Though coach Bill Carmody is known for teaching players his complex offense, he, like many coaches before him, have not been able to teach size in recent years. The Wildcats did not have a player taller than 6-foot-8 last year after the graduation of 6-foot-10 center Vince Scott, leading to struggles in the physical Big Ten.
So he went out and recruited size.
Joining a squad that remains mostly intact from last season are five freshmen, four of whom are at least 6-foot-8 or taller, something the team did not even have last season. Highly-touted centers Kyle Rowley (7-foot) and Luka Mirkovic (6-foot-11) are two of the tallest players NU has had since Evan Eschmeyer (6-foot-11) graduated and was drafted in the second round of the NBA Draft in 1999. They figure to help reshape a team that struggled last year, especially in the post.
“It will move everyone to more of their traditional position where they should be playing,” said junior Kevin Coble, a forward who was forced to defend bigger players at times last year. “I was playing down low last year, and a lot of our guys were playing out of position. So this will move them to where they should be, and I think it will help us a lot.”
FILLING THE NEED
The Cats can use all the help they can get after a dismal season last year in which they finished at the bottom of the Big Ten with just one win in 18 conference games, and an 8-22 overall record.
This year the big men will add a new element to the Princeton offense that NU has run since Carmody began his tenure nine seasons ago.
“The big guys give us a presence down low in the paint,” sophomore guard Michael Thompson said. “That gives the guards a lot of options when we go to the basket we have someone to drop it off to or if the defense collapses on the paint we can kick it out to our shooters.”
Carmody’s teams have not had a lot of stellar big men. Scott and current assistant coach Tavaras Hardy, who is 10th in school history for total rebounds, were two of the more successful post players since Carmody became head coach in 2000.
But the Princeton offense does not require a physical low post threat. It demands a more agile and versatile center.
The Princeton offense involves a complex system of perimeter passing and precision cutting to give the historically undersized Cats a chance at easy points close to the basket. The system is completely different from the physical style that the rest of the Big Ten teams play. It forces opponents to play out of their comfort zone.
“I hate guarding their offense,” Michigan State center Goran Suton said. “It always causes trouble with the backdoor (cuts), and a lot of guys can shoot the ball, so it’s always a tough game.”
PIECING IT TOGETHER
Crucial to NU’s success this season is fitting the big men into the Princeton offense.
Recent Cats centers used perimeter shooting and passing, rather than traditional interior play. Carmody believes that the 7-foot Rowley will surprise some people with his perimeter dexterity, but he still must work hard to integrate himself into the movement-oriented offense.
He and the other players have to find a way to integrate their skills into the complex offense.
“It’s a learning process,” Rowley said. “I’m getting better at it every day spending time in practice. The coaches are doing a great job of helping me feel comfortable with it and just expanding my game.”
Defensively the size will help immediately on the rebounding front.
Last season, the Cats averaged almost 11 fewer rebounds per game than their opponents. Carmody knows that the improved size could be vital to lessening this margin.
“If they were no good (last year), then just the fact that they are all three inches taller would help,” he said. “But they are pretty good. I feel good about our possibilities on the backboards.”
NU showed its newfound rebounding skill at times in last Thursday’s exhibition loss to Robert Morris (Ill.) College. The Cats were outrebounded by five in that game, but grabbed 17 offensive boards. Freshman forward John Shurna grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the team. Fellow freshman Davide Curletti added seven in his first game.
“I like grabbing a lot of offensive rebounds so I hope that will work well on the offensive end,” Curletti said.”Me and Johnny (Shurna) did pretty well against Robert Morris, we probably should have had even more (rebounds) on the offensive end.”
A GROWING STRENGTH
With size down low, and an increased propensity for grabbing loose rebounds, the Cats could improve their 1-3-1 zone defense. Though the defense was inconsistent last season, it has always been effective in frustrating opponents.
“1-3-1. I hate it,” Ohio State guard David Lighty said. “You’ve got to know what you’re doing with the ball before things happen, or else you’re going to end up turning the ball over (against NU) like me.”
In the past two seasons the Cats have won a combined three conference games so the squad can improve. The size of the newcomers and a new focus on weight-training this off-season will prepare the Cats to combine their mental game with the more physical brand of basketball that other teams play in the Big Ten.
Coble said the team focused on weight lifting during the offseason to improve the team’s strength, something he said has been one of the team’s weaknesses.
As a team that is now ready to play a more physical game and as a team that brings back its entire starting five from the end of last year, the Cats finally have expectations, albeit tempered ones, to be competitive in conference play this year.
“We’ve got so many guys coming back,” Coble said. “Then this new blood of all the freshmen coming in, I think is going to be a big boost for us. Hopefully things come together how we’re all envisioning it.”