Northwestern guards Craig Moore and Sterling Williams have developed quickly enough in their freshmen seasons to earn starting roles.
Their importance to the Wildcats’ future is indisputable. But the proverbial changing of the guard took a backseat in Wednesday night’s 51-48 upset of No. 18 Iowa.
In a rare sight, four NU seniors – Vedran Vukusic, Mohamed Hachad, Michael Jenkins and Evan Seacat – were on the court at the same time with four minutes left in a winnable game.
Iowa’s lead had been hovering around seven for several minutes, and the Cats needed a breakthrough.
“I think our freshmen have hit the wall a little bit,” coach Bill Carmody said.
Enter NU’s quartet of seniors, who came up with a string of crucial plays to steal the victory. Seacat came off the bench cold, but minutes later connected on a 3-pointer that brought the Cats to within one at 47-46 with 2:10 remaining.
“It’s basically the biggest shot in my career, college or high school,” said Seacat, who had played a total of three minutes in the Cats’ last four games.
“(Carmody) told me before the game in the locker room to be ready, that he might give me a chance,” he said. “Any person on the bench needs to be ready. He gave me the opportunity, and I was able to capitalize.”
Seacat’s fellow seniors made sure his big shot would be more than just a footnote in the box score. Vukusic scored the Cats’ last five points, while Jenkins made the game-winning defensive play.
With NU clinging to a one-point lead, Iowa swingman Adam Haluska missed a short baseline jumper with 12 seconds left. The 5-foot-9 Jenkins hustled to the loose ball and spiked it off Haluska before falling out of bounds.
“The smallest guy on the floor got it and threw it off (Haluska),” Carmody said. “That was a big play for us.”
Jenkins also energized the comeback with a pivotal 3-pointer that cut the Cats’ deficit to four with 3:43 remaining.
Vukusic took over from there, scoring eight of his 26 points in the final three minutes of the game.
“I think it’s our duty (as seniors) to come through,” Vukusic said. “You can’t rely on the younger guys to make plays when it’s important. If they do, that’s great for their experience and the team, but we can’t rely on them to make plays when the game’s on the line.”
Reach Gerald Tang at [email protected].
