INDIANAPOLIS — For the second consecutive year, Northwestern’s hopes of a program-first Big Ten Tournament title were dashed by No. 18 Wisconsin Thursday.
Following an eight-point win over Minnesota in their previous showing, the Wildcats (17-16, 7-13 Big Ten) returned to Gainbridge Fieldhouse for a second-round matchup with the Badgers (24-8, 13-7 Big Ten), but fell 70-63.
Junior forward Nick Martinelli led the all scorers with 22 points on a day when he became the leading single-season scorer in NU history.
NU got off to a strong start, courtesy of a pair of players who entered the starting lineup midway through the season. Junior guard Justin Mullins hit a corner three to open the scoring, and sophomore guard Jordan Clayton scored the next five points to put NU ahead 8-3.
Wisconsin stayed within reach, before taking its first lead of the game on a Kamari McGee triple to give the Badgers a 20-17 lead with 9:28 remaining in the first half.
Badger guard John Tonje’s buzzer-beating midrange jumper put the tournament’s 5th-seed up 37-30 at the break, its largest lead of the game to that point.
As the second-half got off to a slow start, NU found itself in deepening foul trouble, amassing seven team fouls as five unique players had racked up three personals.
The Badgers used unconscious 3-point shooting to go on a 12-4 run midway through the second period that extended their lead to 62-46. Despite a late surge from the ’Cats that saw them cut the deficit to seven, Wisconsin’s lead was never seriously threatened.
Here are three takeaways from Northwestern’s potentially season-ending loss to Wisconsin:
1. Foul trouble paves the way for second-half Badger pull-away
In a game where NU had little margin for error against a top-20 team in the nation, early foul trouble hampered its ability to impose its signature physicality on Wisconsin.
By the 12-minute mark in the second half, five Wildcats had accumulated at least three personal fouls — Clayton, Mullins, Martinelli and freshman guards K.J. Windham and Angelo Ciaravino.
The Badgers and ‘Cats shot at a remarkably similar clip from the field for much of the contest. At halftime, both squads were 11-28 on field goal attempts and 25% from 3-point range — Wisconsin was 3-12, while NU was 2-8.
Yet, Wisconsin’s ability to drive downhill and earn trips to the free throw line proved decisive. Heading into the intermission, the Badgers had 15 attempts from the charity stripe, compared to NU’s seven. They converted that advantage into six more points from free throws.
Early in the second half, the ’Cats continued to rack up fouls, committing eight in the first eight minutes. While the free-throw disparity narrowed substantially to just one point in the second portion of the half, NU’s cautious defending allowed the Badgers to open up a safe double-digit lead.
NU is no stranger to free-throw disparities this season. The ’Cats took more free-throw attempts than their opponents in just five of 20 Big Ten regular season games this season, winning all five of those contests — against Illinois, USC, Ohio State, Minnesota and Iowa. A 45-21 disparity at Penn State early in the conference season drew special attention from NU fans.
Coach Chris Collins alluded to his perception of unfair officiating following Wednesday’s 72-64 win over Minnesota in the first round of the tournament, in a press conference in which he also claimed the Big Ten was “trying to get us” by placing the team in an overheated hotel.
“You guys are the ones tweeting out how we’re being officiated and how we’re being treated, so I don’t have to say anything.” Collins said. “You guys watch the same games I do.”
2. Martinelli breaks single-season scoring record
Following a 28-point effort against Minnesota Wednesday, Martinelli got off to a slower scoring start against Wisconsin. Despite making an immediate impact on the glass, the junior did not record his first points until there was just over 12 minutes left to play in the first half.
Martinelli entered Thursday’s contest in search of just eight points to break NU’s all-time single-season scoring record.
As the ball circulated between less frequent contributors like Clayton and Mullins for much of the opening 20 minutes, Martinelli etched his name in program history as he drained a signature, off-balance floater late in the first half — his 662nd and 663rd points of the season — to surpass former NU forward John Shurna’s previous record-holding 2011-12 campaign.
Martinelli managed 13 points in the second half and recorded his 18th 20-plus point output this season in the loss.
3. Season-ending loss
With its Thursday loss to the Badgers, NU’s hopes of a March Madness berth have dissipated.
Though the team would likely qualify for postseason alternatives such as Fox Sports’s College Basketball Crown Tournament — which takes place from March 1 to April 6 in Las Vegas — Collins has repeatedly insinuated that the Big Ten Tournament could be the end of the line for his veteran players.
Following the team’s win over Minnesota Wednesday, Collins said: “I want the best for my guys. I got Ty Berry — the next time he loses his career is over.”
With 20 seconds remaining in the contest, Collins called a timeout to substitute out soon-to-be graduates Berry, Nicholson and graduate student center Keenan Fitzmorris, signaling a possible end to their careers.
Though the ’Cats would likely be among the top two non-NCAA Tournament-qualifying Big Ten teams who would automatically receive Crown Tournament bids, Collins told WGN Radio postgame that his squad will not participate in a non-NCAA postseason tournament.
That means the NU season is over.
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