MINNEAPOLIS –

Tim Doyle could barely contain his excitement Saturday afternoon.

“(Northwestern News Network) said we weren’t gonna win a Big Ten game,” Doyle said. “(NNN) no Big Ten wins. That’s right, mark it down.”

It would be silly to say he didn’t have reason to be excited. After one of the best starts in program history, Northwestern was 0-5 in conference and going downhill fast.

With the specter of Ohio State and Greg Oden looming, the Wildcats might have been weighed down pretty heavily if they didn’t get that monkey of their back soon.

But with that first win behind them, the return of Kevin Coble, the play of Jeff Ryan and the apparent maturation of Vince Scott there is talk of this weekend being a springboard to the postseason.

Now a Big Ten win is a big thing for this team. A Big Ten win on the road doubly so.

A Big Ten win on the road by 15 points, triply.

But before NU fans all pee their pants with excitement and start waiting in line for postseason tickets somebody level-headed has got to rain on this parade and unfortunately it’s going to be me.

This win wasn’t particularly surprising. Minnesota was playing without its starting center, Spencer Tollackson, and it showed.

NU uncharacteristically dominated inside, at one point outscoring the Gophers 28-10 in the paint. The Cats made cuts inside and utilized space in the low post, enabling a number of high-percentage shots.

There also is the more salient point of Minnesota not being a particularly good team to begin with – with or without Tollackson.

The Gophers have lost home games to Winona State and Arkansas-Little Rock. The ineptitude hasn’t been lost on the home fans. One said during the Chinese acrobat show at halftime, “This is the most excited you’re going to see these fans all day.”

There is no shame in beating a bad team on the road, but there are plenty of problems for the Cats.

Minnesota still out-rebounded NU by three boards, with six more second chance points. The Cats only pulled down four rebounds off the offensive glass all day.

The Gophers shot 33.3 percent from the field and were absolutely killed by their inability to penetrate the perimeter. Minnesota shot a sour 3 for 19 from behind the arc.

So now that I’ve done my best impression of a downer, here’s why there actually is cause for (restrained) jubilation:

In his first game back from injury, Coble looked as if he had never been hurt.

Early he drained two nifty reverse layups, and closed out the half by blocking a shot and picking up a basket on the ensuing transition.

Then there’s Scott, who led the team with 15 points, and forced Minnesota’s interior size to play him on the perimeter with three 3-pointers.

If Scott continues to do this, it will open up the paint for Coble and Jeff Ryan.

Speaking of Ryan, he was third on NU in scoring and showed scrappiness with four steals.

Both Scott and Coble were prominent in the most pivotal point of the game – and the one in which the Cats truly impressed.

After Minnesota hit back-to-back 3’s cutting NU’s lead to 10, the Gophers were on the brink of a comeback.

But Scott responded with a baby hook inside, and what followed was an 8-0 run, capped off by a Coble 3-pointer sealing the victory.

So yes, there is a great deal to be excited about, but reserve judgement until, say, Wednesday night. Not that NU needs to beat Ohio State. It’s a tall order.

But if they come out, really showing they can compete with anyone, and prove Saturday wasn’t just a good pit stop on another season headed nowhere, it might be time to start believing.

Just do your best to keep your pants dry.

Sports Editor David Kalan is a Weinberg senior. He can be reached at [email protected].