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If you’d told me…

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NJcatsfan

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Nov 21, 2004
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… that in addition to Ty, Borg would also be out

And Boo & Brooks would score 26 total points

And NU would shoot 15% from beyond the arc

And NU would lose the turnover battle

And NU would get hammered on the offensive glass

And the bench would score 5 total points

…all on the road…

I’d have bet a lot of money this would be an NU loss, and maybe by a lot.

And yet, it was a win. And almost a comfortable one. One of the most incredible wins during my entire Northwestern fandom. What a hell of a job by CCC and staff, and of course the guys. Nick M…what can you even say?

Also, in the trajectory of the season, this one is just a monster W. It’s our 20th overall and it guarantees a winning B1G record. I’m not quite sure this one guarantees us the tourney, but it just might have. And it takes soooo much pressure off the last three games. I’d say one more W (or more obviously) definitely sends us dancing.

Let’s pack WR against Iowa and Minny and give these guys the support they’ve more than earned!
 
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I keep looking at the box score trying to figure it out. Barnhizer didn't seem that involved, but he had a double-double. Boo shot poorly, but he had five assists. Nicholson didn't do much aside from his awesome dunk.

Obviously Martinelli (and to a lesser - but still extremely valuable - extent, Blake Smith) made up for some of our deficiencies, but the real thing was the free throws.

It's not just that NU drew fouls like it never has before, it's that they converted when they had the chance - 28 for 31 is amazing for any team. I'm not sure what the NU record is for free throws made in one game, but 28 has to be the most I've seen from them in quite a while.

I just love that this team can win in all sorts of ways, but I don't think I had 41% of our points coming from the line in a win on my bingo card.
 
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Admittedly, I had my doubts about NU achieving long-term success in basketball two years ago. While I always recognized CCC as a good coach, I felt that the lack of a strong historical program, academic challenges, actual coursework expectations, and the overall basketball atmosphere posed significant challenges. However, within this time frame, we have witnessed the establishment of a new legacy under CCC's leadership. The basketball atmosphere has transformed into one that rivals any in the nation. Though obstacles still remain for NU, CCC and his team deserve credit for surpassing them.

Initially, I feared that NU would part ways with CCC and that he would find success elsewhere. From the beginning, CCC has proven himself as a good coach, continuously improving along the way. I am not convinced that his in-game coaching abilities or X's and O's strategies have drastically changed. Rather, his greatest progression has been in learning how build a strong team culture and effectively managing egos within the program. The 2017 team is a perfect example of lost culture and mismanaging egos. The progression is evident in his strategic selection of assistant coaches. In the past, there was a good recruiter and questionable team culture influence brought to the coaching staff that helped secure a solid recruit for NU.

If you had told me we’d be having back to back tournament trips two years ago, I would have thought you were insane.
 
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NJcatsfan said:
… that in addition to Ty, Borg would also be out

And Boo & Brooks would score 26 total points

And NU would shoot 15% from beyond the arc

And NU would lose the turnover battle

And NU would get hammered on the offensive glass

And the bench would score 5 total points

…all on the road…

I’d have bet a lot of money this would be an NU loss, and maybe by a lot.

And yet, it was a win. And almost a comfortable one. One of the most incredible wins during my entire Northwestern fandom. What a hell of a job by CCC and staff, and of course the guys. Nick M…what can you even say?

Also, in the trajectory of the season, this one is just a monster W. It’s our 20th overall and it guarantees a winning B1G record. I’m not quite sure this one guarantees us the tourney, but it just might have. And it takes soooo much pressure off the last three games. I’d say one more W (or more obviously) definitely sends us dancing.

Let’s pack WR against Iowa and Minny and give these guys the support they’ve more than earned!
Click to expand...
It defies all logic, even Turk’s
 
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SmellyCat said:
I keep looking at the box score trying to figure it out. Barnhizer didn't seem that involved, but he had a double-double. Boo shot poorly, but he had five assists. Nicholson didn't do much aside from his awesome dunk.

Obviously Martinelli (and to a lesser - but still extremely value - extent, Blake Smith) made up for some of our deficiencies, but the real thing was the free throws.

It's not just that NU drew fouls like it never has before, it's that they converted when they had the chance - 28 for 31 is amazing for any team. I'm not sure what the NU record is for free throws made in one game, but 28 has to be the most I've seen from them in quite a while.

I just love that this team can win in all sorts of ways, but I don't think I had 41% of our points coming from the line in a win on my bingo card.
Click to expand...
Yes, FT conversions was the difference. It was GREAT seeing the guys hitting *clutch* ones all night — including Brooks, who’s struggled a little in that department.
 
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SmellyCat said:
I keep looking at the box score trying to figure it out. Barnhizer didn't seem that involved, but he had a double-double. Boo shot poorly, but he had five assists. Nicholson didn't do much aside from his awesome dunk.

Obviously Martinelli (and to a lesser - but still extremely valuable - extent, Blake Smith) made up for some of our deficiencies, but the real thing was the free throws.

It's not just that NU drew fouls like it never has before, it's that they converted when they had the chance - 28 for 31 is amazing for any team. I'm not sure what the NU record is for free throws made in one game, but 28 has to be the most I've seen from them in quite a while.

I just love that this team can win in all sorts of ways, but I don't think I had 41% of our points coming from the line in a win on my bingo card.
Click to expand...
I think the officiating dictated a lot of this. Maryland came out and wanted to play absurdly physical Big Ten football on hardwood and the Big Ten refs uncharacteristically actually called fouls that most other conference routinely actually calls. They let the guys play, but everybody was being so physical and they didn’t just swallow their whistles and let everything go.
 
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The first several minutes of the game there weren't many fouls called, but the offenses were so bad I think the refs started calling fouls as an act of mercy. Then they never stopped.
 
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It’s culture and belief and leadership. Literally nobody on the court yesterday for NU was wanted by any other B1G programs. They’re coaches’ sons and hoops junkies and baby brothers just hoping to get on the court.

They’ve won shootouts. They’ve won on the o-glass. They’ve won with turnovers and ball security. And now they’ve won by getting to the line.

They’ve won with their 7-footer seeing nothing open, and then executing the slowest and most beautiful dribble drive for a baseline dunk.

It’s huge for Smith and Mullins and Clayton to simply be ready for their moment. That’s from playing talented guys (and coaches) in practice, and from trusting that the work will pay off.

Like that other thread, CCC is a good coach. The culture here is strong.
 
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SmellyCat said:
I could watch this over and over. Not quite as satisfying as watching Gaziano's sack for a safety, but close.
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You could see in Matt's body language the moment he realized "oh shit, Reese is totally caught up in the wash and can't fight the screen with four fouls LETS GOOOOO"
 
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ThatkidfromHolland said:
Admittedly, I had my doubts about NU achieving long-term success in basketball two years ago. While I always recognized CCC as a good coach, I felt that the lack of a strong historical program, academic challenges, actual coursework expectations, and the overall basketball atmosphere posed significant challenges. However, within this time frame, we have witnessed the establishment of a new legacy under CCC's leadership. The basketball atmosphere has transformed into one that rivals any in the nation. Though obstacles still remain for NU, CCC and his team deserve credit for surpassing them.

Initially, I feared that NU would part ways with CCC and that he would find success elsewhere. From the beginning, CCC has proven himself as a good coach, continuously improving along the way. I am not convinced that his in-game coaching abilities or X's and O's strategies have drastically changed. Rather, his greatest progression has been in learning how build a strong team culture and effectively managing egos within the program. The 2017 team is a perfect example of lost culture and mismanaging egos. The progression is evident in his strategic selection of assistant coaches. In the past, there was a good recruiter and questionable team culture influence brought to the coaching staff that helped secure a solid recruit for NU.

If you had told me we’d be having back to back tournament trips two years ago, I would have thought you were insane.
Click to expand...
Exactly. The culture is the difference. A lot of addition by subtraction.
 
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Purple Pile Driver said:
All you need to look at in box score is Maryland’s FG %.
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I do think we have to acknowledge what a horrible shooting night Maryland had, especially from 3 PT range. Some of that was our defense, but they also missed a number of wide open shots.
 
TheC said:
I do think we have to acknowledge what a horrible shooting night Maryland had, especially from 3 PT range. Some of that was our defense, but they also missed a number of wide open shots.
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The Terps were 2-22 from 3, and a lot of those were open looks. That game was like a class in Greek Mythology: One basketball god punishes the Cats by inflicting an ankle injury, and another, angry at the first, put a lid on Maryland’s basket.
 
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AdamOnFirst said:
You could see in Matt's body language the moment he realized "oh shit, Reese is totally caught up in the wash and can't fight the screen with four fouls LETS GOOOOO"
Click to expand...
Anyone know where a video of this play is? Saw it live on tv, but haven’t seen it posted anywhere.
 
That was great stuff.

It looks like a lot of Nick's hooks start a little below his shoulder and out of the defender's sight.
 
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eastbaycat99 said:
The Terps were 2-22 from 3, and a lot of those were open looks. That game was like a class in Greek Mythology: One basketball god punishes the Cats by inflicting an ankle injury, and another, angry at the first, put a lid on Maryland’s basket.
Click to expand...
Yeah, their shooting numbers were putrid, but it wasn't really that out of line with their past performance. The prior 3 games at home they shot 10-53 from deep, 18.9%. In 9 conference home games they've shot better than 35% from 3 exactly twice, against MSU and Nebraska. In the other 7 games, they've shot 20.3%. They just suck at shooting.
 
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CappyNU said:
Yeah, their shooting numbers were putrid, but it wasn't really that out of line with their past performance. The prior 3 games at home they shot 10-53 from deep, 18.9%. In 9 conference home games they've shot better than 35% from 3 exactly twice, against MSU and Nebraska. In the other 7 games, they've shot 20.3%. They just suck at shooting.
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Their % was 8.333, less than half of that 10-53 pace. That was epically bad shooting, even for a bad shooting team.
 
eastbaycat99 said:
Their % was 8.333, less than half of that 10-53 pace. That was epically bad shooting, even for a bad shooting team.
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And they couldn't figure out how to overcome it even though their shooting has been bad all year. Meanwhile we have an almost equally bad shooting night from 3, and we were able to overcome it despite depending on the 3 for most of the season. I think that points to Collins out-coaching Willard.
 
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43 personal fouls led to 55 free throws. If MD made all of theirs, game goes to overtime.

Refs whistling everyone for everything is what I'm saying.
 
Talking about shooting percentages

NU was not any better at 2 for 13. If they had shot decently it would’ve been a landslide.
 
PZAZ said:
Talking about shooting percentages

NU was not any better at 2 for 13. If they had shot decently it would’ve been a landslide.
Click to expand...

Exactly...all this talk about how Maryland shot so poorly...well what if NU hadn't shot way worse than usual? And didn't Maryland shoot over 50% in the second half? Yes, they missed a zillion threes, but NU shooting 15% from long range is horrible as well.
 
CappyNU said:
Yeah, their shooting numbers were putrid, but it wasn't really that out of line with their past performance. The prior 3 games at home they shot 10-53 from deep, 18.9%. In 9 conference home games they've shot better than 35% from 3 exactly twice, against MSU and Nebraska. In the other 7 games, they've shot 20.3%. They just suck at shooting.
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So, in fairness to us, giving them open 3's was likely part of our strategy as we emphasized more packing the lane and stopping Young's drives.
 
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SimpsonElmwood said:
Exactly! That was the plan. I could not believe MD so willingly followed the script.
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To an extent, basketball is a game of taking what is given. Somebody like Young is often able to use his truly incredibly cutting and speed to get to the basket and create sometimes even when NU is focused on stopping that, but if the defense is going to pack the lane and play hard and smart doing so, the counter is to make those open 3s.

Maryland is a tough and athletic team with a really truly phenomenal driving point guard, so the fact that they’re just pathetic at shooting outside says it all about their poor season. NU let them knock themselves out from outside and it worked.
 
AdamOnFirst said:
To an extent, basketball is a game of taking what is given. Somebody like Young is often able to use his truly incredibly cutting and speed to get to the basket and create sometimes even when NU is focused on stopping that, but if the defense is going to pack the lane and play hard and smart doing so, the counter is to make those open 3s.

Maryland is a tough and athletic team with a really truly phenomenal driving point guard, so the fact that they’re just pathetic at shooting outside says it all about their poor season. NU let them knock themselves out from outside and it worked.
Click to expand...
You could see it the few times NU took poor shots in the second half, which allowed Young to get up to ludicrous speed as he barreled downcourt easily scoring multiple times. Their half-court offense is atrociously bad though.
 
Young just seems to be shot out of a cannon sometimes. Any time we can make him just take a boring jump shot from somewhere feels like a win, and any time we can make someone ELSE take a boring jump shot is an even bigger win.

Still, just one more made three by Maryland somewhere along the way completely changes how the last several minutes went.
 
NJcatsfan said:
… that in addition to Ty, Borg would also be out

And Boo & Brooks would score 26 total points

And NU would shoot 15% from beyond the arc

And NU would lose the turnover battle

And NU would get hammered on the offensive glass

And the bench would score 5 total points

…all on the road…

I’d have bet a lot of money this would be an NU loss, and maybe by a lot.

And yet, it was a win. And almost a comfortable one. One of the most incredible wins during my entire Northwestern fandom. What a hell of a job by CCC and staff, and of course the guys. Nick M…what can you even say?

Also, in the trajectory of the season, this one is just a monster W. It’s our 20th overall and it guarantees a winning B1G record. I’m not quite sure this one guarantees us the tourney, but it just might have. And it takes soooo much pressure off the last three games. I’d say one more W (or more obviously) definitely sends us dancing.

Let’s pack WR against Iowa and Minny and give these guys the support they’ve more than earned!
Click to expand...
Fortunately MDs O is near the bottom of the conference while their D is at the top
 
SmellyCat said:
Young just seems to be shot out of a cannon sometimes. Any time we can make him just take a boring jump shot from somewhere feels like a win, and any time we can make someone ELSE take a boring jump shot is an even bigger win.

Still, just one more made three by Maryland somewhere along the way completely changes how the last several minutes went.
Click to expand...
In the few games I've watched Maryland, I feel like Young is a complete ball hog and the offense actually bogs down because of him. He is effective and gets his points, but it doesn't seem like a very well run offense.
 
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SmellyCat said:
Young just seems to be shot out of a cannon sometimes. Any time we can make him just take a boring jump shot from somewhere feels like a win, and any time we can make someone ELSE take a boring jump shot is an even bigger win.

Still, just one more made three by Maryland somewhere along the way completely changes how the last several minutes went.
Click to expand...
He did an awful lot of his damage from FT line. As far as one more 3 by MD, sure though I don't think the are that good from 3 while we supposedly are and only had two so another 3 or so from us and it becomes a blowout
 
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