By David KalanThe Daily Northwestern
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. –
It’s tough to be a Wildcat.
On days like today it’s really tough. Mired in the midst of a 15-game losing steak, Northwestern’s women’s basketball team is dealing with adversity that even this team can’t be used to.
In fact, none of these players are used to it. The Cats haven’t lost this many in a row since the 2001-02 season, when some of the current players were still in middle school.
But here they are, stuck in a frustrating stretch with no end in sight. And what’s really frustrating is the lopsided final scores and the win-loss column in the standings aren’t showing the progress being made.
Progress?
Yes, you read correctly. A 15-game skid isn’t how most people would characterize progress, but there is no better example of it than this afternoon’s loss at Illinois, where the Cats played two separate halves, one completely different from the other.
For the first 20 minutes, the Cats play was as offensive as the Illini’s halftime show, which had one spectator yelling at orange and blue-clad fans to “stop being racist” as they sang with Chief Illiniwek.
NU shot 33.3 percent from the field while turning the ball over 10 times and being out-rebounded to the tune of 27 to 11. The result was a 39-19 deficit at the break, punctuated by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Illinois’ Jenna Smith that added insult to injury.
But the second half was a different story and a different team.
The Cats came out with a new energy that was noticeable from the start. After two uneventful minutes to open up the second stanza NU began to slowly chip away at the Illini lead.
With 10 minutes left the Cats had cut a 22-point lead down to 12, with a few nice plays coming on the effort of senior A.J. Glasauer. Over a stretch of 65 seconds, Glasauer had two steals and scored eight straight points, forcing an Illini timeout.
Sure, NU was still plagued by some of the usual problems. The Cats shot 32.3 percent from the field in the second half, Illinois ate the Cats alive in the paint and rebounding – NU would eventually be beaten badly on the glass by a 50-23 margin – still caused issues.
But the effort was noticeable, and with stats to prove it. Until the last five minutes, the Cats outscored the Illini in the second half. Illinois finished with an 8-point edge in the second stanza, but also shot an unusually high 58.3 percent from the field.
And then there’s perhaps the most telling statistic: After committing 10 turnovers in the first half – a high but not unusual number for NU’s typical Achilles heel – the Cats only turned the ball over twice in the second.
When you put it all together and do the math it appears this really might not be that bad of a basketball team.
They’re not winning a national championship any time soon, but if the Cats can play for two halves instead of one, it might provide a soothing elixir for a program that has been ailing since it last won a Big Ten title a decade ago.
If NU keeps bringing players into the program with the fresh blood they’re starting to get, the Cats could be moving from the cellar to the middle of the pack sooner than their records would indicate.
Freshman Beth Marshall, who has won over the starting point guard spot from upperclassmen Nadia Bibbs, displayed the type of effort NU will need if it’s going to make any move up the standings.
With 1:35 left in the game and the end result far from being in doubt, Marshall made a diving block to stymie an Illinois possession.
It was a play that, with Illinois holding a 24-point lead, did little to affect the outcome of the game. But if things around Evanston are going to change, it’s effort on plays like that, and an effort like NU gave in the second half, that will be crucial in turning this program around.
Sports Editor David Kalan is a Weinberg senior. He can be reached at [email protected].
