As graduate student center Matthew Nicholson prepared for Northwestern’s Monday contest with UCLA, the team’s previous outing against its West Coast foe echoed in his head.
He recalled a trip to the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, where the Bruins ended the Wildcats’ 2023 season in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32. Coach Mick Cronin’s squad was gritty, prevailing in the down-to-the-wire game over an NU team led by former guard Boo Buie.
Nonetheless, that competition — a part of the ’Cats’ first March Madness appearance in six years — started what Nicholson hoped would become the foundation for yearly tournament runs. He pointed to regrets from assistant coach and former guard Bryant McIntosh — whose team missed the NCAA Tournament after earning a spot in its first March Madness in 2017.
“(After making the tournament), we just had a look and were like, ‘what else can we do?’” Nicholson said. “Building the culture here — Bryant McIntosh says it all the time — it’s something that he wishes he would have done (in 2017-18) because they made it to March Madness, and then the next year, they kind of fell off.”
Nicholson’s vision came true. The program returned to the heights of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year in 2024 — a first for NU.
However, as multiple players from those tournaments played their final game at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Senior Night — including Nicholson — UCLA (21-9, 12-7 Big Ten) struck a potentially fatal blow to the Wildcats’ (16-14, 7-12 Big Ten) chances for a third consecutive appearance with another narrow win, 73-69.
The defeat raised the likelihood that Nicholson’s desire to expand the culture he and his peers developed would have to be left to NU’s next generation.
A Big Ten Tournament run isn’t impossible, but it figures to be a steep task for NU, which is 7-12 in conference play. The team will attempt to make the improbable run to the Big Dance without two influential players, senior guard Brooks Barnhizer and graduate student guard Jalen Leach, who are out for the season.
“(McIntosh) wishes that he kept it going, which is what we did with Boo (Buie) last year,” Nicholson said. “This year, we were really trying — I know that if Brooks and Leach didn’t get hurt, there would have been a different story.”
Despite the slimming chances of a third consecutive trip to March Madness, the ’Cats refuse to bow out until it’s over, as evidenced by their resilience Monday.
Trailing by double-digit points with a minute left, graduate student guard Ty Berry and Nicholson combined for nine points in 35 seconds to cut the Bruins’ lead to one point. But, junior forward Nick Martinelli — who had 20 points — turned the ball over with 12 seconds remaining, and freshman guard K.J. Windham committed a flagrant foul that sealed the contest.
The graduating players’ production was a reminder of what they contributed throughout their careers. Berry added timely buckets during his 22-point, seven-rebound night, while Nicholson delivered solid post play that included two blocks.
“(Berry and Nicholson) were part of a group that really kind of reignited the energy in this program over the last three to four years,” coach Chris Collins said.
Nicholson said he’s proud of NU’s accomplishments despite an injury-riddled season. Berry emphasized the importance of resilience, knowing how college basketball in March can feature improbable comebacks.
“I feel like we left it all out there for these last five years, and we’re going to continue to fight the rest of the season,” Berry said.
The ’Cats’ future talent will frequently face UCLA, as conference realignment has brought the newly painfully familiar opponent to the Big Ten. The division also has even greater depth, as 16 teams in the 18-side division rank in Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings’ top 80.
Without the support of injured stars, stringing together three consecutive wins — which NU accomplished entering Monday — marked a remarkable feat of perseverance in the evolving conference.
“I’m proud of what these guys have done, but obviously, there will always be a little bit of, what if we had a healthy Brooks and a healthy Leach this whole year?” Collins said.
Sophomore guard Jordan Clayton and Windham could be elements of the ’Cats’ next generation after being thrust into feature roles following NU’s midseason injuries.
Windham flourished with extended playing time, surpassing the 20-minute mark in four straight games — a number he had only exceeded in five games prior. The Indianapolis native scored 20 and 15 points in critical wins over Iowa and Ohio State.
Against UCLA, Windham added 10 points, and NU was plus-4 when he was on-court.
Despite a somewhat inefficient 4-11 evening, he splashed consecutive 3-pointers in the first quarter to provide NU a 22-21 lead before missing a deep ‘heat check’ attempt. Later in the first period, he slipped an equalizing layup past 7-foot-3 Bruin center Aday Mara.
Moments like these could become routine for Windham, especially if he wants to help fulfill Nicholson’s wishes.
“K.J. is going to be a great player for this program, and that’s what you got to do,” said Berry, referring to Windham and his heat-check 3-pointer. “We all have confidence in K.J. taking his shots. I’m pretty sure if I was him, I would have done the exact same.”
Clayton, who started his seventh game, did not score Monday but recorded six assists and seven rebounds.
NU also has an incoming signing class ranked within 247Sports’ top ten, including forward Tre Singleton, the No. 2 player from Indiana.
When those players feature, it could happen in front of a packed Welsh-Ryan Arena, which saw a midseason decline in liveliness but returned to its 2022-23 and 2023-24 form Monday — mainly because of the efforts of graduating seniors.
After every Berry 3-pointer, the stadium rocked as NU Wildside, the school’s student section, was on its feet the entire evening. When the Bruins had the ball, the crowd maintained a high noise level throughout their possessions, awaiting a Nicholson block.
Collins credited the graduating class with supplying an on-court product that drew considerable crowds. As their departure nears, it will be up to the next generation of talents to build upon their legacy.
“It’s up to us to keep this thing going,” Collins said. “To keep the product at a level where people want to keep showing up for us, supporting us and giving us that kind of energy.”
Email: [email protected]
X: @kamran_nia
Related Stories:
— Rapid Recap: UCLA 73, Northwestern 69
— Men’s Basketball: Windham displays boundless potential in 20-point performance against Iowa
