maryland thoughts

[haywood jahblowme]

from the stupid optimistic kool-aid drinker guy

- blowing the lead was crushing. need to have more/fight pride when a team makes a run. the NU guys seem to get very tight
- maryland popped NU from the free throw line. 26 points there is tough. there is definitely a trend in the games for NU to be down big in foul discrepancy in 2nd half. some legit but some are very bad calls - calls that NU rarely gets in their favor. NU actually won the battle on the glass but lost 15 points at the free throw line.
- i thought nance was better and more physical around the rim. that was good to see
- glad young was able to come back - that was a brutal fall and glad nothing major resulted including a concussion
- unfortunate that buie and beran were ghosts tonight 8 points from either could have changed the game
- i thought turner was pretty solid on cowan
- NU turned the ball over more than 10 times which led to some fast easy buckets.

- i chuckled to myself watching the game thinking about the board and what they would say if NU ran the maryland offense. dribble weave and shoot threes or let your NBA big man get lobs. this board would love it. 65 of their 77 points were threes and FT. guess it works with high level athletes and doesn't make you a bad coach

BUT

even though NU has blown leads like this and needs to learn how to win and not get tight, has there ever been a team at NU that throughout the season has put up multiple games where they have double digit leads? this alone for me is super promising - its easy to measure wins and losses - but the way this team has shown it is capable of playing is something very uncharacteristic of NU. no moral victories obviously. and the challenge for these guys, like most areas of life, is figuring out how to do it successfully and consistently for 40 minutes a game. but its promising to sees NU team capable of dominating games at times - which is something i haven't seen much of in my tenure as a fan

 

[go cats go]

even though NU has blown leads like this and needs to learn how to win and not get tight, has there ever been a team at NU that throughout the season has put up multiple games where they have double digit leads?

What? Of course there has! What are you talking about? Look, we held a nice lead for a while and we've been a little bit competitive here and there over the course of the season, but this is not a good Northwestern team.

 

[haywood jahblowme]

What? Of course there has! What are you talking about? Look, we held a nice lead for a while and we've been a little bit competitive here and there over the course of the season, but this is not a good Northwestern team.

got it - i have only been following the cats about 12 years but i don't remember seeing any of CBC teams or any of CCC teams have opportunities like this, especially in the B1G

but i am getting old and my memory is fleeting

 

[Sec.112]

How dare you try stay positive with something which you're at-least-minimally connected.

 

[Titanium999]

from the stupid optimistic kool-aid drinker guy

- blowing the lead was crushing. need to have more/fight pride when a team makes a run. the NU guys seem to get very tight
- maryland popped NU from the free throw line. 26 points there is tough. there is definitely a trend in the games for NU to be down big in foul discrepancy in 2nd half. some legit but some are very bad calls - calls that NU rarely gets in their favor. NU actually won the battle on the glass but lost 15 points at the free throw line.
- i thought nance was better and more physical around the rim. that was good to see
- glad young was able to come back - that was a brutal fall and glad nothing major resulted including a concussion
- unfortunate that buie and beran were ghosts tonight 8 points from either could have changed the game
- i thought turner was pretty solid on cowan
- NU turned the ball over more than 10 times which led to some fast easy buckets.

- i chuckled to myself watching the game thinking about the board and what they would say if NU ran the maryland offense. dribble weave and shoot threes or let your NBA big man get lobs. this board would love it. 65 of their 77 points were threes and FT. guess it works with high level athletes and doesn't make you a bad coach

BUT

even though NU has blown leads like this and needs to learn how to win and not get tight, has there ever been a team at NU that throughout the season has put up multiple games where they have double digit leads? this alone for me is super promising - its easy to measure wins and losses - but the way this team has shown it is capable of playing is something very uncharacteristic of NU. no moral victories obviously. and the challenge for these guys, like most areas of life, is figuring out how to do it successfully and consistently for 40 minutes a game. but its promising to sees NU team capable of dominating games at times - which is something i haven't seen much of in my tenure as a fan

We played great! Maryland looked like they had five Steph Curry's shooting in the second half! I'm proud of this team!

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

You forgot, Pat Spencer is NU’s MVP.

 

[go cats go]

How dare you try stay positive with something which you're at-least-minimally connected.

I'm not discouraging positivity. I was reacting to the never have we ever been so competitive hyperbole which mischaracterizes the present team and many years of Wildcats basketball past.

 

[haywood jahblowme]

I'm not discouraging positivity. I was reacting to the never have we ever been so competitive hyperbole which mischaracterizes the present team and many years of Wildcats basketball past.

what teams do you remember playing that well over big ten competition on multiple occasions. genuinely interested because i don't recall that. maybe ive forgotten them due to heartache.

 

[go cats go]

You forgot, Pat Spencer is NU’s MVP.

Indeed. That guy deserves a fan club. It's too bad that NU won't get much attention this season and that many fans are already focused on looking to future, which Spencer won't be a part of. He has been really special and continues to improve.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Spencer does not like to lose. He’s probably stewing like boiled brisket right now. I hope it rubs off on those young players.

 

[go cats go]

what teams do you remember playing that well over big ten competition on multiple occasions. genuinely interested because i don't recall that. maybe ive forgotten them due to heartache.

Honestly?... Holding double-digit leads only to lose Big Ten games has been pretty darn common occurrence since I started watching 'Cats basketball in 1991-92. Plus, we have had 13 teams since 2000 actually win 6 or more Big Ten games.

We have been competitive in a few games this season. I am looking at the silver lining and am excited about the future, but come on...

 

[willycat]

Honestly?... Holding double-digit leads only to lose Big Ten games has been pretty darn common occurrence since I started watching 'Cats basketball in 1991-92. Plus, we have had 13 teams since 2000 actually win 6 or more Big Ten games.

We have been competitive in a few games this season. I am looking at the silver lining and am excited about the future, but come on...

Cats beat the shit out OSU !!

 

[lunker35]

Honestly?... Holding double-digit leads only to lose Big Ten games has been pretty darn common occurrence since I started watching 'Cats basketball in 1991-92. Plus, we have had 13 teams since 2000 actually win 6 or more Big Ten games.

We have been competitive in a few games this season. I am looking at the silver lining and am excited about the future, but come on...

I guess we’ve watched different programs then. I’ve watched religiously since 2002ish and while we did win games we got blown out quite often. Haywood is right that this team has shown some amazing flashes. Just can’t seem to put it all together but rarely did we have multiple B1G games where we had double digit leads then lost.

 

[Gladeskat]

I guess we’ve watched different programs then. I’ve watched religiously since 2002ish and while we did win games we got blown out quite often. Haywood is right that this team has shown some amazing flashes. Just can’t seem to put it all together but rarely did we have multiple B1G games where we had double digit leads then lost.

And against the top teams in the league as well. We need for Buie to recover and become that "Chauncy Billups-type" point guard down the stretch like McIntosh was dishing out assists, drawing fouls, and burying teams at the line. Instead, we get ticky-tack fouls, put our opponents in the doubleB, and get buried by a team making 90% of their FTs.

 

[hoosboot]

from the stupid optimistic kool-aid drinker guy

- blowing the lead was crushing. need to have more/fight pride when a team makes a run. the NU guys seem to get very tight
- maryland popped NU from the free throw line. 26 points there is tough. there is definitely a trend in the games for NU to be down big in foul discrepancy in 2nd half. some legit but some are very bad calls - calls that NU rarely gets in their favor. NU actually won the battle on the glass but lost 15 points at the free throw line.
- i thought nance was better and more physical around the rim. that was good to see
- glad young was able to come back - that was a brutal fall and glad nothing major resulted including a concussion
- unfortunate that buie and beran were ghosts tonight 8 points from either could have changed the game
- i thought turner was pretty solid on cowan
- NU turned the ball over more than 10 times which led to some fast easy buckets.

- i chuckled to myself watching the game thinking about the board and what they would say if NU ran the maryland offense. dribble weave and shoot threes or let your NBA big man get lobs. this board would love it. 65 of their 77 points were threes and FT. guess it works with high level athletes and doesn't make you a bad coach

BUT

even though NU has blown leads like this and needs to learn how to win and not get tight, has there ever been a team at NU that throughout the season has put up multiple games where they have double digit leads? this alone for me is super promising - its easy to measure wins and losses - but the way this team has shown it is capable of playing is something very uncharacteristic of NU. no moral victories obviously. and the challenge for these guys, like most areas of life, is figuring out how to do it successfully and consistently for 40 minutes a game. but its promising to sees NU team capable of dominating games at times - which is something i haven't seen much of in my tenure as a fan

It's interesting because I likewise think it's silly to think that NU hasn't had multiple games in previous seasons with double digit leads. I checked two randomly. The first the NU archive didn't have game scores. The second was 2009-2010, where we won four big ten games by more than ten points (Iowa, Michigan, and Indiana twice) and ten games overall (including double digit victories over Notre Dame and NC State). So, it's no big credit to where we are to say that we have had multiple games of double digit leads.

That said, I think the tightness when things got tough for a young team is to be expected and actually a positive in the long run (as long as they learn to get past it). It means they care and, when they care, they work hard and get better. It would be easy for these guys to be phoning it in. And when shots are falling, you look loose even when you're phoning it in. The fact that they were tight just means they want it...now they just need to learn how to get it.

There's lots of promise here and these guys just have to learn how to get over the hump, how to have an identity to fall back upon, and how to win. CCC has already shown the ability to teach that to a past group of Wildcats and that's his biggest challenge here. He has to keep molding these guys into a group where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and knows how to win from experience. Getting those first few breakthroughs are the big thing and what this season needs to be about.

But, let's not sully their efforts with low praise about double digit leads.

 

[TheC]

Somebody made a good point in the game thread last night about comparing Miller Kopp's 3-point shooting stats in the first half versus the second. It seems he hits a wall around the 10 minute mark of the 2nd half. Likewise, Nance disappeared in the second half - though some of that may have been he kept getting whistled for a foul every time he looked at anyone. Spencer goes on these runs in the first and early second halves where he looks to take over the game, but then he too seems to hit a wall with about 6 minutes left. I noted last night that the player rotation that seemed to be working so well in the first half really disappeared in the second. So, not sure if its conditioning, coaching decisions, or just the dreaded lack of depth we always suffer, but this team loses leads late because they don't seem to have the energy to finish.

 

[GatoLouco]

- blowing the lead was crushing. need to have more/fight pride when a team makes a run. the NU guys seem to get very tight

- i chuckled to myself watching the game thinking about the board and what they would say if NU ran the maryland offense. dribble weave and shoot threes or let your NBA big man get lobs. this board would love it. 65 of their 77 points were threes and FT. guess it works with high level athletes and doesn't make you a bad coach

Agreed with most of what you said. But wanted to throw in a couple of thoughts about the above.

I was happy, against IL, that every time they seemed on the verge of opening the lead, we responded with poise and maturity. Yesterday, we could not do the same against adversity. The big difference is that staying composed when trailing is a lot less pressure than it is when leading against a team getting hot. You're behind, nothing to lose. You're ahead, pressure is on to not blow it.

It's a part of growing up for young players. But it also makes me uneasy, as our last two seasons were full of games where we choked, big time, and our team wasn't inexperienced. Pressure is a part of the game. And we do not have more pressure than the players at Indiana with theirlarger than life expectations for their program. Our problem of closing out games is real and I surely hope it goes away sooner rather than later.

The Maryland offense... I can't see last night's second half as a question of types of offense. Regardless of type of offense, if there's a good 3 point shot to be taken, you take it. And they did, and there were a lot of them. A lot of clean looks. More in the 2nd half, but they started, somewhat, at the 8 min mark of the first half. The clean looks started being there. Difference to the 2nd half was that in the 1st, they hit a couple, and went cold again.

 

[Vassar69]

Agreed with most of what you said. But wanted to throw in a couple of thoughts about the above.

I was happy, against IL, that every time they seemed on the verge of opening the lead, we responded with poise and maturity. Yesterday, we could not do the same against adversity. The big difference is that staying composed when trailing is a lot less pressure than it is when leading against a team getting hot. You're behind, nothing to lose. You're ahead, pressure is on to not blow it.

It's a part of growing up for young players. But it also makes me uneasy, as our last two seasons were full of games where we choked, big time, and our team wasn't inexperienced. Pressure is a part of the game. And we do not have more pressure than the players at Indiana with theirlarger than life expectations for their program. Our problem of closing out games is real and I surely hope it goes away sooner rather than later.

The Maryland offense... I can't see last night's second half as a question of types of offense. Regardless of type of offense, if there's a good 3 point shot to be taken, you take it. And they did, and there were a lot of them. A lot of clean looks. More in the 2nd half, but they started, somewhat, at the 8 min mark of the first half. The clean looks started being there. Difference to the 2nd half was that in the 1st, they hit a couple, and went cold again.

You nailed it. Typical progression:
Step 1: lose small, compete.
Step 2: win small, compete but split close games
Step 3: win big, win consistent, reliable closers

NU has definitely arrived at Step 1. Making the jump to Step 2 is the hardest part, and it’s not necessarily a given that it happens (or doesn’t). Time will tell, but it’s there for the taking next year.

 

[Medill90]

Honestly?... Holding double-digit leads only to lose Big Ten games has been pretty darn common occurrence since I started watching 'Cats basketball in 1991-92. Plus, we have had 13 teams since 2000 actually win 6 or more Big Ten games.

We have been competitive in a few games this season. I am looking at the silver lining and am excited about the future, but come on...

In other years NU has won more conference games and been less competitive across their conference schedule.

I can't remember another NU team playing everyone this close. That's over 40 years. (I was out of the country a lot in the 90's)

Still a lot of season left.

I'm sure a data hound will correct me.

 

[GatoLouco]

Not denying we have played more competitive games than I was expecting, but I don't think every game was as competitive as some might think.

We were not that close in the games against Purdue, Minnesota and Iowa. And against Michigan State we got a fuzzy feeling because of the Buie heroics and the late run.

 

[haywood jahblowme]

Agreed with most of what you said. But wanted to throw in a couple of thoughts about the above.

I was happy, against IL, that every time they seemed on the verge of opening the lead, we responded with poise and maturity. Yesterday, we could not do the same against adversity. The big difference is that staying composed when trailing is a lot less pressure than it is when leading against a team getting hot. You're behind, nothing to lose. You're ahead, pressure is on to not blow it.

It's a part of growing up for young players. But it also makes me uneasy, as our last two seasons were full of games where we choked, big time, and our team wasn't inexperienced. Pressure is a part of the game. And we do not have more pressure than the players at Indiana with theirlarger than life expectations for their program. Our problem of closing out games is real and I surely hope it goes away sooner rather than later.

The Maryland offense... I can't see last night's second half as a question of types of offense. Regardless of type of offense, if there's a good 3 point shot to be taken, you take it. And they did, and there were a lot of them. A lot of clean looks. More in the 2nd half, but they started, somewhat, at the 8 min mark of the first half. The clean looks started being there. Difference to the 2nd half was that in the 1st, they hit a couple, and went cold again.

i actutally agree with you on the open 3s. i have argued over the course of a few years, that while some say CCC has a bad offense, i argue that NU consistently gets wide open looks from three - which to me is a sign of a good offense. we actually made a higher percentage of 3s yesterday (44% to 36%) - but they doubled us up on volume 13/33 to 7/16

 

[JournCat]

You nailed it. Typical progression:
Step 1: lose small, compete.
Step 2: win small, compete but split close games
Step 3: win big, win consistent, reliable closers

NU has definitely arrived at Step 1. Making the jump to Step 2 is the hardest part, and it’s not necessarily a given that it happens (or doesn’t). Time will tell, but it’s there for the taking next year.

We could hand the ball in 2016-17 to McIntosh down the stretch and be fairly confident. He carried us through at least three huge games: Wake Forest, @Wisconsin, and of course Vanderbilt after they charged back from 15 down. I also remember he didn't do well in a bunch of other close games before his junior year, often in his home state of Indiana. So it takes time to develop that mental and physical toughness. I think Buie can ultimately end up being that guy and was just extremely rusty last night. Others have to get stronger as well.

I always try to listen to Brian James' halftime interviews on WGN because he tells you what he's really thinking and sounds as frustrated as many of us are. (He had a great rant during the Purdue game about Evan Boudreaux hitting turnaround jumpers on us like he was back at Lake Forest.) Last night, he said something about whatever happens in the second half, we played a great first half and were trying really hard on defense. I thought then that he knew what was probably coming ...

 

[go cats go]

In other years NU has won more conference games and been less competitive across their conference schedule.

I can't remember another NU team playing everyone this close. That's over 40 years. (I was out of the country a lot in the 90's)

Still a lot of season left.

I'm sure a data hound will correct me.

Data hound correction below:

2019-20 – 8 B1G games: 1 win, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.500 wins or close)

2018-19 – 21 B1G games: 4 wins, 7 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.524 wins or close)

2017-18 – 19 B1G games: 6 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.421 wins or close)

2016-17 – 21 B1G games: 12 wins, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.714 wins or close)

2015-16 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.526 wins or close)

2014-15 – 19 B1G games: 6 wins, 6 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.632 wins or close)

2013-14 – 20 B1G games: 7 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.450 wins or close)

2012-13 – 19 B1G games: 4 wins, 0 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.211 wins or close)

2011-12 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 7 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.789 wins or close)

2010-11 – 20 B1G games: 8 wins, 4 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.600 wins or close)

2009-10 – 20 B1G games: 8 wins, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.550 wins or close)

2008-09 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 6 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.737 wins or close)

 

[ricko654321]

from the stupid optimistic kool-aid drinker guy

- blowing the lead was crushing. need to have more/fight pride when a team makes a run. the NU guys seem to get very tight
- maryland popped NU from the free throw line. 26 points there is tough. there is definitely a trend in the games for NU to be down big in foul discrepancy in 2nd half. some legit but some are very bad calls - calls that NU rarely gets in their favor. NU actually won the battle on the glass but lost 15 points at the free throw line.
- i thought nance was better and more physical around the rim. that was good to see
- glad young was able to come back - that was a brutal fall and glad nothing major resulted including a concussion
- unfortunate that buie and beran were ghosts tonight 8 points from either could have changed the game
- i thought turner was pretty solid on cowan
- NU turned the ball over more than 10 times which led to some fast easy buckets.

- i chuckled to myself watching the game thinking about the board and what they would say if NU ran the maryland offense. dribble weave and shoot threes or let your NBA big man get lobs. this board would love it. 65 of their 77 points were threes and FT. guess it works with high level athletes and doesn't make you a bad coach

BUT

even though NU has blown leads like this and needs to learn how to win and not get tight, has there ever been a team at NU that throughout the season has put up multiple games where they have double digit leads? this alone for me is super promising - its easy to measure wins and losses - but the way this team has shown it is capable of playing is something very uncharacteristic of NU. no moral victories obviously. and the challenge for these guys, like most areas of life, is figuring out how to do it successfully and consistently for 40 minutes a game. but its promising to sees NU team capable of dominating games at times - which is something i haven't seen much of in my tenure as a fan

This is a good post, agree with most all of what you said. Nance was better. Turner Spencer Kopp and Young played fairly well. Beran disappeared. Hard to expect much from Buie in his first game back but obviously he didn’t play well. Turnovers in 2H were bad.

However, anytime someone says “no moral victories” you can be 100% sure they are about to claim a moral victory haha

 

[haywood jahblowme]

Data hound correction below:

2019-20 – 8 B1G games: 1 win, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.500 wins or close)

2018-19 – 21 B1G games: 4 wins, 7 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.524 wins or close)

2017-18 – 19 B1G games: 6 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.421 wins or close)

2016-17 – 21 B1G games: 12 wins, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.714 wins or close)

2015-16 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.526 wins or close)

2014-15 – 19 B1G games: 6 wins, 6 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.632 wins or close)

2013-14 – 20 B1G games: 7 wins, 2 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.450 wins or close)

2012-13 – 19 B1G games: 4 wins, 0 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.211 wins or close)

2011-12 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 7 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.789 wins or close)

2010-11 – 20 B1G games: 8 wins, 4 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.600 wins or close)

2009-10 – 20 B1G games: 8 wins, 3 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.550 wins or close)

2008-09 – 19 B1G games: 8 wins, 6 games lost in OT or by < 5 pts (.737 wins or close)

anything in the data showing double digit leads? im interested in seeing that.

also remember some of those early CCC games where tre demps seemingly single handily won a few of them

 

[CappyNU]

I'll start with a quick post using Torvik data and then dive deeper with KenPom.

Torvik has a Game Score stat that goes from 0-100 and attempts to measure how well a team played in a game regardless of end result, that seems to be based on average score margin over the course of a game and quality of opponent. For example, we lost to Radford and MD both by 11 points, but the Radford game score was 7 while last night's was 81.

Number of Game Scores > 75 in loss by season (conf games):
19-20: 3 of 7 so far (@IU, @Illinois, MD)
18-19: 4 of 17 (@IU, Michigan, @Iowa[screw you Bohanon], Wisconsin)
17-18: 4 of 13 (@Purdue, @Michigan, MSU[the horror...], PSU[BTT])
16-17: 3 of 9 (Minny, @IU, Purdue)
15-16: 2 of 11 (@MD, @Michigan)
14-15: 4 of 13 (@MSU, @Michigan, OSU, @MD)
13-14: 0 of 13
----------------------------
12-13: 2 of 15 (@OSU, @MSU)
11-12: 5 of 11 (@Michigan, Purdue, @Purdue, @IU, OSU)
10-11: 4 of 12 (@Purdue, @MSU, OSU, OSU[BTT])
09-10: 6 of 12 (@Illinois, Wisconsin, @Minny, @MSU, @Wisconsin, Purdue[BTT])
08-09: 3 of 11 (Purdue, Illinois, @OSU)
07-08: 2 of 18 (@Wisconsin, IU)

There are some all-time comebacks on this list, I can dive into the KenPom data to see how many of these we had double-digit leads, but I guess as a percentage of total losses this year's team is up there with the Carmody NIT teams for playing well in games we eventually lost?

 

[CappyNU]

Conference games with double digit leads by season and W-L record:
19-20: 1-2 (Neb/@IU, MD)
18-19: 3-1 (Rut, IU, OSU/@Iowa)
17-18: 3-3 (Minny, @Wisconsin, Michigan/@Rut, MSU, MD)
16-17: 10-1 (@PSU, @Neb, @Rut, Iowa, Neb, IU, @Wisconsin, Michigan, Rut[BTT], MD[BTT]/@IU)
15-16: 5-2 (@Minny, Minny, Rut, @PSU, Neb/@OSU, @Michigan)
14-15: 4-2 (Iowa, @Minny, PSU, IU/OSU, @MD)
13-14: 4-0 (Illinois, @Wisconsin, @Minny, @Purdue/)
-------------
12-13: 3-0 (@PSU, @Illinois, Purdue/)
11-12: 6-2 (PSU, MSU, Neb, Iowa, Minny, @Iowa/Illinois, @Michigan)
10-11: 8-0 (IU, @Iowa, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, @IU, Minny, Minny[BTT]/)
09-10: 7-2 (@Michigan, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan, IU, Iowa, IU[BTT]/@Illinois, Purdue[BTT])
08-09: 3-3 (Minny, IU, @IU/@PSU, Purdue, Illinois)

 

[go cats go]

anything in the data showing double digit leads? im interested in seeing that.

also remember some of those early CCC games where tre demps seemingly single handily won a few of them

I don't know an easy way to get this data without looking through all the individual game logs... Nevertheless, if it will further satisfy the point that past 'Cats teams were as competitive or more competitive than the current group (I can't believe that this even has to be argued...), I looked for significant 2nd half leads during a good season (2011-12), a bad season (2017-18) and this season (2019-20):

In the B1G in 2011-12 (good season)*:
NU was up 13 in the 2nd half against PSU on 1/1/12 (won by 12)
NU was up 8 in the 2nd half against IL on 1/4/12 (won by 1)
NU was up 12 in the 2nd half against MSU on 1/14/12 (won by 7)
NU was up 15 in the 2nd half against Neb on 2/2/12 (won by 10)
NU was up 14 in the 2nd half against IL on 2/5/12 (won by 14)
NU was up 21 in the 2nd half against Iowa on 2/9/12 (won by 21)
NU was up 14 in the 2nd half against Minn on 2/18/12 (won by 11)
NU was up 7 in the 2nd half against Michigan on 2/21/12 (lost by 12)
NU was up by 11 in the 2nd half against Iowa on 3/3/12 (won by 4)
*NU had a second half lead in 13 of 19 B1G games

In the B1G in 2017-18 (bad season)**:
NU was up 7 in the second half against Neb on 1/2/18 (lost by 15)
NU was up by 9 in the second half against PSU on 1/20/18 (won by 9)
NU was up 8 in the second half against Minn on 1/23 (won by 8)
NU was up 11 in the second half against Wis on 2/1/18 (won by 8)
NU was up 10 in the second half against Michigan on 2/6 (won by 9)
NU was up 21 in the second half against MSU on 2/17/2018 (lost by 5)
NU was up 11 in the second half against Maryland on 2/19/18 (lost by 7)
**NU had a second half lead in 13 of 19 B1G games

In the B1G in 2019-20 (this season) through 8 games***
NU was up 10 in the second half against Indiana on 1/8/20 (lost by 4)
NU was up 16 in the second half against Neb on 1/11/20 (won by 5)
NU was up 14 in the second half against Maryland on 1/21/20 (lost by 11)
***NU had a second half lead in 3 of 8 B1G games.

So, there you have it. Having a few decent leads in B1G play is not all that unusual.

I like this year's team. I like your positivity and your attempts to find a silver lining. However, I hope you can finally acknowledge that a few moments of competitiveness this season is not some kind of huge anomaly for the program. This group's best days are ahead of it--when it learns to win games.

 

[haywood jahblowme]

I don't know an easy way to get this data without looking through all the individual game logs... Nevertheless, if it will further satisfy the point that past 'Cats teams were as competitive or more competitive than the current group (I can't believe that this even has to be argued...), I looked for significant 2nd half leads during a good season (2011-12), a bad season (2017-18) and this season (2019-20):

In the B1G in 2011-12 (good season)*:
NU was up 13 in the 2nd half against PSU on 1/1/12 (won by 12)
NU was up 8 in the 2nd half against IL on 1/4/12 (won by 1)
NU was up 12 in the 2nd half against MSU on 1/14/12 (won by 7)
NU was up 15 in the 2nd half against Neb on 2/2/12 (won by 10)
NU was up 14 in the 2nd half against IL on 2/5/12 (won by 14)
NU was up 21 in the 2nd half against Iowa on 2/9/12 (won by 21)
NU was up 14 in the 2nd half against Minn on 2/18/12 (won by 11)
NU was up 7 in the 2nd half against Michigan on 2/21/12 (lost by 12)
NU was up by 11 in the 2nd half against Iowa on 3/3/12 (won by 4)
*NU had a second half lead in 13 of 19 B1G games

In the B1G in 2017-18 (bad season)**:
NU was up 7 in the second half against Neb on 1/2/18 (lost by 15)
NU was up by 9 in the second half against PSU on 1/20/18 (won by 9)
NU was up 8 in the second half against Minn on 1/23 (won by 8)
NU was up 11 in the second half against Wis on 2/1/18 (won by 8)
NU was up 10 in the second half against Michigan on 2/6 (won by 9)
NU was up 21 in the second half against MSU on 2/17/2018 (lost by 5)
NU was up 11 in the second half against Maryland on 2/19/18 (lost by 7)
**NU had a second half lead in 13 of 19 B1G games

In the B1G in 2019-20 (this season) through 8 games***
NU was up 10 in the second half against Indiana on 1/8/20 (lost by 4)
NU was up 16 in the second half against Neb on 1/11/20 (won by 5)
NU was up 14 in the second half against Maryland on 1/21/20 (lost by 11)
***NU had a second half lead in 3 of 8 B1G games.

So, there you have it. Having a few decent leads in B1G play is not all that unusual.

thanks for the info. funny that 2017-2018 is considered "bad" - because i think that was one of the best rosters NU has had. but couldn't maintain the success of the year before.

how did you find this info? i would like to look up some other seasons
I like this year's team. I like your positivity and your attempts to find a silver lining. However, I hope you can finally acknowledge that a few moments of competitiveness this season is not some kind of huge anomaly for the program. This group's best days are ahead of it--when it learns to win games.

 

[go cats go]

thanks for the info. funny that 2017-2018 is considered "bad" - because i think that was one of the best rosters NU has had. but couldn't maintain the success of the year before.

how did you find this info? i would like to look up some other seasons.

Labeling 2017-18 as "bad" was in reference to my previous post, which attempted to quantify how competitive NU teams have been during your 12 years of fandom. The 2017-18 season had a .421 figure for wins or close losses vs. total B1G games--which is the second worst during those 12 seasons. (It was a disappointing season, but it wasn't really a "bad" team--especially when you consider that they held leads in the second half of 13 of our 19 B1G games. Plus, they still finished top 100 in kenpom.)
https://northwestern.forums.rivals.com/threads/maryland-thoughts.48931/#post-701978

I used kenpom.com to get the info on the specific seasons and games. (I have a subscription... I am not sure that the individual game data is available without a subscription.)

 

[hdhntr1]

I'm not discouraging positivity. I was reacting to the never have we ever been so competitive hyperbole which mischaracterizes the present team and many years of Wildcats basketball past.

We have had a number of games where we have had good to great first halves but have trouble maintaining it in second half. We seem to wear down and just don't have the legs in second half leading to fouls, missed shots etc. Score 40 in first half only to be held to 20 in second. I hope it is just that we are young and inexperienced and as we get stronger and better depth we will put it behind us