Notes from the boxscore

[SmellyCat]

Though there are no shortage of good candidates, game ball goes to Nicholson: 14 points, 16 rebounds, two blocks, two steals, one assist, and excellent defense most of the time.

Martinelli got a ton of rebounds early and finished with a 13/13 game. Shooting wasn't great, but he made a huge three.

Turnovers: 11 to 3

22 for 28 from the line. Yes, some of those six misses weren't at the best time, but 79% from the line (especially when you shoot 28) is fantastic. Indiana was 12-for-21.

Langborg had his best game as a Cat and was the steadying force throughout, especially with Boo and Barney on the bench and Berry recuperating: 26 points, six assists (including one that was maybe the best pass by Northwestern this year), and a perfect 8-for-8 from the line.

Unfortunately there was some bad: one point from the bench (hello Blake Smith!), 35% from the field overall. Bad games offensively by Boo (who still played pretty well in the second half I'd say) and Barnhizer (he's in a slump - he seems to miss Berry the most). Hunger hasn't really played well in a while, and Mullins came back to earth from Thursday. There is work to do, and the offense isn't nearly as good as it was with Berry, but...A WIN IS WIN. Winning on the road is tough in the Big 10, but NU has two of those skins now. Go Cats!

 

[DaCat]

Langborg kept us in the game with his 26 points which tied his career high, especially in the first half when both Boo and Barney sat for long stretches with early foul trouble. So Nicholson had his best game of the year and was a force, but I doubt we win this without Langborg.

 

[SmellyCat]

Definitely agree with you there. Of course we don't win without Nicholson either!

 

[hdhntr1]

Though there are no shortage of good candidates, game ball goes to Nicholson: 14 points, 16 rebounds, two blocks, two steals, one assist, and excellent defense most of the time.

Martinelli got a ton of rebounds early and finished with a 13/13 game. Shooting wasn't great, but he made a huge three.

Turnovers: 11 to 3

22 for 28 from the line. Yes, some of those six misses weren't at the best time, but 79% from the line (especially when you shoot 28) is fantastic. Indiana was 12-for-21.

Langborg had his best game as a Cat and was the steadying force throughout, especially with Boo and Barney on the bench and Berry recuperating: 26 points, six assists (including one that was maybe the best pass by Northwestern this year), and a perfect 8-for-8 from the line.

Unfortunately there was some bad: one point from the bench (hello Blake Smith!), 35% from the field overall. Bad games offensively by Boo (who still played pretty well in the second half I'd say) and Barnhizer (he's in a slump - he seems to miss Berry the most). Hunger hasn't really played well in a while, and Mullins came back to earth from Thursday. There is work to do, and the offense isn't nearly as good as it was with Berry, but...A WIN IS WIN. Winning on the road is tough in the Big 10, but NU has two of those skins now. Go Cats!

Mullins seemed fine. Did not really get any shots but D seemed descent

 

[FanatiCat]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

 

[1830sherman]

When we're in clock-killing mode, I'd like to see some semblance of an organized offense in the last, say, 10-15 seconds, instead of Boo just going 1x1+ and dribbling into traffic. The result is not good shots.

Also, pattern continues of missing free throws in the last few minutes. (Except Borg!) Yeah, guys are gassed.

 

[phatcat]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

My fault entirely. I turned on the game one second after we got our 63rd point, and the basketball gods laughed at me and put a lid on our basket. I turned it off when they got within 5. You're welcome

 

[CatManTrue]

Langborg kept us in the game with his 26 points which tied his career high, especially in the first half when both Boo and Barney sat for long stretches with early foul trouble. So Nicholson had his best game of the year and was a force, but I doubt we win this without Langborg.

The Obvious Police are calling and they want to let you know that we wouldn’t have won the game without both of those guys.

Co-MVPs in my book!

 

[MC_Cat]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

No walk off we were up 4 and won by 4 thanks to Barney's last and very clutch FT.

 

[No Chores]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

Not quite accurate - they wouldn't have walked off with a 3 and a free throw because we were up 4 at the time. The bad move was Langborg attempting to defend the 3, when he should have been 10 feet away from the shooter. But who cares, we won!

 

[freewillie07]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

1. Road environments are tough
2. This team is not deep, and they are tired

 

[ballerog711]

When the move the ball and cut, NU offense is very good. ISO, not so mucn

 

[hdhntr1]

What is it though about this team that seems to really struggle putting teams away? We were up 16 points with 6 minutes to go and ended up where we could have actually lost on the last shot as it was a contested 3 - if it went in and if we had contact by our defender with a foul called, they walk off with a free throw. Yikes.

I guess it’s just life on the road in the Big Ten this year. After the game they said across the B1G the road team is like 30-70. I get how it happened since I watched, and of course they probably wouldn’t have had a chance without the flagrant foul call giving them extra free throws AND an extra possession, but it seems like we shot very poorly and managed those possessions poorly down the stretch.

We had a 4 point lead

 

[hdhntr1]

Though there are no shortage of good candidates, game ball goes to Nicholson: 14 points, 16 rebounds, two blocks, two steals, one assist, and excellent defense most of the time.

Martinelli got a ton of rebounds early and finished with a 13/13 game. Shooting wasn't great, but he made a huge three.

Turnovers: 11 to 3

22 for 28 from the line. Yes, some of those six misses weren't at the best time, but 79% from the line (especially when you shoot 28) is fantastic. Indiana was 12-for-21.

Langborg had his best game as a Cat and was the steadying force throughout, especially with Boo and Barney on the bench and Berry recuperating: 26 points, six assists (including one that was maybe the best pass by Northwestern this year), and a perfect 8-for-8 from the line.

Unfortunately there was some bad: one point from the bench (hello Blake Smith!), 35% from the field overall. Bad games offensively by Boo (who still played pretty well in the second half I'd say) and Barnhizer (he's in a slump - he seems to miss Berry the most). Hunger hasn't really played well in a while, and Mullins came back to earth from Thursday. There is work to do, and the offense isn't nearly as good as it was with Berry, but...A WIN IS WIN. Winning on the road is tough in the Big 10, but NU has two of those skins now. Go Cats!

That said, the D seems better

 

[DaCat]

Post game interview…

 

[Sec.112]

I'm glad to see part of the "there's work to do list."

These guys are understabably struggling. I can't blame them. I love the fight. Not just today, but against Rutgers also. But that was a BAD Indiana team today, and not one of the Cats better performances - even short-handed.

There's several things I'm hoping some home cooking will help. If I had to pick a couple, I'd just hope the Buie teardrop and the Barnhizer turn-around-and-fade in the lane would start dropping more consistently like they were earlier in the season. This shot were hurting at Rutgers and IU.

It's been a tough week+, but I still have my fingers crossed for this group.

 

[NUCat320]

It is worth considering that NU beat an IU team that had just gotten a full week of rest. NU had one fewer rest day against Rutgers.

Michigan has lost 8 of 9 and is coming off of a dispiriting second-half after hanging with MSU in the first on Saturday night. They’re ripe for a real Wildcat beatdown and hopefully some major second-half minutes from Preston and Clayton (for blowout, not injury, reasons).

 

[Hkjb]

Mullins seemed fine. Did not really get any shots but D seemed descent

I agree - Mullins' defense was good. Doesn't always show up in stat sheet but significant in matching up when we were shorthanded.

 

[ricko654321]

I'm glad to see part of the "there's work to do list."

These guys are understabably struggling. I can't blame them. I love the fight. Not just today, but against Rutgers also. But that was a BAD Indiana team today, and not one of the Cats better performances - even short-handed.

There's several things I'm hoping some home cooking will help. If I had to pick a couple, I'd just hope the Buie teardrop and the Barnhizer turn-around-and-fade in the lane would start dropping more consistently like they were earlier in the season. This shot were hurting at Rutgers and IU.

It's been a tough week+, but I still have my fingers crossed for this group.

Agreed with all of this. Langborg and Nicholson played great and are the reason we won, but the team overall didn’t play that well. Execution on offense was shoddy, and didn’t shoot that well (Langborg the exception). We did do a good job of fighting for rebounds and winning that battle (the box score only shows an edge of 38-37 on rebounds, but we got 14 O rebounds out of 45 for 31%, while they only got 6 O rebounds out of 30 for 20% - it’s skewed bc we had a lot more missed shots). And our team defense in the stretch where Boo and eventually Barnhizer were out was impressive - we didn’t stay in front of everyone but did a very nice job of helping, scrambling, and recovering to prevent or at least limit the clean looks for Indiana which enabled us to take an 8 point lead into half. Langborg was carrying the offense.

I agree with Sec 112 though that this is not a very good Indiana team. Aside from the last few minutes when we inexplicably refused to cover the roll man off the high screen (maybe it was a no 3’s strategy?), they really struggled to run an effective offense and get decent looks, and when they did they didn’t make open shots at a very high rate. Part of that is our defense no doubt, but the FTs too. But it’s so hard to win on the road in the B1G, any W is a great W. They are 6-8 in conference so it’s not like they are a pushover. Onward and upward - let’s hope for a cleaner performance at home against Michigan, but honestly let’s just get a W any way we can. I’ll take an ugly 63-61 last second nail biter win just the same if we can get it.

Go Cats

 

[freewillie07]

Agreed with all of this. Langborg and Nicholson played great and are the reason we won, but the team overall didn’t play that well. Execution on offense was shoddy, and didn’t shoot that well (Langborg the exception). We did do a good job of fighting for rebounds and winning that battle (the box score only shows an edge of 38-37 on rebounds, but we got 14 O rebounds out of 45 for 31%, while they only got 6 O rebounds out of 30 for 20% - it’s skewed bc we had a lot more missed shots). And our team defense in the stretch where Boo and eventually Barnhizer were out was impressive - we didn’t stay in front of everyone but did a very nice job of helping, scrambling, and recovering to prevent or at least limit the clean looks for Indiana which enabled us to take an 8 point lead into half. Langborg was carrying the offense.

I agree with Sec 112 though that this is not a very good Indiana team. Aside from the last few minutes when we inexplicably refused to cover the roll man off the high screen (maybe it was a no 3’s strategy?), they really struggled to run an effective offense and get decent looks, and when they did they didn’t make open shots at a very high rate. Part of that is our defense no doubt, but the FTs too. But it’s so hard to win on the road in the B1G, any W is a great W. They are 6-8 in conference so it’s not like they are a pushover. Onward and upward - let’s hope for a cleaner performance at home against Michigan, but honestly let’s just get a W any way we can. I’ll take an ugly 63-61 last second nail biter win just the same if we can get it.

Go Cats

I would rather not play well and win on the road than play well and lose.

If Buie and Barnhizer can return to form in front of the home crowd and deliver a comfortable win against Michigan, that would be a real nice tailwind into a tough but winnable road game against Maryland, coming after NU’s longest stretch of rest in a while.

 

[loyolacat]

Mullins and Smith,,,no turnovers, each had a steal and an assist...I am guessing they did just what was needed.

 

[mickbula]

Is Michigan best player that dug fellow playing Thursday or is he still suspended for not playing school??? Anybody know??

 

[ballerog711]

Smith played well and I think he will get most of the minutes off the bench. He just looks to move the ball and does not try to shoot

The others will see. Mullins played well, but once he tried to drive to the basket and got his shot blocked, did not play the rest of game.

Hunger missed a 3 jn the first half and was subbed out. Preston came in committed a foul and was yanked. Hunger got yanked for missing and layup and then was given a second chance and committed 2 fouls.

Clayton is probably done, but if he plays should be when they are running motion, he is terrible in the iso game.

I know NU is going for the BIG10 double buy and this should have been fixed in the non conference, but players have a hard time being productive in that environment.

Concern is conferenc tournament and NCAA big dance, going to have to trust someone.

Looked what happened to Ohio St,yesterday.

Go Cats and let's complete this journey.

 

[Hungry Jack]

These young guards just have to keep playing and learning. You can be raw but still contribute on defense. I’m waiting for the light to go on for Hunger. He has a unique physical skill set but the basketball brain needs work.

 

[IMC Cat]

Is Michigan best player that dug fellow playing Thursday or is he still suspended for not playing school??? Anybody know??

Looking at recent Michigan box scores it appears that Dug's Suspended For All Road Games policy is still in place. He won't be joining his team in Evanston.

 

[GatoLouco]

Smith played well and I think he will get most of the minutes off the bench. He just looks to move the ball and does not try to shoot

The others will see. Mullins played well, but once he tried to drive to the basket and got his shot blocked, did not play the rest of game.

Hunger missed a 3 jn the first half and was subbed out. Preston came in committed a foul and was yanked. Hunger got yanked for missing and layup and then was given a second chance and committed 2 fouls.

Clayton is probably done, but if he plays should be when they are running motion, he is terrible in the iso game.

I know NU is going for the BIG10 double buy and this should have been fixed in the non conference, but players have a hard time being productive in that environment.

Concern is conferenc tournament and NCAA big dance, going to have to trust someone.

Looked what happened to Ohio St,yesterday.

Go Cats and let's complete this journey.

Clayton was unplayable at Rutgers. But I don't know that his zero minutes yesterday were due to that or just that IN has a very tall frontcourt. Maybe he was never going to play, against anyone. Or maybe CC just decided he needed height to counter Ware at 7', and Reneau/Mgbako both at 6'9

 

[Hungry Jack]

Looking at recent Michigan box scores it appears that Dug's Suspended For All Road Games policy is still in place. He won't be joining his team in Evanston.

That is a huge benefit. He’s very good. Guards like him give us fits.

 

[DaCat]

These young guards just have to keep playing and learning. You can be raw but still contribute on defense. I’m waiting for the light to go on for Hunger. He has a unique physical skill set but the basketball brain needs work.

It doesn’t help when the refs blow a quick whistle on Hunger if he even breathes on the guy he’s guarding. And the Flagrant foul was total bullpoopers.

 

[EagerFan]

Indiana seems like a very talented team that is being badly coached and/or has some locker room problems. They don't play well as a team whatever the reason, but have the horses to win sometimes anyhow.

Also, I seem to recall Collins saying one of the reasons he put Blake in (the first recent game) was to get some more height on the court, so that idea seems to hold water.

 

[phatcat]

It doesn’t help when the refs blow

Well said