurna wouldn’t play if he couldn’t help the team, but watching him grimace in pain as he hobbled to a 1-of-11 shooting night and was leaped over by Draymond Green for the game’s critical rebound I felt about as discouraged as I ever have for a single player. I’ve often said NU isn’t tough enough to win in the Big Ten and I still believe that, but that wasn’t Shurna’s problem. On Monday night John showed more toughness than any NU player I’ve ever seen, but that toughness wasn’t enough to overcome a serious physical aliment that probably would keep most athletes on the bench. Getting back to Thursday, I guarantee if Mike Davis were as hurt as Shurna that even if Davis wanted to play Illinois would start Richmond or Griffey and not think twice. That’s problem. Bill Carmody knows Mike Capocci is such a non-threat that he’d rather see Shurna play hurt.
Obviously depth isn’t an area where Northwestern is going to be able to out dual the Illini, but two other key areas exist that might give NU a chance. The first is three point shooting. Both these teams are in the top-20 nationally in team three point percentage. Shurna is NU’s leader, but the ‘Cats have a collection of other competent shooters as well and I’m looking for Michael “Juice” Thompson to step up. Illinois as a team makes 42.3% of their threes led by Demetri McCamey at 52.2%, but I actually think D.J. Richardson (45.5% 3PT) has the best looking release on his shot of any Big Ten player. Another solid shooter for Illinois to watch out for is Bill Cole who at 6-9 can release over shorter small forwards. If Northwestern is to beat Illinois they don’t have to out shoot the Illini percentage wise from three, but they have to make more. If I were NU I would try to get up at least 30 threes with the goal of making at least 14. Last year NU set a Big Ten record vs Illinois with 47 three point attempts.
Another key area where NU needs to outplay Illinois is ball security. As a team Illinois is impressive with 258 assists against 197 turnovers. However, that’s all McCamey. D.J. Richardson is only other Illinois player with an assist to turnover ratio better than 1.4-to-1. Last year NU beat Illinois in Evanston because they extended their defense and made McCamey give up the ball early. This forced one of the other guys to try to initiate the offense and they often seemed to panic and force a shot. A similar strategy could give NU an edge. It’ll be a gamble to use the 1-3-1 zone early because Illinois can hit threes, but as one of my all-time favorite television characters would say, “sometimes, you have to roll a hard six.”
The last key area of the game will be inside play. Last year Illinois used a solid inside game to beat NU at Assembly Hall, but the Illini needed to put out an APB for Mike Tisdale in Evanston and the Wildcats got away with a W. Luka Mirkovic has to be psychical and play a good game versus Tisdale because if NU has to go to Davide Curletti it won’t be pretty against the 7-1 Tisdale. He’ll just be too big for Curletti.
The on paper matchup in this game is actually closer than I expected, but the paper doesn’t account for John Shurna’s injury or Illinois having a home court advantage. I hate excuses, but the truth is that Northwestern probably beats Michigan State with Shurna healthy. His injury is just another in a long line of bad breaks for Northwestern that as far as I remember started with the Rex Walters led transfermania of the early 90s and has continued through this season with the Kevin Coble exit and now Shurna's ankle injury late in a meaningless game when the Wildcats had almost a 30 point advantage. Eventually I think NU’s luck is bound to turn, but I don’t think it’s going to be an immediate occurrence. I predict: Illinois, 76 Northwestern, 62
Why is Illinois 2-0 in the league and Northwestern 0-2? Some people would say an easier schedule, which might be a factor, but I think a lot of has to due more with depth on the Illini roster and that is the first key factor in looking at Thursday’s game. The Illini athletic department game notes list a starting five for Thursday of McCamey, Richardson, Cole, Davis, and Tisdale, but in other contests Coach Bruce Weber has started Brandon Paul and Jereme Richmond in addition to using Tyler Griffey and Meyers Leonard a lot off the bench. Northwestern’s game notes list a starting five of Thompson, Cobb, Crawford, Shurna, and Mirkovic. The only other Wildcat to start a game has been Alex Marcotullio, but he wouldn’t have started if not for JerShon Cobb beginning the year with a hip injury. What does this information tell us? That Illini essentially have seven “true” starters (Paul and Richmond were both Illinois High School Player of the Year) and two regular reserves that might start for a number of other teams (I certainly would consider Meyers Leonard if the Illini wanted to trade him for Mirkovic). On ther other hand, Northwestern really only has the five starters and often times Mirkovic is simply filling space because he’s 6-11. Making matters worse for NU, the lack of depth forced a clearly injured John Shurna to play 39 minutes on Monday against Michigan State. I know people will say Shurna wouldn’t play if he couldn’t help the team, but watching him grimace in pain as he hobbled to a 1-of-11 shooting night and was leaped over by Draymond Green for the game’s critical rebound I felt about as discouraged as I ever have for a single player. I’ve often said NU isn’t tough enough to win in the Big Ten and I still believe that, but that wasn’t Shurna’s problem. On Monday night John showed more toughness than any NU player I’ve ever seen, but that toughness wasn’t enough to overcome a serious physical aliment that probably would keep most athletes on the bench. Getting back to Thursday, I guarantee if Mike Davis were as hurt as Shurna that even if Davis wanted to play Illinois would start Richmond or Griffey and not think twice. That’s problem. Bill Carmody knows Mike Capocci is such a non-threat that he’d rather see Shurna play hurt.
Obviously depth isn’t an area where Northwestern is going to be able to out dual the Illini, but two other key areas exist that might give NU a chance. The first is three point shooting. Both these teams are in the top-20 nationally in team three point percentage. Shurna is NU’s leader, but the ‘Cats have a collection of other competent shooters as well and I’m looking for Michael “Juice” Thompson to step up. Illinois as a team makes 42.3% of their threes led by Demetri McCamey at 52.2%, but I actually think D.J. Richardson (45.5% 3PT) has the best looking release on his shot of any Big Ten player. Another solid shooter for Illinois to watch out for is Bill Cole who at 6-9 can release over shorter small forwards. If Northwestern is to beat Illinois they don’t have to out shoot the Illini percentage wise from three, but they have to make more. If I were NU I would try to get up at least 30 threes with the goal of making at least 14. Last year NU set a Big Ten record vs Illinois with 47 three point attempts.
Another key area where NU needs to outplay Illinois is ball security. As a team Illinois is impressive with 258 assists against 197 turnovers. However, that’s all McCamey. D.J. Richardson is only other Illinois player with an assist to turnover ratio better than 1.4-to-1. Last year NU beat Illinois in Evanston because they extended their defense and made McCamey give up the ball early. This forced one of the other guys to try to initiate the offense and they often seemed to panic and force a shot. A similar strategy could give NU an edge. It’ll be a gamble to use the 1-3-1 zone early because Illinois can hit threes, but as one of my all-time favorite television characters would say, “sometimes, you have to roll a hard six.”
The last key area of the game will be inside play. Last year Illinois used a solid inside game to beat NU at Assembly Hall, but the Illini needed to put out an APB for Mike Tisdale in Evanston and the Wildcats got away with a W. Luka Mirkovic has to be psychical and play a good game versus Tisdale because if NU has to go to Davide Curletti it won’t be pretty against the 7-1 Tisdale. He’ll just be too big for Curletti.
The on paper matchup in this game is actually closer than I expected, but the paper doesn’t account for John Shurna’s injury or Illinois having a home court advantage. I hate excuses, but the truth is that Northwestern probably beats Michigan State with Shurna healthy. His injury is just another in a long line of bad breaks for Northwestern that as far as I remember started with the Rex Walters led transfermania of the early 90s and has continued through this season with the Kevin Coble exit and now Shurna's ankle injury late in a meaningless game when the Wildcats had almost a 30 point advantage. Eventually I think NU’s luck is bound to turn, but I don’t think it’s going to be an immediate occurrence. I predict: Illinois, 76 Northwestern, 62
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
My Thoughts on NU at Wrigley
Cubs OF Sam Fuld won't play at Wrigley on Nov. 20th, but the 'Cats will... Wrigley Field. It is very possibly the most well known sports venue in the United States. It might very well be the most well known sports venue in the world. It’s most famous for it’s beautiful ivy covered walls, neighborhood pubs, and the often futile efforts of its resident baseball team. On November 20, 2010, though, it will also be known as the site of a college football game between the Northwestern Wildcats and Illinois Fighting Illini.
Since the idea of such a contest was floated last year, many different opinions on the matter have been expressed. Even in the NU blog community. It seems Spread Far the Fame (despite helping break the story) is very much opposed to the idea, while Lake the Posts has concerns, but will get behind the effort in order to help make the Friendly Confines unfriendly to the Illini. I’m not sure exactly what view the other major NU blog, Sippin’ on Purple, holds, but Rodger certainly didn’t seem to express the same frustration with the idea that Otto at Spread Far the Fame did.
Personally, I think I’ve agreed with every viewpoint on this game at one time or another. When Jim Phillips first mentioned the idea I thought it was terrible. Especially in a season when NU has only six home games. Now, the ‘Cats will only have five. In a possible rebuilding year, it didn’t seem that smart to give up a home field advantage. Then, the rumor started that the game would be against Iowa. I thought about how NU plays Iowa so well on the road and I decided that it would be a fantastic showcase game for the Wildcats to take on the Hawkeyes in Wrigley. Now, it appears the deal is more or less done and, that like originally figured, Illinois will have the honor of visiting Wrigley to play the ‘Cats. Surprisingly, though, I haven’t gone back to hating this idea. I still think Iowa would be a more exciting game, but I’m starting to buy into the idea of playing a game at Wrigley.
I do agree with those who say that only have five home games stinks for those of us who love to get to games early and tailgate in the parking lot at Ryan Field. The truth is, though, their just aren’t that many of us. What Jim Phillips is trying to do is create some more fans. NU has tons more potential fans (alums, employees, etc.) who are in the Chicago area, but don’t show up at Ryan Field. I can’t begin to speculate why, but it just doesn’t happen. What Phillips wants to do is give these people, and hopefully many of their friends, a reason to get interested in Northwestern. The odds are that the best seats for the Wrigley game will be attached to either season ticket packages or partial (say Big Ten games) season ticket plans. As a result, those people interested in the Wrigley game will buy season tickets for the first time and come out to Ryan Field. Once they do, I think they’ll get hooked. NU games are fun and often exciting. Usually, people want to come back after one visit. If Jim Phillips and the ticket office connect the Wrigley tickets to other games, they will help build NU’s fan base and the off-campus game will be worth the effort. It might even connect Chicago to Northwestern in a new way. After all, besides the items I mentioned at the start of this post, the other thing Wrigley Field is best known for is being located at 1060 W. Addison Street in Chicago, Illinois. People who think Chicago think Wrigley Field and those who live in the city are proud the park stands in their town. If NU can take over Wrigley Field, if even for a day, perhaps the large contingent of Chicago sports fans who don’t have a team will adopt NU as one of their own.
At least those are the goals. Yeah, it isn’t ideal to give up a home game, but if doing so adds to greater home attendance early in the season and in 2011; it’ll be worth the effort.
Since the idea of such a contest was floated last year, many different opinions on the matter have been expressed. Even in the NU blog community. It seems Spread Far the Fame (despite helping break the story) is very much opposed to the idea, while Lake the Posts has concerns, but will get behind the effort in order to help make the Friendly Confines unfriendly to the Illini. I’m not sure exactly what view the other major NU blog, Sippin’ on Purple, holds, but Rodger certainly didn’t seem to express the same frustration with the idea that Otto at Spread Far the Fame did.
Personally, I think I’ve agreed with every viewpoint on this game at one time or another. When Jim Phillips first mentioned the idea I thought it was terrible. Especially in a season when NU has only six home games. Now, the ‘Cats will only have five. In a possible rebuilding year, it didn’t seem that smart to give up a home field advantage. Then, the rumor started that the game would be against Iowa. I thought about how NU plays Iowa so well on the road and I decided that it would be a fantastic showcase game for the Wildcats to take on the Hawkeyes in Wrigley. Now, it appears the deal is more or less done and, that like originally figured, Illinois will have the honor of visiting Wrigley to play the ‘Cats. Surprisingly, though, I haven’t gone back to hating this idea. I still think Iowa would be a more exciting game, but I’m starting to buy into the idea of playing a game at Wrigley.
I do agree with those who say that only have five home games stinks for those of us who love to get to games early and tailgate in the parking lot at Ryan Field. The truth is, though, their just aren’t that many of us. What Jim Phillips is trying to do is create some more fans. NU has tons more potential fans (alums, employees, etc.) who are in the Chicago area, but don’t show up at Ryan Field. I can’t begin to speculate why, but it just doesn’t happen. What Phillips wants to do is give these people, and hopefully many of their friends, a reason to get interested in Northwestern. The odds are that the best seats for the Wrigley game will be attached to either season ticket packages or partial (say Big Ten games) season ticket plans. As a result, those people interested in the Wrigley game will buy season tickets for the first time and come out to Ryan Field. Once they do, I think they’ll get hooked. NU games are fun and often exciting. Usually, people want to come back after one visit. If Jim Phillips and the ticket office connect the Wrigley tickets to other games, they will help build NU’s fan base and the off-campus game will be worth the effort. It might even connect Chicago to Northwestern in a new way. After all, besides the items I mentioned at the start of this post, the other thing Wrigley Field is best known for is being located at 1060 W. Addison Street in Chicago, Illinois. People who think Chicago think Wrigley Field and those who live in the city are proud the park stands in their town. If NU can take over Wrigley Field, if even for a day, perhaps the large contingent of Chicago sports fans who don’t have a team will adopt NU as one of their own.
At least those are the goals. Yeah, it isn’t ideal to give up a home game, but if doing so adds to greater home attendance early in the season and in 2011; it’ll be worth the effort.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Who is NU’s Biggest Basketball Rival?
Is Iowa NU's Biggest Rival in Basketball? So it’s Rivalry Week on the ESPN family of networks this week. Games featured include Duke and North Carolina, Syracuse and UConn, and Purdue and Michigan State. This got me thinking about the basketball rivalries which include Northwestern. Who is Northwestern’s biggest basketball rival? The quickest answer is Illinois. That’s possible. Another quick answer is that NU hasn’t had enough success in basketball to sustain rivalries like they have in football against teams like Iowa and Wisconsin. I refuse to believe this. Northwestern might not have a great deal of basketball success, but they’ve been a pain in the neck for enough teams that at least a couple regular opponents have to be considered rivals. I’ve looked at a few factors such as how competitive games have been, how often the teams have met, and what type of relationship fans seems to have. As a result, I’ve come up with four potential candidates for NU’s biggest rival. They might not be Duke-UNC, but NU does have rivals.
Rival #1: Illinois
Illinois makes this list in large part because they are the only other Big Ten team in state. Also, because of this fact many families and friends in Illinois have connections to both Northwestern and Illinois. This creates some friendly (perhaps even sibling) rivalries which can make attending these matchups fun. On the other hand, I find that the rivalry with Illinois tends to be somewhat relaxed because of these connections. Their simply isn’t the bitterness that exists between other rivals. The other fact is, disappointing as it is for NU fans to admit, NU has struggled against Illinois even when the Wildcats have had respectable teams. The win over Illinois on January 23rd gave NU just their 3rd win over the Fighting Illini in the last 11 years. Northwestern has some poor records against conference foes over that time, but only Ohio State and Michigan State have been more successful than U of I against NU since the 1998-99 season.
Rival #2: DePaul
I’d really argue strongly for DePaul as NU’s biggest rival if the Blue Demons hadn’t dropped NU off the schedule this year. Sure, the teams are going to meet again next season, but I don’t think Indiana and Kentucky are likely to take time off from their rivalry anytime soon. If NU and DePaul want to be serious about their rivalry they need to play. It was a big deal to me when NU and DePaul seemed to recommit to playing regularly in the early 2000s and for the sake of college basketball in Chicago they should stick to that commitment. What I like about the argument for this rivalry is that it has been relatively close recently. The teams have split their last 6 meetings. Also, the two teams have a legitimate postseason history, having met in the NIT three times. DePaul has won two of three, but each has been close. In addition, at least from my personal experience, NU and DePaul can become a rivalry in the stands as well. I remember being somewhat horrified as a youngster when my mother got into a war of words with two drunken DePaul fans who were taunting Evan Eschmeyer during the 1999 NIT game at the Rosemont Horizon.
Rival #3: Wisconsin
This would be more of a rivalry if NU could win in Madison, but then again nobody wins in Madison, so maybe it doesn’t matter. The fact is NU has given Wisconsin a ton of trouble in Evanston over the past decade. Even NU’s losses have more often resembled this year’s tight battle to the wire as opposed the 2008 game which served as Wisconsin’s coronation as Big Ten Champs. This rivalry also gets extra points for NU winning over Wisconsin fairly consistently in the mid-1990s. Wisconsin was NU’s victim twice during the run to the 1993-94 NIT, including a memorable game in Evanston when NU guard Kip Kirkpatrick looked down future NBA-star Michael Finley. Also, during his brief stay in Evanston, Geno Carlisle led NU to a couple victories over the Badgers.
Rival #4: Iowa
If I had to vote (and I actually did in the poll above) I’d vote for Iowa. Some of that might be pent up anger over their way their fans often dis NU in football, but I think during the Steve Alford era this became a pretty decent basketball rivalry. Not only did NU finally breakthrough with a win in Iowa City in 2004, but the ‘Cats and Hawkeyes played a number of down to the wire games which resulted in NU wins. Michael Jenkins became an NU legend for beating Iowa, but people forget his heroics were sandwiched around a buzzer beater from Vedran Vukusic and an improbable off the bench shot from Evan Seacat which helped NU to victory when he hadn’t played in weeks. After each of those games, the Iowa fan base seemed to go crazy with frustration at their loss. In the last two years, the tables have somewhat turned. We NU fans have been the one’s feeling the frustration with a 1-3 record against the Hawkeyes. Last year’s loss in Iowa City was among the most frustrating for NU fans in a season of tough losses. The year before, when NU was desperately seeking a Big Ten win, was even worse as NU blew a double-figure lead thanks to Iowa starting pick apart the 1-3-1 zone. If NU doesn’t pull off the victory Wednesday night, the frustration level will probably hit a new high for NU fans.
Those are my thoughts. What does everybody else think? Comment and vote in the poll.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Iowa’s Loss to Illinois No Help to NU: Avoiding Bad Losses Could be Key in Battle for Big Ten’s Last Tourney Spot
Iowa hosts NU next week. They just missed helping NU when they lost a close battle to Illinois. 
Right now there are four teams in the Big Ten that are sure bets to make the NCAA Tournament: Michigan State, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Ohio State. There are also four teams that are surely out of the NCAA Tournament: Iowa, Indiana, Penn State, and Michigan. In between stand Northwestern, Illinois, and Minnesota. Right now none of those three teams are clearly better than the other. In fact, the teams are really very evenly matched. NU split its two meeting with Illinois and has a very good chance to split with Minnesota as well. As a result, what might be most critical to these teams in distinguishing themselves from each other will be avoiding bad losses, say losses to teams with sub-100 RPIs. NU hasn’t done this yet. Iowa almost handed Illinois their 3rd such loss, but the Fighting Illini escaped. If NU can continue to be immune to bad losses they might get picked ahead of Illinois and Minnesota even if the Illini and Gophers don’t pick up any more bad losses, but it’ll be a tough task for NU when they face Indiana and Iowa this week. Iowa didn’t beat Illinois, but came very close. Indiana didn’t beat Purdue, but looked for a long time like they would. No game in the Big Ten is easy.
On a related note, recaps and breakdowns of the Illinois-Iowa game are on various websites devoted to those teams, so I won’t break it down in detail. I do want to make a few observations. First off, I wonder if Iowa regrets running Steve Alford out of town. He certainly had his problems, but despite having fans dissatisfied, he did make regular runs in the Big Ten Tournament which lead to NCAA appearances. Todd Lickliter looks like he’ll still be looking for his first NCAA-bid in Iowa City after this year. Not that you can totally blame Lickliter (though I’m sure most Iowa fans do). He’s been somewhat snake bitten due to transfers and suspensions. Losing Jake Kelley to transfer hurt Iowa’s offense and then losing Anthony Tucker (who could have stepped in for Kelley) to a suspension hurt even more. Now, Iowa is a team with virtually no inside game and only Cully Payne and Matt Gatens can do much with creating their own shot.
Iowa also looks like they have issues with visiting fans just like Northwestern. It might not be to NU’s level in terms of numbers, but yesterday a group of Illinois students were seated right behind the basket. Without a doubt, I would have considered those prime seats, but nobody in black and gold must have wanted them. Even more amazing, the basket they were behind was the goal Iowa was shooting at in the second half. In other words, every time a Hawkeye player went to the line late to try a free throw, he saw a horde of orange-clad visitors staring him in the face. Even when NU was beating the Alford teams regularly, they still struggled in Iowa City. Part of the reason is was the Hawkeye fans made wining in Carver-Hawkeye Arena really tough. Now, I’m not guaranteeing a win in Iowa City (and NU’s team should just focus on Indiana), but it does seem Carver-Hawkeye will be significantly less intimidating this season. Hopefully, that’ll make it easier for NU to win in a place they’ve struggled and avoid their first bad loss.
On a related note, recaps and breakdowns of the Illinois-Iowa game are on various websites devoted to those teams, so I won’t break it down in detail. I do want to make a few observations. First off, I wonder if Iowa regrets running Steve Alford out of town. He certainly had his problems, but despite having fans dissatisfied, he did make regular runs in the Big Ten Tournament which lead to NCAA appearances. Todd Lickliter looks like he’ll still be looking for his first NCAA-bid in Iowa City after this year. Not that you can totally blame Lickliter (though I’m sure most Iowa fans do). He’s been somewhat snake bitten due to transfers and suspensions. Losing Jake Kelley to transfer hurt Iowa’s offense and then losing Anthony Tucker (who could have stepped in for Kelley) to a suspension hurt even more. Now, Iowa is a team with virtually no inside game and only Cully Payne and Matt Gatens can do much with creating their own shot.
Iowa also looks like they have issues with visiting fans just like Northwestern. It might not be to NU’s level in terms of numbers, but yesterday a group of Illinois students were seated right behind the basket. Without a doubt, I would have considered those prime seats, but nobody in black and gold must have wanted them. Even more amazing, the basket they were behind was the goal Iowa was shooting at in the second half. In other words, every time a Hawkeye player went to the line late to try a free throw, he saw a horde of orange-clad visitors staring him in the face. Even when NU was beating the Alford teams regularly, they still struggled in Iowa City. Part of the reason is was the Hawkeye fans made wining in Carver-Hawkeye Arena really tough. Now, I’m not guaranteeing a win in Iowa City (and NU’s team should just focus on Indiana), but it does seem Carver-Hawkeye will be significantly less intimidating this season. Hopefully, that’ll make it easier for NU to win in a place they’ve struggled and avoid their first bad loss.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
State of Joy: 73-68 Victory Gives Wildcats First Win Over In-State Rival in Six Years
In a game some experts termed an NCAA Tournament elimination game, the Northwestern Wildcats persevered and hung around long enough to fight and scrap their way to a 73-68 win over the University of Illinois. That star for Northwestern was senior Jeremy Nash who earned his first career victory over the Illini by posting a career-high 22 points. Along with those points, Nash totaled 4 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 assists. He also made 9-of-10 free throws, including the final two which iced the game when Illinois cut NU’s late lead to just three points.
What made this win even better, though, was Nash wasn’t the only star. Northwestern played 10 players in the game and all seemed to make at least some small contribution to the victory. Part of the reason for Bill Carmody’s need to clear his bench was early foul trouble for Michael “Juice” Thompson and John Shurna. Juiced played his season low in minutes with only 27. He totaled only 4 points and made just 1-of-5 shots, but in the end his only made three was one of several clutch shots helped NU hold the lead after Nash put them ahead 53-52. Thompson also had 3 assists and one of those assists setup a John Shurna three which also helped NU’s efforts to ice the victory. Shurna finished the game with 19 points total. Like Nash, he made 9-of-10 free throws including a number of which helped NU hold off Illinois.
Another Wildcat who deserves some credit is freshman guard Drew Crawford. Northwestern actually got out to an early lead thanks to 9 early points from Crawford. A couple of those came on drives which showed why some believe Crawford is Northwestern’s most athletic recruit ever.
Illinois took their lead with Thompson on the bench. During that period, it was a combination of guys, but especially Nash, Crawford, and Kyle Rowley who helped keep NU with in striking distance until the ‘Cats could find the range for big threes late from Nash, Thompson, and Shurna.
While Nash, Shurna, and Crawford were NU’s offensive leaders, Luka Mirkovic and Kyle Rowley provided solid efforts in the post and just enough offense. Mirkovic scored 9 points and grabbed 9 rebounds (3 offensive). Kyle Rowley came off the bench and might have played his best six minutes of the year. When Illinois was trying to make a run, Rowley made two huge baskets which ensured the game didn’t fall out of reach for NU.
NU also got solid minutes from Ivan Peljusic, Nick Fruendt, and Mike Capocci. Peljusic and Fruendt more or less just helped keep the game close by not making mistakes. Capocci did the same, but also has to get a major thumbs-up for getting two rebounds, including an offensive rebound which setup a big three, in just six minutes.
One interesting statistical note from the contest was Northwestern won despite allowing Illinois to shoot 55.3%. Even more amazing was that NU only shot 40.4% and made just 7-of-28 threes. NU was able to win despite these stats because they got more offensive rebounds than U of I (10 to 6) and because Northwestern was able to force Illinois to take more difficult shots than they did in Champaign. Yes, the Illini’s guards got some easy drives and open threes, but Mike Tisdale only took 6 shots and Mike Davis only took 6. Those two combined for 51 points in Champaign. Today they got only 14 points (all from Tisdale). Davis scored 0 points and got only 2 rebounds. Credit for stopping U of I’s easy baskets has to got to go to NU’s ability to consistently and successfully change defenses. It looked like U of I was never totally sure what defense NU was playing. That led to 16 Illinois turnovers which also contributed to keeping NU in the game until they made their run.
A few highlight plays from the game included John Shurna throwing down a two-handed dunk on back door pass from Luka Mirkovic. Credit to Coach Carmody for coming up with that play. Also, a great play by Juice Thompson to take a charge from Brandon Paul when NU needed a key stop. Kyle Rowley’s two baskets also showed some of the best footwork on his career and came at key times. I believe we might be seeing signs of a very positive future from Rowley based on his last three games. Finally, I have to say the three by Jeremy Nash which gave NU the 53-52 lead has to be the game’s biggest shot. It was big not just because it gave NU the lead, but because the way Welsh-Ryan Arena erupted after that shot was unbelievable. It might have been the loudest Welsh-Ryan has gotten since March of 1994 when NU defeated DePaul in the NIT. If Welsh-Ryan is like that in NU’s last six home games, I think Northwestern might have one of the best home court advantages in the nation.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Game 19: Illinois @ Northwestern Wildcats
The Matchup: Illinois (12-7) @ Northwestern (13-5)
Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena (Evanston, IL)
TV: Big Ten Network (7:00 PM CT Saturday January 23rd, 2010)
Radio: WYLL AM 1160
Fun Fact: Northwestern hasn’t defeated Illinois since 2004 (okay, this fact wasn’t that fun).
About the Game
Looking at this game for Northwestern’s point of view, a fan has to hope the Wildcats learned for their loss at Illinois in late December. In that contest Illinois used superior inside play from Mike Tisdale (who scored 31 points) and Mike Davis (who get 20 points and 17 rebounds) to withstand Northwestern’s early three point barrage and eventually prevail in overtime. In that game, Illinois was most successful against NU’s 1-3-1 zone. This wasn’t a surprise to most, though, as D.J. Richardson’s 45.1% 3-point percentage is among the Big Ten’s best. Also, the Illini have another excellent shooter in Demetri McCamey who scores 15.5 ppg and dishes out 6.0 apg. With Richardson’s shooting ability and McCamey’s ability to pass or knock down shots the 1-3-1 isn’t that hard for the Illini to beat. Illinois also got big shots from Bill Cole last time these teams met. Since the first meeting with NU, the 6-9 junior Cole has replaced freshman Brandon Paul in the starting lineup. Aside from being a decent shooter, Cole hits the offensive glass well. He has 22 offensive rebounds this season. It will be important for NU to block out like they did against Purdue. Were I Bill Carmody, I would stick with the switching man-to-man and avoid playing 1-3-1.
If NU does play man-to-man they will need a good performance from Kyle Rowley. In the first meeting, Luka Mirkovic was abused by Tisdale on the way to his 31 points. Rowley, however, was able to push Tisdale away from the hoop and make easy conversions more of a difficult task. Yes, the NU offense functions better with Mirkovic, and yes he’ll need to step up, but I think Rowley’s defense will be a key to NU’s success.
The final key to NU’s success will be how they approach the game on offense. In NU’s Big Ten wins, the ‘Cats have run their offense, found good shots, and even gotten fouled. In their losses they’ve fired up early threes and not run offense. Although NU might have some early looks against Illinois, I believe it is critical the ‘Cats run their offense and get the best possible shot. It will also be important to get Michael “Juice” Thompson involved in the scoring process. When Thompson adds punch to NU’s other scoring threats, NU is much more successful.
Prediction:
While this game will likely feature no shortage of Illini fans, I still think playing at home will help Northwestern. I also think the Wildcats will have learned from the first matchup and won’t let Illinois get as many easy baskets. Finally, as bad as NU’s loss to Ohio State was, I think it helped get several players, especially Jeremy Nash and Luka Mirkovic some extra rest. Having those two well rested to help attack the boards should assist NU. Northwestern, 65 Illinois, 60
Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena (Evanston, IL)
TV: Big Ten Network (7:00 PM CT Saturday January 23rd, 2010)
Radio: WYLL AM 1160
Fun Fact: Northwestern hasn’t defeated Illinois since 2004 (okay, this fact wasn’t that fun).
About the Game
Looking at this game for Northwestern’s point of view, a fan has to hope the Wildcats learned for their loss at Illinois in late December. In that contest Illinois used superior inside play from Mike Tisdale (who scored 31 points) and Mike Davis (who get 20 points and 17 rebounds) to withstand Northwestern’s early three point barrage and eventually prevail in overtime. In that game, Illinois was most successful against NU’s 1-3-1 zone. This wasn’t a surprise to most, though, as D.J. Richardson’s 45.1% 3-point percentage is among the Big Ten’s best. Also, the Illini have another excellent shooter in Demetri McCamey who scores 15.5 ppg and dishes out 6.0 apg. With Richardson’s shooting ability and McCamey’s ability to pass or knock down shots the 1-3-1 isn’t that hard for the Illini to beat. Illinois also got big shots from Bill Cole last time these teams met. Since the first meeting with NU, the 6-9 junior Cole has replaced freshman Brandon Paul in the starting lineup. Aside from being a decent shooter, Cole hits the offensive glass well. He has 22 offensive rebounds this season. It will be important for NU to block out like they did against Purdue. Were I Bill Carmody, I would stick with the switching man-to-man and avoid playing 1-3-1.
If NU does play man-to-man they will need a good performance from Kyle Rowley. In the first meeting, Luka Mirkovic was abused by Tisdale on the way to his 31 points. Rowley, however, was able to push Tisdale away from the hoop and make easy conversions more of a difficult task. Yes, the NU offense functions better with Mirkovic, and yes he’ll need to step up, but I think Rowley’s defense will be a key to NU’s success.
The final key to NU’s success will be how they approach the game on offense. In NU’s Big Ten wins, the ‘Cats have run their offense, found good shots, and even gotten fouled. In their losses they’ve fired up early threes and not run offense. Although NU might have some early looks against Illinois, I believe it is critical the ‘Cats run their offense and get the best possible shot. It will also be important to get Michael “Juice” Thompson involved in the scoring process. When Thompson adds punch to NU’s other scoring threats, NU is much more successful.
Prediction:
While this game will likely feature no shortage of Illini fans, I still think playing at home will help Northwestern. I also think the Wildcats will have learned from the first matchup and won’t let Illinois get as many easy baskets. Finally, as bad as NU’s loss to Ohio State was, I think it helped get several players, especially Jeremy Nash and Luka Mirkovic some extra rest. Having those two well rested to help attack the boards should assist NU. Northwestern, 65 Illinois, 60
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Illini Surge in 2nd Half and Overtime to Top ‘Cats 89-83
On the road at Assembly Hall Northwestern played a very solid first half making 11 three pointers and taking a halftime lead of 9 points. However, led by Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis the Illinois Fighting Illini came back to top the ‘Cats with solid play in the second half and the overtime period.
Northwestern did an excellent job in the first half making threes. Jeremy Nash in particular was excellent with 4 first half threes. However, perhaps the ‘Cats ability to make threes in the first half harmed the ‘Cats in the second half. In the second half the ‘Cats made just 3-of-24 threes and seemed to force many of those three point shots. When NU started going inside in the second half John Shurna converted a number of easy baskets, but the Illini had already gotten back in the game by that point. Based in part of those second half baskets, as well as four threes, Shurna was the ‘Cats leading scorer with 27 points. He also added 7 rebounds and four assists.
The ‘Cats leading rebounder was freshman Drew Crawford who had 8 rebounds. Five of those came on the offensive glass including one key rebound put-back dunk which kept NU in the game. Crawford wasn’t great shooting the ball (5-of-13 overall, 2-of-7 three), but his overall performance was solid for a young freshman in his first Big Ten game.
Crawford’s freshman teammate Alex Marcotullio was solid as well with 13 points (4-of-9 threes), however, he struggled somewhat defensively allowing Illinois’s guards to make easy passes to the post.
Overall, the biggest negative for Northwestern was on the defensive end of things. The ‘Cats started well in the man-to-man, but switched to the 1-3-1 and didn’t get the regular production of turnovers generally expected. To be honest, I thought NU was the least aggressive in the 1-3-1 they have been all season. Some of that might have been a result of Illinois being more athletic at the guard spots than NU’s past opponents. However, that’s no excuse. If Northwestern wants to play 1-3-1 they have to produce turnovers. Otherwise teams will take advantage of the fact the zone leaves shooters open or forces mismatches under the basket. Illinois was masterful with this. The Illini comeback was basically tied to NU not switching out of the 1-3-1 when it wasn’t working. Mike Tisdale scored 31 points and much of those came on mismatches or put-backs and Mike Davis scored 20 points and got 17 rebounds. Perhaps the three key plays were the two rebound put-back baskets those two got to start OT and the wide open corner three from Bill Cole late in the 2nd half which in the end forced NU only to be able to tie the game at the end of regulation and not win the game.
News and Notes: Michael “Juice” Thompson (7 points, 8 assists) left the game late with some type of ankle injury…Northwestern’s women’s basketball team has an equally tough test tomorrow (Thursday) vs #6 Ohio State...The men's hoops game vs #11 Michigan State is a sell-out, but football season ticket holders can still get seats under the basket.
Northwestern did an excellent job in the first half making threes. Jeremy Nash in particular was excellent with 4 first half threes. However, perhaps the ‘Cats ability to make threes in the first half harmed the ‘Cats in the second half. In the second half the ‘Cats made just 3-of-24 threes and seemed to force many of those three point shots. When NU started going inside in the second half John Shurna converted a number of easy baskets, but the Illini had already gotten back in the game by that point. Based in part of those second half baskets, as well as four threes, Shurna was the ‘Cats leading scorer with 27 points. He also added 7 rebounds and four assists.
The ‘Cats leading rebounder was freshman Drew Crawford who had 8 rebounds. Five of those came on the offensive glass including one key rebound put-back dunk which kept NU in the game. Crawford wasn’t great shooting the ball (5-of-13 overall, 2-of-7 three), but his overall performance was solid for a young freshman in his first Big Ten game.
Crawford’s freshman teammate Alex Marcotullio was solid as well with 13 points (4-of-9 threes), however, he struggled somewhat defensively allowing Illinois’s guards to make easy passes to the post.
Overall, the biggest negative for Northwestern was on the defensive end of things. The ‘Cats started well in the man-to-man, but switched to the 1-3-1 and didn’t get the regular production of turnovers generally expected. To be honest, I thought NU was the least aggressive in the 1-3-1 they have been all season. Some of that might have been a result of Illinois being more athletic at the guard spots than NU’s past opponents. However, that’s no excuse. If Northwestern wants to play 1-3-1 they have to produce turnovers. Otherwise teams will take advantage of the fact the zone leaves shooters open or forces mismatches under the basket. Illinois was masterful with this. The Illini comeback was basically tied to NU not switching out of the 1-3-1 when it wasn’t working. Mike Tisdale scored 31 points and much of those came on mismatches or put-backs and Mike Davis scored 20 points and got 17 rebounds. Perhaps the three key plays were the two rebound put-back baskets those two got to start OT and the wide open corner three from Bill Cole late in the 2nd half which in the end forced NU only to be able to tie the game at the end of regulation and not win the game.
News and Notes: Michael “Juice” Thompson (7 points, 8 assists) left the game late with some type of ankle injury…Northwestern’s women’s basketball team has an equally tough test tomorrow (Thursday) vs #6 Ohio State...The men's hoops game vs #11 Michigan State is a sell-out, but football season ticket holders can still get seats under the basket.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Game 12: Northwestern Wildcats @ Illinois
The Matchup: #25(AP Poll) Northwestern (10-1) @ Illinois (8-4)
Location: Assembly Hall (Champaign, Illinois)
TV: Big Ten Network (8:00 PM December 30th)
Radio: WGN 720AM
Fun Fact: Northwestern enters this game as a ranked team (AP #25) for the first time since 1969.
About the Game
For the first time in probably a decade, the #25 Wildcats enter this contest as arguably the stronger team in the state of Illinois. The Illini have been very inconsistent. They have lost to Georgia and Missouri while beating Vanderbilt and Clemson. The Wildcats did lose to Butler, but have beaten Notre Dame, Iowa State, N.C. State, and Stanford since that loss. You also have to be impressed with NU’s resume, but you also have to say Illinois has been a much better team at home this year. They’re 7-0 in Assembly Hall thus far.
Part of the reason for the Illini’s better stats at home is probably the fact that freshmen guards D.J. Richardson and Brandon Paul are much more comfortable at home. They’re both talented (10.8 and 10.4 ppg), but they did have a lot of trouble facing pressure from Missouri. On the year Paul has 22 assists and 21 turnovers. Richardson is significantly better holding on to the ball with 35 assists and 19 TO’s, but still had trouble with the Tiger pressure. If I were Bill Carmody I would consider starting the game in the aggressive steal seeking 1-3-1 zone. You would run a risk that Richardson (49% from three), Paul (39% from three) and Demetri McCamey (39% from three) could pick the zone apart, but if they’re turning the ball over before they get shots it won’t matter. NU also should a good ability to get out of the 1-3-1 quick against Iowa State’s great shooters.
On the inside the Illini have two very talented players. However, both seem to prefer to play away from the basket. Forward Mike Davis is athletic and can go around defenders when he faces the basket. He can also step out to 15 feet and hit a jump shot. He’s also active on the boards with 9.8 rebounds per game. 7-1 center Mike Tisdale actually has more range than Davis. Although Tisdale hasn’t hit a three yet, he has shown 18 foot range. He also works inside with a nice hook shot that helps him covert 60% of his field goals attempts. Tisdale also averages 2 blocked shots a game, which at 7-1 isn’t a surprise, but it will greatly benefit the ‘Cats if Luka Mirkovic can draw him outside with some made threes.
Prediction:
A number of experts have implied that of NU’s first two Big Ten games the ‘Cats have a better chance at home against Michigan State. I disagree. I think NU has a great chance to pick up their first win at Illinois in a decade if they can produce turnovers and hold Illinois off the glass in order to prevent cheap baskets. The Wildcats will also need a good shooting day from their guards and Mirkovic, but I think they’re due for one after two rough days against Stanford and Central Connecticut. Northwestern, 71 Illinois, 64
Location: Assembly Hall (Champaign, Illinois)
TV: Big Ten Network (8:00 PM December 30th)
Radio: WGN 720AM
Fun Fact: Northwestern enters this game as a ranked team (AP #25) for the first time since 1969.
About the Game
For the first time in probably a decade, the #25 Wildcats enter this contest as arguably the stronger team in the state of Illinois. The Illini have been very inconsistent. They have lost to Georgia and Missouri while beating Vanderbilt and Clemson. The Wildcats did lose to Butler, but have beaten Notre Dame, Iowa State, N.C. State, and Stanford since that loss. You also have to be impressed with NU’s resume, but you also have to say Illinois has been a much better team at home this year. They’re 7-0 in Assembly Hall thus far.
Part of the reason for the Illini’s better stats at home is probably the fact that freshmen guards D.J. Richardson and Brandon Paul are much more comfortable at home. They’re both talented (10.8 and 10.4 ppg), but they did have a lot of trouble facing pressure from Missouri. On the year Paul has 22 assists and 21 turnovers. Richardson is significantly better holding on to the ball with 35 assists and 19 TO’s, but still had trouble with the Tiger pressure. If I were Bill Carmody I would consider starting the game in the aggressive steal seeking 1-3-1 zone. You would run a risk that Richardson (49% from three), Paul (39% from three) and Demetri McCamey (39% from three) could pick the zone apart, but if they’re turning the ball over before they get shots it won’t matter. NU also should a good ability to get out of the 1-3-1 quick against Iowa State’s great shooters.
On the inside the Illini have two very talented players. However, both seem to prefer to play away from the basket. Forward Mike Davis is athletic and can go around defenders when he faces the basket. He can also step out to 15 feet and hit a jump shot. He’s also active on the boards with 9.8 rebounds per game. 7-1 center Mike Tisdale actually has more range than Davis. Although Tisdale hasn’t hit a three yet, he has shown 18 foot range. He also works inside with a nice hook shot that helps him covert 60% of his field goals attempts. Tisdale also averages 2 blocked shots a game, which at 7-1 isn’t a surprise, but it will greatly benefit the ‘Cats if Luka Mirkovic can draw him outside with some made threes.
Prediction:
A number of experts have implied that of NU’s first two Big Ten games the ‘Cats have a better chance at home against Michigan State. I disagree. I think NU has a great chance to pick up their first win at Illinois in a decade if they can produce turnovers and hold Illinois off the glass in order to prevent cheap baskets. The Wildcats will also need a good shooting day from their guards and Mirkovic, but I think they’re due for one after two rough days against Stanford and Central Connecticut. Northwestern, 71 Illinois, 64
Monday, November 9, 2009
Football: Illini Week
I thought some might like to once again see the above picture as we head into this weekend's matchup. I'd also like to say that should anybody (say, the NU Athletic Department) have video of the 4th quater of "The Comeback" they need to post it right now!
Friday, February 13, 2009
You'd think one of these days we'd catch a break...
Michael Thompsom drives to the hoop with 14.7 seconds left (photo: espn.com)I hate blaming the refs for a loss, but this picture sure makes it look like Michael Thompson got fouled with 14.7 seconds left. Look at the pain in his eyes. How is that not a foul? Between this and the foul at the end of the Purdue game, I am now certain Welsh-Ryan Arena is the only place in the Big Ten where the home team doesn't get "home team" calls, maybe thanks to our lack of fan support we don't deserve them, but why do the refs have to punish our kids and coaches for our fair weather fans. Yes, NU blew big leads both last night and against Purdue. However, I would love to hear from the Big Ten Office on the calls at the end of both games. After they take a look at this picture, the Big Ten office can feel free to contact me any time and explain. Though, they should probably contact Bill Carmody because it's his team getting jobbed at home. After all, it seems in both cases the officials made poor calls which in the end might cost NU the postseason.
Friday Flashback: Worst Loss Ever?
Was yesterday’s loss to Illinois the worst loss ever suffered by Northwestern? A debate has begun on the Wildcatreport.com message boards. The issue seems to be whether last night’s debacle was worse than NU’s loss to DePaul in the 1983 NIT. Now, given that I was two weeks old when that 1983 NIT occurred I might not be the best person to make this comparison. I would love to hear from folks who watched both games and can make a clearer comparison. That said, I will do my best based on my research about 1983 and my sad observation from last night.
I’ve heard last night described as near carbon copy of the 1983 NIT game by some who were in attendance at both, but it seems to me there are a few notable differences about NU’s loss to the Blue Demons. First, the game was in the postseason. I think this is significant, especially since the NCAA tournament field was smaller in the early 1980s. To me, this means an NIT appearance was far more significant then than it is now. Also, some have said NU had a good chance to make it to the NIT finals if they got past DePaul. Losing such an opportunity has to be considered a huge blow to the program. In addition, on site reports from the Rosemont Horizon say that although like last night NU couldn’t get the ball across half court against DePaul, that was in large part because the officials let DePaul get away with hacking NU’s ball handlers. Finally, the last second shot to win for the Demons was a 35-foot miracle heave at the hoop. That’s a real tough way to lose.
Now, let’s look at last night’s horror show of a game. The significance of last night’s game was an NCAA tournament bid was potentially on the line. For a team that has never made the NCAAs, losing such a game is a big fraking loss. If the ‘Cats don’t pull out at least three more wins before the end of the regular season, this will be the game pointed to as a season changer. The game which cost NU the postseason. It might even be the game which eventually costs the coach his job. NU’s inability to get the ball past half court last night came as a result of poor play by veteran players. It seemed Craig Moore was replaced with the past version of himself who went into a shell when things went terrible his sophomore year. That last shot last night was pretty easy, even easier was the layup Kevin Coble allowed to bring Illinois within 1 point at 59-58. I know Coble had four fouls, but to be honest, there are a lot of times he looks like he couldn’t guard his lunch in a kindergarten classroom.
So, which loss was worse? Well, it might be a self-defense mechanism, because I don’t want to have seen the worst loss ever, but I’m going to say the 1983 NIT loss was worse. I think any loss which ends a team’s season is bad, and to end your season by blowing a big lead is even worse. Also, I think the fact Patterson launched up a 35-foot miracle shot makes it worse. How many people hit 35-footers at the buzzer? Not that many. I’m sure when that was the best shot DePaul could get at the buzzer most folks figured NU had survived. Not so.
This is of course just my point of view. I’d love to hear other thoughts. Do you think last night was worse? Was there another loss which was worse than both these? Leave a comment and let us know.
I’ve heard last night described as near carbon copy of the 1983 NIT game by some who were in attendance at both, but it seems to me there are a few notable differences about NU’s loss to the Blue Demons. First, the game was in the postseason. I think this is significant, especially since the NCAA tournament field was smaller in the early 1980s. To me, this means an NIT appearance was far more significant then than it is now. Also, some have said NU had a good chance to make it to the NIT finals if they got past DePaul. Losing such an opportunity has to be considered a huge blow to the program. In addition, on site reports from the Rosemont Horizon say that although like last night NU couldn’t get the ball across half court against DePaul, that was in large part because the officials let DePaul get away with hacking NU’s ball handlers. Finally, the last second shot to win for the Demons was a 35-foot miracle heave at the hoop. That’s a real tough way to lose.
Now, let’s look at last night’s horror show of a game. The significance of last night’s game was an NCAA tournament bid was potentially on the line. For a team that has never made the NCAAs, losing such a game is a big fraking loss. If the ‘Cats don’t pull out at least three more wins before the end of the regular season, this will be the game pointed to as a season changer. The game which cost NU the postseason. It might even be the game which eventually costs the coach his job. NU’s inability to get the ball past half court last night came as a result of poor play by veteran players. It seemed Craig Moore was replaced with the past version of himself who went into a shell when things went terrible his sophomore year. That last shot last night was pretty easy, even easier was the layup Kevin Coble allowed to bring Illinois within 1 point at 59-58. I know Coble had four fouls, but to be honest, there are a lot of times he looks like he couldn’t guard his lunch in a kindergarten classroom.
So, which loss was worse? Well, it might be a self-defense mechanism, because I don’t want to have seen the worst loss ever, but I’m going to say the 1983 NIT loss was worse. I think any loss which ends a team’s season is bad, and to end your season by blowing a big lead is even worse. Also, I think the fact Patterson launched up a 35-foot miracle shot makes it worse. How many people hit 35-footers at the buzzer? Not that many. I’m sure when that was the best shot DePaul could get at the buzzer most folks figured NU had survived. Not so.
This is of course just my point of view. I’d love to hear other thoughts. Do you think last night was worse? Was there another loss which was worse than both these? Leave a comment and let us know.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Evanston, We Have a Problem: Illini win State Title by 1 point
You know the scene in Apollo 13 when the oxygen tank ruptures and Jim Lovell says, “We just lost the moon” to his crew? Well, tonight Northwestern’s O2 tank ruptured and they just lost the NCAA Tournament. Now, they need to work a near miracle and recover like Lovell, Swigert, and Haise, in order to at least survive long enough to circle around the moon and make it back to Earth, in other words, make the NIT. If NU can’t find a way to repair their busted-up ship, they will float endlessly off into eternity, in other words, stay home in March. Can it be done? Sure, but it will take a monumental effort to recover from this disaster and right the ship. But, as was the case for flight director Gene Kranz, for coach Bill Carmody, “Failure is not an option.” Otherwise, I have to admit, his future at Northwestern will be very much in doubt.
So how did the Wildcats blow this game? Well, they were completely abysmal at handling Illinois’s trap in the last four minutes. In those four minutes, the Wildcats were leaderless. Craig Moore who has led NU the whole year made perhaps the worst play of the night when he got trapped in the corner and threw a pass to the center of the court I wouldn’t want to see a junior high player throw to start the Illinois run. This was way worse than the loss to Purdue. Every basketball player from small fry to the NBA knows that you can’t stop in the corner against a team that is trapping because they will use the sideline as a third defender. Every basketball player except those who play at Northwestern that is. The Wildcats repeatedly just stopped and let Illinois trap them and force turnovers. The worst part, players like Moore who should know better were just as responsible for these woeful decisions as freshmen like Luka Mirkovic. If the Wildcats could have broken the press NU would have had easy layups thanks to how aggressive the Illini were. Now, every team is going to try and trap Northwestern and based on what was seen tonight, they’ll probably be very successful. The Wildcats need to work on handling traps, right now! I might seem harsh, but blowing a double-digit lead with less than four minutes left is the basketball equivalent of blowing a 38-3 lead in football. This loss is totally unacceptable, it would be unacceptable for a junior high team. As I said, “Evanston we have a problem.” And if this problem isn’t corrected, well, let’s hope we don’t crash and burn.
Now, to end on a positive, the student sections tonight were awesome. Unfortunately, if history repeats itself a great many of those students won’t come back Sunday. Of course, based on the last four minutes, I don’t really blame them. Those of us who choose to watch this team year in and year out might be certifiable. I tell myself it’ll mean more to us when the ‘Cats finally make the NCAA tournament, before tonight I thought I saw that day on the horizon. Now, I just don’t know. I just don't know.
So how did the Wildcats blow this game? Well, they were completely abysmal at handling Illinois’s trap in the last four minutes. In those four minutes, the Wildcats were leaderless. Craig Moore who has led NU the whole year made perhaps the worst play of the night when he got trapped in the corner and threw a pass to the center of the court I wouldn’t want to see a junior high player throw to start the Illinois run. This was way worse than the loss to Purdue. Every basketball player from small fry to the NBA knows that you can’t stop in the corner against a team that is trapping because they will use the sideline as a third defender. Every basketball player except those who play at Northwestern that is. The Wildcats repeatedly just stopped and let Illinois trap them and force turnovers. The worst part, players like Moore who should know better were just as responsible for these woeful decisions as freshmen like Luka Mirkovic. If the Wildcats could have broken the press NU would have had easy layups thanks to how aggressive the Illini were. Now, every team is going to try and trap Northwestern and based on what was seen tonight, they’ll probably be very successful. The Wildcats need to work on handling traps, right now! I might seem harsh, but blowing a double-digit lead with less than four minutes left is the basketball equivalent of blowing a 38-3 lead in football. This loss is totally unacceptable, it would be unacceptable for a junior high team. As I said, “Evanston we have a problem.” And if this problem isn’t corrected, well, let’s hope we don’t crash and burn.
Now, to end on a positive, the student sections tonight were awesome. Unfortunately, if history repeats itself a great many of those students won’t come back Sunday. Of course, based on the last four minutes, I don’t really blame them. Those of us who choose to watch this team year in and year out might be certifiable. I tell myself it’ll mean more to us when the ‘Cats finally make the NCAA tournament, before tonight I thought I saw that day on the horizon. Now, I just don’t know. I just don't know.
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