NU Players' stats vs Big Ten

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

This table shows the major stats of everyone in NU's rotation on a "Per 40 minute" basis...
EFG% is the shooting percentage normalized for 3 pointers.

Player	Minutes	Pts	EFG%	OReb	DReb	Steals	Turnovers	Assists	Blocks	Fouls
Martinelli	355	20.1	50.4	1.9	2.6	0.6	2.1	1.7	0.6	2.4
Barnhizer	339	16.3	40.5	1.9	7.1	2.2	4.0	4.0	1.2	2.1
Leach	298	16.1	52.2	0.7	2.0	0.9	2.3	4.8	0.1	3.5
Ciaravino	104	15.0	51.4	2.7	3.1	1.2	1.5	1.2	0.4	4.6
Berry	229	14.8	52.6	0.9	3.8	2.3	0.5	1.7	0.3	4.5
Windham	78	13.8	59.5	0.5	0.5	2.1	1.5	3.5	1.0	5.6
Hunger	79	9.1	44.7	3.5	2.5	0.0	1.0	2.5	0.0	6.1
Mullins	97	8.7	50.0	1.2	5.4	1.2	1.6	3.3	0.4	5.4
Nicholson	200	5.2	47.1	4.6	7.2	1.2	1.6	1.6	1.8	3.8
Fitzmorris	74	4.9	75.0*	2.2	1.6	0.5	0.5	1.1	4.3	5.9

Keenan Fitzmorris has made 3 of 4 field goal attempts, so that doesn't mean much. He has blocked some shots, however. His defensive rebounding has been quite poor.
Luke Hunger has not blocked a shot in 79 minutes. His defensive rebounding is poor, although his offensive rebounding is fairly good.
Matt Nicholson's field goal percentage is... low. Everything else is fine.
KJ Windham's numbers look good across the board, other than the rebounds, though that part is not surprising.
Jalen Leach looks fairly good across the board, although he is a bit light in steals, blocks and rebounds.
Nick Martinelli's scoring is fine, but the assist to turnover ratio is below 1, so thats not good - and the rebounding is surprisingly light.
Brooks Barnhizer has been asked to do a lot - and he's playing hurt - but the turnovers and shooting are alarming. He continues to excel on the defensive boards.
Angelo Ciaravino has no obvious flaws, except the assist/turnover ratio is a little low.
Ty Berry looks solid across the board.
Justin Mullins' steals are lower than expected, but he's been solid on the boards. Limited scorer.

 

[macarthur31]

This table shows the major stats of everyone in NU's rotation on a "Per 40 minute" basis...
EFG% is the shooting percentage normalized for 3 pointers.

Player	Minutes	Pts	EFG%	OReb	DReb	Steals	Turnovers	Assists	Blocks	Fouls
Martinelli	355	20.1	50.4	1.9	2.6	0.6	2.1	1.7	0.6	2.4
Barnhizer	339	16.3	40.5	1.9	7.1	2.2	4.0	4.0	1.2	2.1
Leach	298	16.1	52.2	0.7	2.0	0.9	2.3	4.8	0.1	3.5
Ciaravino	104	15.0	51.4	2.7	3.1	1.2	1.5	1.2	0.4	4.6
Berry	229	14.8	52.6	0.9	3.8	2.3	0.5	1.7	0.3	4.5
Windham	78	13.8	59.5	0.5	0.5	2.1	1.5	3.5	1.0	5.6
Hunger	79	9.1	44.7	3.5	2.5	0.0	1.0	2.5	0.0	6.1
Mullins	97	8.7	50.0	1.2	5.4	1.2	1.6	3.3	0.4	5.4
Nicholson	200	5.2	47.1	4.6	7.2	1.2	1.6	1.6	1.8	3.8
Fitzmorris	74	4.9	75.0*	2.2	1.6	0.5	0.5	1.1	4.3	5.9

Keenan Fitzmorris has made 3 of 4 field goal attempts, so that doesn't mean much. He has blocked some shots, however. His defensive rebounding has been quite poor.
Luke Hunger has not blocked a shot in 79 minutes. His defensive rebounding is poor, although his offensive rebounding is fairly good.
Matt Nicholson's field goal percentage is... low. Everything else is fine.
KJ Windham's numbers look good across the board, other than the rebounds, though that part is not surprising.
Jalen Leach looks fairly good across the board, although he is a bit light in steals, blocks and rebounds.
Nick Martinelli's scoring is fine, but the assist to turnover ratio is below 1, so thats not good - and the rebounding is surprisingly light.
Brooks Barnhizer has been asked to do a lot - and he's playing hurt - but the turnovers and shooting are alarming. He continues to excel on the defensive boards.
Angelo Ciaravino has no obvious flaws, except the assist/turnover ratio is a little low.
Ty Berry looks solid across the board.
Justin Mullins' steals are lower than expected, but he's been solid on the boards. Limited scorer.

• Good stuff, PWB.
  With regards to Ciaravino - given he's primarily catch-and-shoot 3 or hustle play guy on offense, I'm not complaining about the low A-TO rate as he's not really playmaking, and the TOs are relatively low.
• This makes the case for more minutes for KJ. The upside of the 2nd half @ILL is that he got extended run and played freely and with confidence. Like most frosh, I intuit that when he gets spot minutes, he's probably focused on minimizing mistakes.
• Too bad we can't combine Leach/Berry as if you put em together you'd have a excellent player, and you'd free up minutes for KJ.
• Collins gotta figure out how to calibrate Barnhizer - he wants to play, and he plays hard - but perhaps we've reached diminishing returns.

 

[Deeringfish]

• Good stuff, PWB.
  With regards to Ciaravino - given he's primarily catch-and-shoot 3 or hustle play guy on offense, I'm not complaining about the low A-TO rate as he's not really playmaking, and the TOs are relatively low.
• This makes the case for more minutes for KJ. The upside of the 2nd half @ILL is that he got extended run and played freely and with confidence. Like most frosh, I intuit that when he gets spot minutes, he's probably focused on minimizing mistakes.
• Too bad we can't combine Leach/Berry as if you put em together you'd have a excellent player, and you'd free up minutes for KJ.
• Collins gotta figure out how to calibrate Barnhizer - he wants to play, and he plays hard - but perhaps we've reached diminishing returns.

I think you are right about Barnhizer.

 

[Hungry Jack]

If Hunger is our main center next season we are screwed

 

[CatJones]

We'll have Luke, a first year and a transfer. May the best man win.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

• Good stuff, PWB.
  With regards to Ciaravino - given he's primarily catch-and-shoot 3 or hustle play guy on offense, I'm not complaining about the low A-TO rate as he's not really playmaking, and the TOs are relatively low.
• This makes the case for more minutes for KJ. The upside of the 2nd half @ILL is that he got extended run and played freely and with confidence. Like most frosh, I intuit that when he gets spot minutes, he's probably focused on minimizing mistakes.
• Too bad we can't combine Leach/Berry as if you put em together you'd have a excellent player, and you'd free up minutes for KJ.
• Collins gotta figure out how to calibrate Barnhizer - he wants to play, and he plays hard - but perhaps we've reached diminishing returns.

Sure, if the stars are the end all be all, but I have eyes too.

 

[PurpleFaze]

I wish Nicholson wasn’t an offensive black hole.

 

[Davidgolds5]

If Hunger is our main center next season we are screwed

I cannot imagine Luke is going to be the starting center for a big ten team. Just no way that leads to a successful season. Really nice high energy guy that can handle a 5-10 minutes a game, possibly. Could he possibly play the four spot a little better than the five?

 

[Hungry Jack]

It is going to be a very interesting offseason. To have any chance of competing for a tournament spot, we are going to have to find a legitimate center, a shooting or combo guard (another guy like Leach would do) and a shooting wing via the portal. That is a big ask for CCC and the program.

 

[IGNORE2]

It is going to be a very interesting offseason. To have any chance of competing for a tournament spot, we are going to have to find a legitimate center, a shooting or combo guard (another guy like Leach would do) and a shooting wing via the portal. That is a big ask for CCC and the program.

Not sure about all that. KJ is showing something and Gelo looks to be that shooting wing. We also have a pretty good class coming in.

I think we look for just the best two quality big men that we can find from the portal so we can shirt the frosh.

 

[IGNORE2]

Not sure about all that. KJ is showing something and Gelo looks to be that shooting wing. We also have a pretty good class coming in.

I think we look for just the best two quality big men that we can find from the portal so we can shirt the frosh.

Also, if singleton can play early, then Mart can slide back to the three. KJ at point w Gelo at the two and you have a pretty tall lineup that can help the five.

We used to collapse when the ball went inside an immediate double team. That can be resumed w this lineup.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Not sure about all that. KJ is showing something and Gelo looks to be that shooting wing. We also have a pretty good class coming in.

I think we look for just the best two quality big men that we can find from the portal so we can shirt the frosh.

I agree 100% on Windham and Ciaravino.
Big Ten quality starters next year.
Assuming they stick around. (Not knocking the program, it just is the way of the world now)

I think the freshmen will be playing next year - because it is more difficult for NU to operate in the undergrad transfer pool than almost any other school. Grad transfers are our big advantage, but that pool has shrunken dramatically and it typically isn't where you'll get the good players going forward.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Not sure about all that. KJ is showing something and Gelo looks to be that shooting wing. We also have a pretty good class coming in.

I think we look for just the best two quality big men that we can find from the portal so we can shirt the frosh.

Still need more guys who can hit outside shots.

 

[EagerFan]

Gotta admit my concerns for next year at this point are more about Collins keeping the eligible kids he already has on the team.

 

[Sec.112]

We'll have Luke, a first year and a transfer. May the best man win.

I hope this upcoming freshman class is the beginning of concentrating more on NU's size.

For me, one of the more disappointing ongoing traits in the program has been how the staff handles the 5. I'll be generous saying I assume they've tried to recruit some competition for Nicholson and just haven't been able to do it. But the 5 has been a mess for awhile now.

This idea of going to the portal EVERY year for that position in particular is asking for trouble. Maybe for a third big man? But not for a big man who you want to get reasonable rotation minutes.

I hope they start thinking more like Painter, and putting more size at the end of the bench that can be developed. Maybe recruit a true 5 three out of every four years with a big 4 sprinkled in there.

 

[Hungry Jack]

I hope this upcoming freshman class is the beginning of concentrating more on NU's size.

For me, one of the more disappointing ongoing traits in the program has been how the staff handles the 5. I'll be generous saying I assume they've tried to recruit some competition for Nicholson and just haven't been able to do it. But the 5 has been a mess for awhile now.

This idea of going to the portal EVERY year for that position in particular is asking for trouble. Maybe for a third big man? But not for a big man who you want to get reasonable rotation minutes.

I hope they start thinking more like Painter, and putting more size at the end of the bench that can be developed. Maybe recruit a true 5 three out of every four years with a big 4 sprinkled in there.

Capable bigs are certainly very valuable commodities in the portal. The best bigs in the B1G are portal products: Goldin, Ballo, Konan-Neiderhauser, Wolf (OK he's a stretch 4).

While Nicholson is not a scorer, he's an excellent defender and good passer. I'm OK with him as a prototype for how we recruit (though a guy who can do a bit more than dunk would be really good).

 

[macarthur31]

I hope this upcoming freshman class is the beginning of concentrating more on NU's size.

For me, one of the more disappointing ongoing traits in the program has been how the staff handles the 5. I'll be generous saying I assume they've tried to recruit some competition for Nicholson and just haven't been able to do it. But the 5 has been a mess for awhile now.

This idea of going to the portal EVERY year for that position in particular is asking for trouble. Maybe for a third big man? But not for a big man who you want to get reasonable rotation minutes.

I hope they start thinking more like Painter, and putting more size at the end of the bench that can be developed. Maybe recruit a true 5 three out of every four years with a big 4 sprinkled in there.

Went to kenpom to scan "Depth chart over the past 5 games" section during the Collins era and who is listed at C, along with %:

2014: Alex Olah (85%), Nikola Cerina (15%)
2015: Alex Olah (84%), Gavin Skelly (14%)
2016: Alex Olah (65%), Dererk Pardon (31%)
2017: Dererk Pardon (76%), Barret Benson (20%)
2018: Dererk Pardon (57%), Barret Benson (41%)
2019: Dererk Pardon (84%), Barret Benson (15%)
2020: Ryan Young (58%), Jared Jones (24%), Pete Nance (18%)
2021: Pete Nance (54%), Ryan Young (46%)
2022: Pete Nance (54%), Ryan Young (38%), Matthew Nicholson (8%)
2023: Matthew Nicholson (54%), Tydus Verhoeven (35%), Robbie Beran (11%)
2024: Luke Hunger (58%), Blake Preston (34%), Brooks Barnhizer (8%)


I chose that particular filter because it was easy to find, and I figured that the last 5 games of the season was ideally when a team is making that final push. Of course, the downside of this particular filter is that it doesn't account for injuries (see '24).

However, just using his as a scan, I'm reminded that:

• Alex Olah was a no-brainer choice for center
• Dererk Pardon had that position on lock, and while he may have been an intriguing 4 - Barret Benson wasn't able to push him off that spot.
• The Ryan Young v. Pete Nance conundrum - and the possibility of "positionless basketball" was just too irresistible.
• Matt Nicholson was the best case of - grow a guy on the bench for two years, and then he becomes a solid starter for his last two (as long as he stays injury free).

I agree with Sec (and Painter) in that it probably helps to always stash big dudes in your recruiting classes, what I'm unsure of is how much the pool of recruitable players are for that profile; their willingness to sit on the bench for two-years. I wonder if the 'Cats have their eyes on these types of players, but now they can transfer - they just track them for the first few years and then bring 'em in once they're bigger and have gotten "first-team" run. (This is analogous to European football teams and they can send prospects "on loan" to lower division teams to get more minutes.).

Of course, my hypothesis may fail given NU's stricter in-bound transfer rules - but maybe moving forward those will be relaxed?

 

[Sec.112]

... I'm OK with him as a prototype for how we recruit (though a guy who can do a bit more than dunk would be really good).

Moving forward, I would hope that a prototype of a good defender, strong rebounder and someone reasonably competent in an offensive set - not even a scorer - would be the ground to floor for our 5s.