As senior forward Drew Crawford and junior guard JerShon Cobb took the podium for the post-game news conference after defeating Lewis in an exhibition match Wednesday, the most notable thing about them was their matching shirts, emblazoned with the motto, “New Start/NU Era”.
Northwestern’s veteran wingmen embody the attitude that first-year coach Chris Collins is trying to instill in his program. Cobb returns after sitting out all of last year due to academic suspension, and Crawford is back on the court after a disappointing and injury-riddled 2012-13 campaign. For everyone on the roster, it’s a different season.
“With all the injuries that had gone on last year, my goal was ‘Let’s just start fresh.'” Collins said. “New attitude, new energy. I’m coming in with a fresh set of eyes, I’m giving everyone a clean slate, and I think the guys have been energized by that.”
Crawford, at least, was energized against the Flyers, supplying 15 points and a game-icing 3-pointer in an otherwise sloppy 57-46 Wildcat victory. For the upcoming regular-season opener Saturday against Eastern Illinois and beyond, NU will lean heavily on the scoring abilities of its most talented player. However, Collins is optimistic that another player, like Cobb, will emerge during the season to take some of the pressure off Crawford.
“JerShon has great basketball instincts,” Collins said. “Really good size for a guard. … There’s going to be times when he plays as a wing, and there’s going to be times when he brings the ball up the floor. … He may end up being our leading scorer at the end of the day, and I think he’s excited by that role.”
Two big unknowns for the Cats coming into the season are redshirt freshman forward Sanjay Lumpkin and true freshman forward Nathan Taphorn. Lumpkin played in only four games last season before redshirting, and Taphorn is entirely unproven on collegiate courts, but both players performed well in Wednesday’s exhibition. Starting the game and logging a team-high 31 minutes, Lumpkin made a significant contribution with 8 points and eight rebounds. Taphorn chipped in with 10 points of his own and was a perfect two-for-two from long range.
“We have a number of hybrid players … that are kind of interchangeable parts,” Collins said. “We don’t have a number of big, front-line bodies.”
Depth in the low post will be a major concern for NU. The squad’s premiere big men are sophomore Alex Olah, a 7-foot center, and senior Nikola Cerina, a 6-foot-9 forward. Collins envisions these players sharing minutes because he is cautious of playing them at the same time due to concerns of fatigue and foul trouble. With this limitation in place, the Cats will be left with a very small lineup out on the court at any given time.
In order to tie it all together, NU must find depth at the point guard position. Junior Dave Sobolewski has been a standout, starting every game since he stepped onto campus. However, the minutes leader for the team the past two seasons needs a reliable backup who can give him some rest during games. Redshirt sophomore guard Tre Demps looked to be that player against Lewis, but the offense seemed lost without Sobolewski on the floor, and Demps struggled with his shooting, failing to hit a single shot.
Regardless of the challenges facing the team, it’s clear that Collins has his players motivated and ready for the season ahead.
“I don’t think there’s such a thing in sports as a transition year,” Crawford said. “You want to go into every year doing the best you can to win and you want to win every game you play.”
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @bobbypillote
