Don’t look now, but the Wildcats are approaching the bubble.
After a 71-70 victory over No. 24 Illinois, Northwestern is one game out of fourth place in the Big Ten and one-and-half games out of third. While the Cats’ strength of schedule is still weak – 82nd in the country according to CBSSports.com – they don’t have a bad loss yet. In fact, all of their conference defeats have come against ranked teams.
“Somebody’s got to go on a roll,” coach Bill Carmody said. “I don’t think all these teams in the middle (of the conference) are going to stay in the middle. Someone’s going to take off.”
To pull even in the Big Ten, NU (14-8, 4-7 Big Ten) must win five of its remaining seven games. That’s no easy task with four of those contests coming on the road, but the Cats’ remaining schedule gives them an opportunity to prove themselves to the NCAA selection committee.
Last year Minnesota was in a similar predicament, when the Gophers won four of their last six contests. Despite the fact that Minnesota only recorded 18 victories – with just two coming against ranked squads – and a .500 mark in the Big Ten, the Gophers cemented their Big Dance bid with a run to the Big Ten Tournament finals.
A weak field should also help the Cats, as traditional power conferences like the ACC, Pac-10 and SEC combine for six teams in the most recent ESPN/USA Today poll.
The quest for an invitation to the Big Dance starts Wednesday with a crucial road matchup against Michigan (14-10, 4-7). The Wolverines, currently tied with the Cats for fifth place in the Big Ten, have picked up their play since dropping six of their first seven conference contests. Michigan has won three of its last four games, including upset victories over Michigan State and Penn State. The Wolverines’ only loss in that span was to the top-ranked Buckeyes in a game which Michigan led at halftime.
Last year Drew Crawford played the role of hero in the Cats’ win in Ann Arbor, tallying 25 points and eight rebounds. Crawford and the Cats rallied back from an early 17-point deficit en route to their first conference victory.
“We pushed the ball down the court a little bit, (Crawford) got some early looks in transition and knocked them down,” Carmody said. “It became contagious, the other guys picked up on it.”
With leading-scorer John Shurna’s starter status questionable – Carmody said the decision to start Shurna would come down to a mix of how he practiced and reports from the team’s medical staff concerning the status of the concussion that he sustained two weeks ago against Minnesota – NU needs Crawford more than ever.
“(Crawford)’s a quick starter usually,” Carmody said. “But now we’ve got to get him to quick start, quick middle and quick end.”
Crawford got NU’s offense going Saturday when the sophomore forward scored 12 points in the first half. But as has happened on several occasions this season, Crawford fell cold after intermission, not tallying a single score. With Crawford struggling, senior guard Michael Thompson and freshman guard JerShon Cobb stepped up, combining for 29 of NU’s 35 second-half points. Cobb, whose 13 points Saturday was his highest output since dropping 18 in a blowout loss at Illinois, said he is hoping to continue his improved play and avoid a mid-season slump.
“During the season every player gets better and better,” Cobb said. “I just don’t want to hit a wall.”
Against the Wolverines the Cats may not need to continue their recent offensive strategy of milking the clock and slowing down their offense. Michigan averages just 66.4 points-per-game, and its attack is much different than the high-flying, fast-paced offenses run by Illinois and Ohio State. Rather, the Wolverines rely on the long ball – 44.6 percent of Michigan’s field goals attempts are treys.
Still, Carmody wasn’t eager to release his strategy for the matchup.
“We’re going to do what we do,” Carmody said. “I’m not spilling any state secrets.”
