March 7, 2009
NU Game Notes vs. Ohio State (PDF)
EVANSTON, Ill. -
With just one game remaining in the regular season, the Northwestern men's basketball team finds itself squarely on the bubble. The Wildcats face another squad looking to build its postseason resume Sunday as they travel to Ohio State. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. Central time. Big Ten Network is televising the game live with Dave Revsine and Greg Kelser on the call.
The contest can also be heard on wgnradio.com with Dave Eanet and Bob Hildebrand. The broadcast will be joined in progress on 720 AM-WGN following the completion of the Chicago Blackhawks' game.
NU's 17 wins have tied the school regular-season record, matching the 1982-83 team which participated in the NIT and finished the year 18-12. The 'Cats earned their school-record third victory over a ranked opponent this season on Wednesday when they posted a 64-61 win at No. 19 Purdue. Northwestern used a 22-3 second-half run to turn a 10-point deficit into a nine-point lead, including holding the Boilermakers with out a field goal for a span of nine minutes and 24 seconds. Kevin Coble led the Wildcats with 16 points and eight rebounds. Craig Moore and Michael Thompson added 12 points apiece.
Northwestern can be the No. 6 or 7 seed for the Big Ten tournament with a win Sunday or will be the 8 or 9 seed with a loss.
Series History: Ohio State leads, 111-45.
Last Meeting: John Shurna's 3-pointer with 3.3 seconds remaining broke a tie score and give Northwestern a 72-69 win over Ohio State Feb. 18 in Evanston.
Scouting Ohio State
The Buckeyes (19-9, 9-8) have dropped four of their last six but are coming off a tight 60-58 win Tuesday at Iowa. Sophomore Evan Turner led Ohio State with 22 points and nine assists.
Turner, a top candidate for Big Ten Player of Year, paces the Buckeyes with averages of 16.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.7 steals per game. Jon Diebler is second on the team with 11.3 ppg.
Thad Matta has a 124-44 record in five seasons at Ohio State and a 226-75 mark in nine overall years as a head coach.
A Case For the 'Cats
So why should Northwestern be considered for the NCAA tournament? Consider the fact that the Wildcats have six wins against RPI top-50 opponents this season. That list includes victories over Florida State, Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin, as well as road wins over the top two Big Ten teams--Michigan State and Purdue. There are only eight teams in the country that have more than six wins against the top 50. NU enters Sunday's game at Ohio State with a 4-1 mark in its last five games and will have played four of its final five regular season games on the road. Through games played Thursday, Northwestern was No. 47 in the Sagarin Ratings and No. 58 in the Pomeroy Ratings.
Purdue Game Notes
The victory gave Northwestern three wins over ranked opponents in the same season for the first time in school history ... The win also gives the Wildcats two wins over ranked foes on the road for the first time ... With 16 points in the contest, Kevin Coble jumped up two spots on NU's career scoring list up to 18th place (1,152 points) ... Northwestern scored 32 of its points in the paint ... Purdue's seven turnovers are the fewest by an NU foe this season, while the Wildcats six turnovers are their second-fewest in a game in 2008-09 (4 at Brown, Nov. 22).
Success Under Carmody
Northwestern enters the contest at Ohio State with an 8-9 Big Ten record. In head coach Bill Carmody's nine seasons in Evanston, the Wildcats have recorded at least six Big Ten victories five times. The program totaled six or more conference wins just five times in the previous 31 years prior to Carmody's arrival. NU's seven-game increase in conference wins this season is the biggest jump since Minnesota went from three league wins in 2003-04 to 10 the following season.
Thompson Earns Player of the Week Honors
For the first time since the Big Ten began issuing the Player of the Week award during the 1981-82 season, NU has had three different players earn the honor in the same year. Michael Thompson became the latest 'Cat to earn the honor when he was recognized Monday. The sophomore point guard averaged 15.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.5 steals in the Wildcats' wins over Indiana and Iowa. After scoring 16 points in the historic victory over the Hoosiers, Thompson tallied 14 against the Hawkeyes. With the Wildcats trailing by seven midway through the second half, he hit 3-pointers on three-straight possessions to tie the game and help lead Northwestern to the triumph.
Moore Where That Came From
Senior guard Craig Moore became the top 3-point shooter in school history against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Nov. 19, surpassing Vedran Vukusic's (2002-06) previous career record of 212. Moore then surpassed the NU career record for 3-point attempts previously held by Winston Blake (1999-2003) against Butler Nov. 26. His 307 career makes rank fifth place in league annals and are just one shy of Joe Crispin of Penn State (1998-2001) for fourth place, while his 805 attempts also rank fifth. Moore leads the Big Ten with an average of 3.46 3-pointers per game this season. A year ago, Moore set a school single-season record with 97 3-pointers and he has matched that total so far this season. He has hit a 3-pointer in 40 consecutive games, the second-longest current streak in the country behind only Josh Akognon of Cal State Fullerton (41).
Up Next...
The 2009 Big Ten Tournament tips off Thursday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.