Imagine that NU got the same 2019 recruits, also got Ryan Taylor as a grad transfer, also denied Jordan Lathon admission, also missed on Matt Mooney. That is to say, the team was exactly the same as it was Game 1 of this year.
BUT what if NU lived up to expectations last year? What if they played inspired basketball, rather than reading their own press clippings and succumbing to internal squabbles, and narrowly made the NCAA Tournament again (close losses like Creighton, GA Tech, Purdue, Rutgers, etc. turn into wins).
Does that carry over into this year? I wonder if the seven-game losing streak to end that season left some doubt in the returning players’ minds. Or if whatever was going on between BMac and Lindsey lingered (though I don’t sense that with these guys). It felt like this team couldn’t close out games this year, for a variety of reasons.
In that spirit, I think it would be enormously helpful for the young players to notch a win against Illinois this week in a tournament environment. Just advancing once could be a nice boost. I’ll be watching, for sure. GO CATS
BUT what if NU lived up to expectations last year? What if they played inspired basketball, rather than reading their own press clippings and succumbing to internal squabbles, and narrowly made the NCAA Tournament again (close losses like Creighton, GA Tech, Purdue, Rutgers, etc. turn into wins).
Does that carry over into this year? I wonder if the seven-game losing streak to end that season left some doubt in the returning players’ minds. Or if whatever was going on between BMac and Lindsey lingered (though I don’t sense that with these guys). It felt like this team couldn’t close out games this year, for a variety of reasons.
In that spirit, I think it would be enormously helpful for the young players to notch a win against Illinois this week in a tournament environment. Just advancing once could be a nice boost. I’ll be watching, for sure. GO CATS
