Nov. 14, 2008
NU Game Notes vs. Central Arkansas (PDF)
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Northwestern tips off its 2008-09 season Sunday afternoon as it hosts Central Arkansas at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. Live streaming video of the contest can be accessed at BigTenNetwork.com.
The game can be heard on 720 AM WGN with Dave Eanet and David Kaplan on the call, as well as WNUR 89.3 FM.
Tickets are available and can be purchased at NUsports.com or at the Welsh-Ryan Arena the day of the game. Sunday is Take A Kid to The Game Day with two children in the eighth grade and under admitted free with the purchase of one adult ticket. There will be face painting, Wildcat crafts, balloon animals and a postgame autograph session with the team.
Northwestern is 5-3 in home openers and 4-4 in season openers under head coach Bill Carmody. Last year, the Wildcats dropped a 71-60 decision at 20th-ranked Stanford.
This will be the first meeting between the Wildcats and Central Arkansas.
Scouting Central Arkansas
The Bears posted a 14-16 overall record last season including a 4-12 mark in Southland Conference play.
Junior guard Marcus Pillow is UCA's top returning scorer after ranking third on the team with an average of 11.9 points per game last season.
In a recent preseason poll, the team was picked to finish fifth in the SLC East by the sports information directors and sixth by the coaches.
Head coach Rand Chappell has guided UCA to an 85-64 record in his first five seasons at the helm and has guided the Bears through their transition from Division II to Division I. He has a 283-126 career record, including stops at Henderson State, Phillips and Labette Community College.
Home is Where the Start is
Northwestern will be playing its season opener at Welsh-Ryan Arena for the 28th time in the last 32 seasons. The Wildcats started out at home 18 straight seasons from 1977-94. The only time NU has started out with a true road game to start the season during the stretch was at San Diego State Nov. 24, 1995. Northwestern opened up at a neutral site with the BCA Invitational in 2001 and 2005 and the Top of the World Classic in 2004.
Moore Where That Came From
Senior guard Craig Moore comes into Sunday's season opener with 210 career 3-pointers made, just two shy of Vedran Vukusic's (2002-06) school record of 212. Moore's 574 attempts from beyond the arc are only 29 behind the Northwestern record of 603 held by Winston Blake (1999-2003). He has an outstanding chance to finish in the top five in Big Ten history in both categories.
Up Next...
The Wildcats return to action Wednesday, Nov. 19 as they host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.