At a reputable, scholarly institution like Northwestern, it’s no wonder the men’s basketball team’s success relies so heavily on the mental aspect of the game. Wildcats coach Bill Carmody adjusted his pregame ritual before NU’s game at Michigan on Wednesday, and his boys responded by pummeling the Wolverines in the first half.
Saturday in Welsh-Ryan Arena, the Cats got an early boost from another source: forward Winston Blake. The junior’s superb performance in all aspects of the game keyed NU’s shellacking of then-No. 17 Iowa.
On offense, Blake got it going early against the Hawkeyes, hitting 2 of 3 from behind the arc in the first half. He led the Cats with 10 points in the first 20 minutes, not to mention his three assists.
But Blake made his biggest mark on the game with his defense and his hustle. Carmody pointed out after the contest that Blake spent most of the game guarding Iowa star Luke Recker, who began the weekend tied for first in the Big Ten in scoring at 18.3 points per game. Recker struggled, tripped, swore and complained his way to an eight-point, 2-for-9 shooting night with no three-pointers.
“(Blake has) been playing well,” Carmody said. “I just tell him that shooting shouldn’t dominate. At the end of the game, I shouldn’t say, ‘Did you play well?’ just by looking at the shot chart.”
Blake had more than his shot going Saturday: namely, his focus. Two consecutive missed three-pointers at the beginning of the second half didn’t phase him a bit – on an ensuing possession, he freed himself from Recker’s tight defense for an open three-point attempt. He drained it, much to the delight of the NU fans, who awarded him with a thunderous applause. He hustled, he threw his body around, and he even got tangled up with Recker a couple of times.
Blake wasn’t the only NU player having a good game, but the team rallied around him every time he made a big play. As a result, the Cats played suffocating defense. And let’s face it: NU made Iowa look dumb. More than just losing the game, the Hawkeyes looked as if they were unfamiliar with the sport of basketball. Iowa coach Steve Alford was so dumfounded by his team’s performance that he apologized after the game and said that four of his starters’ jobs are in jeopardy, including preseason All-Big Ten selections Recker and Reggie Evans.
This is what Carmody’s Cats can do to a nationally ranked team when they are in sync. The Princeton offense was too complicated, or too simple, too something for the Hawkeyes, and NU’s defense held Iowa to a season-low 50 points. The Hawkeyes’ previous season low was 62 points, set on two occasions, against No. 1 Duke and Big Ten-leading Ohio State.
Blake finished the game with a game-high 16 points, three assists, four three-pointers, and most importantly, a confident smile on his face.
