Men’s Basketball

MADISON, Wis. —  For the first time in two years, Northwestern is finally unpredictable.

And on Sunday, the program earned its biggest surprise win in that time period.

Last season, the Wildcats boasted an almost impeccable 18-3 record against teams ranked below them in Kenpom’s Division I rankings, but a woeful 2-8 mark against teams ranked ahead of them.

This year had followed a similar pattern until recently. Entering this week, NU had beaten only one of ESPN’s projected at-large tournament teams— Dayton — after blowing opportunities to upset Butler and Notre Dame and watching Texas, a top-25 team entering its loss to the Cats, devolve into one of the Big 12’s worst squads.

The trend finally ended in an embarrassing way with Tuesday’s loss to Illinois. But Sunday’s victory over No. 7 Wisconsin (21-4, 10-2 Big Ten) more than counteracts the negative consequences of Tuesday’s letdown.

The Cats (19-6, 8-4) at last have a signature win to headline their tournament resume, ending an unsightly 16-game losing streak to top-10 teams and simultaneously snapping Wisconsin’s 19-game home winning streak.

“We’re trying to build a program to emulate what Wisconsin has done … with the right guys who want to believe in something bigger than themselves,” coach Chris Collins said. “When you get a chance to play against those teams firsthand, you learn from it, and then you have success. I want these guys to feel good about it. It was a great win for us.”

Few other programs nationwide can claim a victory as impressive as the one NU earned in Madison. The current top 10 teams in the AP poll have a combined 224-32 record this season and just 12 total losses against currently unranked teams — a small club the Cats just joined.

In terms of bracketology, NU had fallen to a No. 8 seed in ESPN’s Friday projection and looked likely to continue that downward momentum with upcoming matchups against the Badgers and No. 21 Maryland.

Sunday’s unexpected result re-solidifies the Cats’ position in the middle area of the bracket, however, and completely flips the outlook entering Wednesday’s meeting with the Terrapins. The meeting now represents another prime opportunity to secure a noteworthy win and prove the Wisconsin upset wasn’t a fluke.

But make no mistake — even with a loss to Maryland, NU is in fine shape. It boasts an excellent win-loss record, a No. 30 mark in the Kenpom rankings and, suddenly, a premier victory to flaunt to the selection committee.

After Sunday’s win, the Cats are scarily close to securing their first NCAA tournament berth ever.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @benpope111