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March 4, 2006 - 7 p.m.
Northwestern (13-14, 5-10 Big Ten)
vs. Minnesota (14-12, 5-10 Big Ten)
Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117)
Evanston, Ill.
The Broadcasts
Radio--WGN 720 AM
(Dave Eanet, play-by-play; Bob Hildebrand analyst)
Television--ESPN+ Local (WWME in Chicago)
(Jim Barbar, play-by-play; Jim Dutcher, analyst)
EVANSTON, Ill.- Northwestern takes to the court Saturday night, seeking to send out its seniors on a winning note when it takes on the Golden Gophers at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Seniors Evan Seacat, Vedran Vukusic, Mohamed Hachad, Michael Jenkins and Justin Hoeveler - along with senior Ivan Tolic who missed this season with an injury - will be playing their final game at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The Wildcats are coming off a narrow defeat at the hands of No. 9 Ohio State Wednesday night. NU came back and had a one-point lead with less than a minute left but could not hold on for the win. Despite that, the Wildcats are still playing for their postseason lives and can strengthen those chances with a win tonight and a solid run in this year's Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis beginning next week.
A Northwestern Win Would ...
Seeing Double
Mohamed Hachad recorded the first double-double of the season for the Wildcats and the first of his career with 11 points and 10 rebounds in the loss to No. 9 Ohio State on Wednesday. It marked the first double-double by an NU player since Vedran Vukusic and T.J. Parker each had double-doubles in last year's overtime win over Iowa in Evanston (1/26/05). Vukusic scored 32 points and 10 rebounds while Parker had 12 and 10, respectively.
Hachad Among Big Ten Leaders in FG Percentage
Over the last six games, senior Mohamed Hachad has shot a blazing 64 percent (38-of-59) from the field, including 6-of-11 from three-point range. He was a perfect 5-of-5 against Ohio State and hit a career-high 11 field goals (11-of-17) in the win over Wisconsin. He is shooting 58 percent from the field overall in Big Ten action, fourth-best in the league.
'Cats Heat Up From Three
NU has heated up from behind the arc of late, connecting on 20 three-pointers in the last two games vs. Penn State and Ohio State. They have hit 11 or more three times this season, including 12 in the overtime win at Purdue (1/25/06).
Seacat Lights It Up
He came out of nowhere to have the best game of his Northwestern career. Last Saturday at Penn State, a much healthier Evan Seacat took advantage of Penn State's sagging zone defense, recording a career-high 18 points on a career-high six three-pointers-all in the second half and one shy of the Northwestern single-game record of seven (held by Winston Blake and Todd Leslie). Seacat was on fire, hitting his first three attempts in the second half in a span of 2:30 to help keep the Wildcats close before the Nittany Lions pulled away.
Vukusic's Milestones
Hachad On Hot Streak
Mohamed Hachad is averaging 15.6 points over his last five games and is shooting 64 percent (38-of-59) over the last six games. He had 17 in the road loss at Illinois and connected on three 3-pointers. Then at Ohio State Feb. 18, Hachad scored 19 on a then-career-high nine field goals and had nine boards. With his team down 15 in the second half, Hachad scored 15 straight Wildcat points in the midst of a 19-6 NU run that cut OSU's lead to 52-50 with 3:44 left. But he saved his best for the Feb. 23 game against the Badgers in which he recorded career-highs in points (25) and field goals (11). He is now coming off a double-double performance with 11 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in the home loss against Ohio State on Wednesday-his first career double-double.
'Cats Nationally
According to the official NCAA statistical report as of Feb. 27, the 'Cats rank 11th in the nation in scoring defense (58.8), 16th with only 15.3 personal fouls per game and 21st with only 12.4 turnovers.
Gopher Head Coach Dan Monson
Dan Monson is in his seventh year as the head man in Minneapolis. Playing without recruiting or scholarship restrictions for the first time in his tenure, Monson directed the Gophers to the 2005 NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999 and engineered the second-best Big Ten turnaround in the last 20 years, finishing the season with a 10-6 conference record after posting just three wins just one year prior. Monson also served as the head coach at Gonzaga from 1997-99, taking the Bulldogs to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1999.
The Series
Saturday is the 149th meeting between the two schools. Minnesota leads the all-time series 93-55, though Northwestern has won the last four, including this year's meeting in Minneapolis 57-49. NU is going for its first two-game season sweep of Minnesota since the 1976 season. (NU swept Minnesota in 1986, winning one game by forfeit).