Five minutes into Northwestern’s first opening game win since 2005, coach Bill Carmody made his first substitution of the season. Stuck in the midst of a sluggish 4-2 game, Carmody sent junior forward Jeff Ryan into the game to replace classmate Kevin Coble.
Ryan immediately stamped his mark on the game and recorded a blocked shot as well as a basket and the foul in his first few minutes of game action.
It was the energy the team needed to build an 18-point halftime lead and an 81-39 win over Central Arkansas on Sunday.
“That’s the job of a lot of guys off the bench,” Ryan said. “Just to come in, be a spark and have a lot of energy off the bench. I got myself in pretty good position on offense a few times and was able to get fouled and go to the line.”
The Wildcats (1-0) need to utilize this depth throughout the season, and Wednesday night when they host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (1-1), to continue the defensive tenacity the team displayed against the Bears.
But Ryan wasn’t the only player who provided a spark off the bench for NU in its first game.
Senior guard Sterling Williams entered the game and put pressure on Central Arkansas’ sharpshooter, Marcus Pillow, after he had managed to get free from the defense for some open attempts early in the second half.
In addition, junior guard Jeremy Nash supplied the Cats with his usual brand of hustle and tough play. Ivan Peljusic offered the squad a different look at center thanks to his outside shooting and pinpoint passing.
Sophomore forward Mike Capocci, who played only sparingly last season, was not put in until late in the first half, but his defense and his tough play earned him extra playing time in the second half.
Carmody felt comfortable going deep into his bench in Sunday’s blowout win.
“I just like the fact that the guys that went in there didn’t look like subs,” Carmody said. “The sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth men, they all looked like they can play. Capocci went in there. He looked like he could be a starter, Peljusic (also looked like a) starter. All those guys did, and that’s important.”
Those players supplied the Cats with 33 bench points in the game – compared to the Bears’ six points off the bench.
The depth was also crucial to NU’s defensive mindset. Carmody credited the Cats renewed focus on defense, especially during the time between their exhibition loss to Robert Morris and their blowout win against Central Arkansas, for the victory.
The defense from Sunday was augmented by the team’s depth.
“I think that we can get to be a pretty decent pressing team because of our depth,” Carmody said. “(With the press) you upset some teams, and fall back in your match-up. You know, maybe you can take 10-12 seconds off the clock and that might help your defense.”
A press defense takes an energetic, fresh team. In years past, Carmody could not use a press to disrupt an opponent’s flow because that would tire his starters. He was not confident enough in his bench to rely on it to provide them enough rest.
That might change if the bench continues to play as it did Sunday.
“This year, I just feel like I’m looking down the bench and I feel good about the guys I’m putting in,” Carmody said. “And that’s a good feeling going into a game.”