Wow, I watched the Auburn game and thought we might be one of the best NU teams in a while. Taking #13 Auburn down to the last possession. What a different lens through which we view.
A word of caution about next season
- Thread starter NJcatsfan
- Start date
Wow, I watched the Auburn game and thought we might be one of the best NU teams in a while. Taking #13 Auburn down to the last possession. What a different lens through which we view.
It was Lowery. Everybody on our team played much better D. Berry and Beran especially. Boo too. Audige went from solid to elite. Nicholson was always a big who had presence in the blocks, but he improved too, though credit there maybe goes more to Brian James.
I was focusing on the offensive end and maybe I wasn't clear, but my point was that my thinking evolved as the game went on to where I first thought it was just a very ugly basketball team between two teams playing terribly to recognizing that our defense was actually something special. But our offense still sucked. My poorly made point is that the potential for offensive improvement this year is what I base my optimism on.
We only used 7 players in that Auburn game, our 6th of the season.
Roper was out with an injury or was sick or something.
Nicholson came off the bench for Verhoeven. Barnhizer played 28 minutes off the bench.
TVH played 21 minutes in that game. Beran played 37 minutes.
The score during the TVH 21 minutes was Auburn 15 Northwestern 11.
Thats essentially the rock fight.
You’re forgetting Preston, I fully expect him to assume the TVH role behind Big Matt. Mullins could work his way into the lineup as well (moreso if Chase does not return). I can envision all three transfers in front of Mart and Hunger in an 8 man rotation…CCC has a lot of options and can easily play 10 per game if he so chooses.
Its quite possible that when Preston comes in for Nicholson, Hunger will play the 4 to add some size. (Preston's more of a mid-major center, our frontcourt may not be big enough for the Big Ten if he's out there with Martinelli or Barnhizer at the 4).
It would be really nice if Hunger can stay healthy and plays well. I think he will contribute.
Its actually the reverse situation. During the renovation of WR, the team practiced on campus at Bloomquist.
Now, they practice either in WR or in the adjacent basketball / volleyball facility.
I don't think the practice location was the problem, it always seemed like a chemistry issue with the team and the impact of losing Lumpkin. Also, as miserable as I was as a fan watching games at Allstate, I have to imagine making the trek for games was horrible for the team.
As I recall that team wasn’t in too bad a spot at one stage of the season and then the wheels kind of came off and they lost the last 7 games maybe?
Correct. 15-10, the as you say lost 7 straight to end the season. Their last 2 wins were the best all season, @Wisconsin and over #20 Michigan.
Or Hunger comes in to the five and Preston at the four - but CCC likes positionless so never mind….
One of those 7 was that Michigan State debacle when we lost the biggest halftime lead in conference history. I assume it’s still the record.
Looked it up. We were up 49-27 at half. Outscored 11-38 in second half. The second half was miserable to watch In person.
Last edited:
That’s the all optimistic view. Not that you’re wrong except for Martinelli who couldn’t guard his shadow.
Martinelli may just need to grow into his body, but yeah. He has bad feet on defense
Well your eyes may be fooling you.
Over the last 13 games of the season (2nd half of Big Ten season + tournament games) NU fared better when Martinelli was playing than when Beran was playing. The team played significantly better when Nicholson was in the game, as opposed to Verhoeven, but Martinelli split time with those two guys, whereas Beran played only 28% of his minutes with Verhoeven.
All of that suggests Martinelli
a) can play defense
b) will be better than Beran next year.
I agree it looks that way. He looks goofy as hell.
Which, often, leads to misleading conclusions about one's game. I am not convinced he's a poor defender.
He was also a freshman who really didn't start getting semi-regular minutes until late January. I'm expecting improvement on both ends of the floor. He'll probably add some muscle over the summer as well.
Absolutely, me too. And if he continues to look goofy, then he'll lull his opponents into a false sense of security!
I think he will improve. I also think John Shurna's shot looked goofy
But "pretty good" for NU just does not cut it in BIG. We will lose more than we think with Beran. Roper would have been a huge piece this year. And if Audige is not there... Just saying, lot of new pieces and we will have to see how they fit together
And don't forget, they were not just good defenders but they had also played together for quite a while and had an understanding of each other. Takes a while to build that. Especially since the new transfers do not have the ability to work together yet.
Sorry but while he added some, the real improvement was that there was a lot more focus on D by Boo, Berry, Behran, Barhizer etc. It was an overall team approach of which Nicholson was only a part of
If John Shurna's shot had any resemblance to a jumpshot, he would not be playing at Gran Canaria
As to Martinelli, I believe what I saw. His defense is lousy. Guys blew by him on the regular. I'd expect his offense to improve, which is his strength.
Martinelli will learn not to bite so hard on the fakes, leave his feet too early, and his defense will continue to improve. He galumphs a bit, but he also has some quicks and reach, and he's smart. He'll get it sorted out enough that fewer and fewer opponents will be able to embarrass him on the court.
He's one of these players that always seem to attract the ball. Loose balls, rebounds, etc. he has a nose for the ball. Sneaky quick lefty shot, decent 3 pointer that if improved would make him a valuable offensive option. He brings a lot to the table.
That seems like more guys on the floor during practice. Am I right?
So from an optimistic point of view his impact will have perhaps a greater value for the new players.
Probably looked at the freshmen and transfers as players he could work into his defensive system
I suppose its not impossible for the team to be better on D than last year but it would require improvement across the board with Chase gone.
Found this excerpt from a MSU site. They have the same concern I have about Chase being replaced. Most pundits that I have seen NU projected to be in the bottom half of the conference. I am more optimistic than that, but I think contending for the B1G is a stretch.
10.
2022-23 (22-12, 12-8, T2 in Big Ten, 7 seed RD32 exit to UCLA)
In a crowded middle tier last year Northwestern showed well, particularly on the road where they beat Michigan State, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Rutgers to get out of the basement of the conference for the first time since 2016-17. With Boo Buie’s return it looked like Northwestern would be poised to run back the bulk of their roster and hold top half conference aspirations again but Chase Audige’s surprise departure to the professional ranks left a gaping hole in the roster that wildly swung expectations. Audige (14.1 PPG) was one of the best defenders in the conference and despite his suspect shot selection, eased the offensive burden from Buie, making enough big shots to offset his inefficient nights. Although NU grabbed a trio of lower major players from the portal, it feels like Buie would have to have an All American type season for the Wildcats to find themselves in the top half of the conference this upcoming season. Collins has coached Northwestern for ten years and finished higher than 10th in just two of those seasons. It feels like a return to the norm in Evanston is more likely than not in 2023-24.
10.
2022-23 (22-12, 12-8, T2 in Big Ten, 7 seed RD32 exit to UCLA)
In a crowded middle tier last year Northwestern showed well, particularly on the road where they beat Michigan State, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Rutgers to get out of the basement of the conference for the first time since 2016-17. With Boo Buie’s return it looked like Northwestern would be poised to run back the bulk of their roster and hold top half conference aspirations again but Chase Audige’s surprise departure to the professional ranks left a gaping hole in the roster that wildly swung expectations. Audige (14.1 PPG) was one of the best defenders in the conference and despite his suspect shot selection, eased the offensive burden from Buie, making enough big shots to offset his inefficient nights. Although NU grabbed a trio of lower major players from the portal, it feels like Buie would have to have an All American type season for the Wildcats to find themselves in the top half of the conference this upcoming season. Collins has coached Northwestern for ten years and finished higher than 10th in just two of those seasons. It feels like a return to the norm in Evanston is more likely than not in 2023-24.
I wonder how much of such positive opinion about Chase's value led to his decision to go pro.Found this excerpt from a MSU site. They have the same concern I have about Chase being replaced. Most pundits that I have seen NU projected to be in the bottom half of the conference. I am more optimistic than that, but I think contending for the B1G is a stretch.
10.
2022-23 (22-12, 12-8, T2 in Big Ten, 7 seed RD32 exit to UCLA)
In a crowded middle tier last year Northwestern showed well, particularly on the road where they beat Michigan State, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Rutgers to get out of the basement of the conference for the first time since 2016-17. With Boo Buie’s return it looked like Northwestern would be poised to run back the bulk of their roster and hold top half conference aspirations again but Chase Audige’s surprise departure to the professional ranks left a gaping hole in the roster that wildly swung expectations. Audige (14.1 PPG) was one of the best defenders in the conference and despite his suspect shot selection, eased the offensive burden from Buie, making enough big shots to offset his inefficient nights. Although NU grabbed a trio of lower major players from the portal, it feels like Buie would have to have an All American type season for the Wildcats to find themselves in the top half of the conference this upcoming season. Collins has coached Northwestern for ten years and finished higher than 10th in just two of those seasons. It feels like a return to the norm in Evanston is more likely than not in 2023-24.
The guy who wrote that isn't going to know what hit him next year.Found this excerpt from a MSU site. They have the same concern I have about Chase being replaced. Most pundits that I have seen NU projected to be in the bottom half of the conference. I am more optimistic than that, but I think contending for the B1G is a stretch.
10.
2022-23 (22-12, 12-8, T2 in Big Ten, 7 seed RD32 exit to UCLA)
In a crowded middle tier last year Northwestern showed well, particularly on the road where they beat Michigan State, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Rutgers to get out of the basement of the conference for the first time since 2016-17. With Boo Buie’s return it looked like Northwestern would be poised to run back the bulk of their roster and hold top half conference aspirations again but Chase Audige’s surprise departure to the professional ranks left a gaping hole in the roster that wildly swung expectations. Audige (14.1 PPG) was one of the best defenders in the conference and despite his suspect shot selection, eased the offensive burden from Buie, making enough big shots to offset his inefficient nights. Although NU grabbed a trio of lower major players from the portal, it feels like Buie would have to have an All American type season for the Wildcats to find themselves in the top half of the conference this upcoming season. Collins has coached Northwestern for ten years and finished higher than 10th in just two of those seasons. It feels like a return to the norm in Evanston is more likely than not in 2023-24.
But as an MSU fan, he'll be very aware of Buie, who has feasted on Sparty.
Or Michigan. Isn’t there some sort of connection to their new coach?
Similar threads
