This season has been full of what ifs for Northwestern.
With so many close losses against Big Ten competition, fans are left wondering what would have happened if the Wildcats could have pulled off an upset or two. However, the latest what-if scenario surrounds guard JerShon Cobb. The sophomore said he has not reflected on where NU would be if he was healthy the entire season and is just focused on the task at hand.
“I don’t think about it,” Cobb said. “We’re in the (National Invitational Tournament) right now, so can’t think about that. We just need to move along in this NIT and try to win.”
The Georgia-native has been battling injuries all year stemming from hip surgery he had last season. Cobb returned to the starting lineup on Feb. 18 against Minnesota and registered 2 points in 24 minutes. However, in NU’s last three contests the sophomore has averaged 18.7 points per game including a career-high 24 in the loss to the Golden Gophers in the Big Ten Tournament.
Cobb had ice packs all over his body after Tuesday’s win over Akron, but told reporters he was back at 100 percent. Cobb said he has had tendonitis in his hip and knee as well as a bulge on his back, which contributed to his missed action. He said he still has a long way to go to back into basketball shape and missing so much action.
“I’m still not where I need to be (conditioning-wise),” Cobb said. “I’m working on it. I still get winded and fatigued.”
The addition of Cobb into the offensive flow has created a different dynamic for the Cats. The guard has seen some success recently with a mid-range jumper that NU was not hitting on a consistent basis before. Cobb has also taken smarter shots, which has shown in his field goal percentage. Cobb hit 8 of his 10 shots against Akron on Tuesday and 8 of 12 against Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament.
Coach Bill Carmody said he feels the offense has had a better flow since Cobb has returned and emphasized the unique traits Cobb brings to the offense. Carmody said he now can draw plays for the sophomore out of timeouts because of his “creativity” in the low post.
Cobb put NU in a similar situation of longing for what could have been last season after injuring his hip during conference play. The Cats fell off the bubble of the NCAA Tournament after the injury and once again questions surround what the difference would be if Cobb would have been on the floor the entire season. Carmody said he cares more about getting Cobb experience on the court in preparation for next year.
“JerShon hasn’t played that much,” Carmody said. “If you can play a bunch of games now and that’s really significant. Cobb has shown that, each game he seems to be getting a little bit better.”
Senior forward John Shurna echoed his coach’s comments. He said Cobb is a pivotal part of this team and the Cats can rely on him to make the crucial play when needed to on both ends of the court.
“We all know how great a player JerShon is,” Shurna said. “The more he plays the better he gets, and we saw that last year. We know how big he is for our team and how he is able to step up and make big plays both offensively and defensively.”
The Cats will hope Cobb can propel them back into the NIT quarterfinals as they return to the state of last year’s season-ending loss – a 69-66 overtime loss to Washington State. NU (19-13) will travel to Seattle to face Pac-12 regular season champion Washington on Friday night.
The Huskies (22-10) are coming off a 10-point win over Texas-Arlington and are the top seed in NU’s quarter of the bracket. They are led by guard Tony Wroten who is averaging 16.4 points per game. He is joined in the backcourt by Terrence Ross who is averaging 15.5 points per game and C.J. Wilcox who has 14 points per contest.
