Men's Basketball: Cats come up short against Hoosiers

Freshman guard Michael Thompson had two chances to give Northwestern its first conference victory of the season. Thompson drove the lane with 20 seconds left, with the Wildcats down just one point, and got to the basket. He put up a shot over Indiana forward D.J. White, but it fell short.

Thompson missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer which would have sent the game to overtime as the No. 15 Hoosiers avoided the upset at Welsh-Ryan Arena 85-82.

The Cats (7-18, 0-14 Big Ten) led for much of the game, but trailed coming down the stretch. They erased a 6-point deficit and for the second straight game and see-sawed in and out of the lead against the Hoosiers (23-4, 13-2) as the game came down the stretch.

NU had a chance to win the game for the second straight outing. The team missed two 3-pointers which would have given it the first conference win of the season Tuesday against Iowa.

Sophomore forward Kevin Coble scored a career high 37 points and grabbed five rebounds. Thompson scored 15 points and junior guard Craig Moore added 12.

The Hoosiers were playing a day after the school announced the resignation of former coach Kelvin Sampson. The team was coached by former assistant Dan Dakich.

Dakich said the team seemed a little distracted from the emotional roller coaster the team has been on throughout the week, but pulled through it in the end. Guard Armon Bassett had 24 points and Jordan Crawford scored 21 points off the bench for Indiana.

The Hoosiers shot 56 percent from the floor and hit 30 of 37 free throws, overcoming the 17 turnovers the Cats forced.

NU, still in search of its first conference win, will play at Michigan on Tuesday night.

Men's Basketball: Cats Feel First Win is Near

Northwestern walked off the floor at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Tuesday night the closest it has been this season to a conference win. The Wildcats had two Craig Moore 3-pointers hit off the front rim which potentially could have won the game. Instead Iowa walked off with the 53-51 win.

The loss was the team's first by less than 10 points and was nearly the breakthrough win the team has been looking for since the beginning of the conference season in January.

"We haven't won in a while, so we almost have to remember how to win and control a game," Moore said. "(Tuesday) we were struggling a little bit in the first half, but we were playing great defense, getting rebounds and not letting them get second chances. We knew in the second half we were going to shoot better and we did that. But we didn't fight hard enough on defense."

NU has rarely played with a lead late in the game, but the team has played in competitive games throughout the conference season.

The Cats held a 14-point lead against Iowa on Tuesday, but also had a two-point lead against No. 14 Purdue on Saturday after coming from behind early in the second half. NU also trailed by single digits in recent games against Ohio State, No. 19 Michigan State and No. 15 Indiana.

The Cats trailed by just six points with less than eight minutes to play at Bloomington, Ind. on Feb. 3. The Hoosiers travel to Evanston in the Cats' next game Saturday.

The close calls have been disheartening and frustrating for this team, but it should help them gain experience for the next time they play with a lead.

"We had a lead and we haven’t had that big of a lead all Big Ten season," senior guard Jason Okrzesik said. "Coach (Bill Carmody) was saying at the end, ‘We don’t know how to play with a lead,’ and you can tell it out there. I think it’s something we need to work on in practice."

Okrzesik said experience is the only way to learn how to manage a lead. With 13 conference losses, playing with a lead is a premium NU has not been able to afford.

The two most recent games, where the Cats have held a lead in the second half, are signs the team is on the verge of piecing together its first conference win.

"We’re right there and we know it. We’ve just got to keep going and keep plugging away," Moore said. "We come back to practice Thursday, we just have to have the same enthusiasm we had the last two days and know we’re right there."

Men's Basketball: Cats Prepare for Homestand

Northwestern has struggled to an 0-10 record in the conference this season. It is the team's first 0-10 record since 2000.

But the Wildcats have a good opportunity to try and grab a few wins. They will be playing two consecutive home games for the first time since Jan. 2--and even then they had to wait 13 days between their first home game against Howard on Dec. 20 and their Big Ten opener against Penn State on Jan. 2.

NU (7-14, 0-10 Big Ten) begins the week at home Wednesday against Ohio State (16-8, 7-4) and concludes the two-game set at home against Big Ten-leading No. 19 Purdue (19-5, 10-1) on Saturday.

"You've got to be able to win your home games, regardless of who the opponent is," junior guard Sterling Williams said. "If we can get a win on Wednesday, it would be a big lift to our team morale and overall confidence. It's a game we think we should win. If we play the way we are capable of, it's something we can do."

When playing at least two consecutive games at home, the Cats have gone winless only once since 2000 (when coach Bill Carmody became head coach). They dropped two consecutive games to Ohio State and Minnesota last season.

The home games will be a nice break for NU. The team has played a road game each week since conference season began. The travel--whether it is as close as Chicago State or as far as East Lansing, Mich.--can wear on players.

Senior guard Jason Okrzesik said the advantage of playing at home can be as simple as allowing a team or a player to keep to his routine. It is also nice not to have to get on a bus or plane to go to a game.

Carmody said this team is not playing particularly well at home recently. While the break from the road gives a much-needed rest, the Cats cannot let their guard down just because they are playing in the friendly confines of Welsh-Ryan Arena.

But the two home games will still be a nice break on some road-weary players.

"It's always good to play when you're at home," Carmody said. "The travel certainly has to wear on you eventually, especially when you get later on in the season in February when you are playing some guys a lot of minutes. ... Sometimes that can show up at the end of the year."

NU gets one more set of consecutive home games this season, closing the schedule with Iowa and Wisconsin in the first week of March.

Men's Basketball: NU Picks Up Pieces from Loss

Coach Bill Carmody said after Northwestern's 70-37 loss to Illinois on Sunday that nothing went right. The Wildcats scored the first three points of the game and never saw the lead again, shooting 31 percent on the night. The Wildcats fell to 0-7 in the Big Ten for the first time since 2003 (the team won its eighth conference game, against Indiana).

Northwestern struggled to get much going offensively and were beaten defensively by an athletic Illinois team, which was also struggling at the bottom of the Big Ten standings.

The loss left the Cats searching for answers heading into their final non-conference game Wednesday night against Texas-Pan American and the rest of the Big Ten schedule ahead.

"We really need to just focus on what we do and not worry about the other team so much," sophomore forward Jeff Ryan said. "We’re making a lot of mistakes ourselves. We’re beating ourselves with turnovers and mistakes on defense. It’s just getting back to doing what we do best and trying to work hard in practice every day."

Carmody said what the other team does is not important. He is concerned more with how the team is playing together and how it plays offensively and defensively more than with NU's opponents. He said the Cats need to play well to get a win.

Sophomore forward Kevin Coble called Sunday's game a "fluke." He said the game was a step backward and the team needs to continue to progress and find positives in each game.

Players were in early Tuesday working on individual workouts and individual games. Carmody hopes the hard work comes together starting Wednesday.

"We need a win and you have to play well," Carmody said. "It’s real basic. I think the guys are playing hard. The guys are coming in for extra shooting and extra individual stuff and it’s got to pay off."

Men's Basketball: Opponents Don't Overlook Cats

Northwestern may be 6-10 and 0-6 in the conference, but they are hardly a team which teams circle on the calendar and think of as an easy win.

When teams come to Welsh-Ryan Arena or play the Wildcats at home, they know they are in for a challenge.

"Northwestern is always a tricky team," Minnesota forward Dan Coleman said after his team defeated NU 82-63 at Williams Arena on Jan. 9. "Usually, if they beat you, it's because you didn't execute well or play well. Tonight, we didn't get beat on those back cuts or trick plays, and that's huge because that's energy plays for them."

NU presents a lot of challenges to teams. The team plays the complex Princeton offense, which can tire defenses into giving up back door cuts and easy layups with its constant motion.

The defense also presents problems. The Cats typically play a 1-3-1 zone and put a lot of pressure on opposing point guards and perimeter players by trapping the ball. Michigan State was able to attack the corners -- the weakness of the zone -- in its 78-62 win Thursday night, but struggled with turnovers. The Spartans committed 16 turnovers.

Ohio State guard Evan Turner said his team struggled against the defense in finding gaps and taking care of the ball. The Buckeyes committed 20 miscues in their 62-51 win on Jan. 6. But Turner noted the Cats never gave up and hit shots, helping them cut the lead to four points in the second half.

Teams in the Big Ten recognize the unique challenges NU presents. Both their offense and defense are unusual sets to play. With players like sophomore forward Kevin Coble and freshman guard Michael Thompson developing into solid players, the Cats can present even more challenges.

"This is a hard team to play both offensively and defensively," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said after Thursday's win. "We made some shots that we don't normally make. They are a tough team to play against because Coble is a hell of a player and (junior guard Craig) Moore had a coming out party against us tonight (scoring a career-high 28 points). The guy I like, who didn't play as well tonight, is the Thompson kid. He played very well on film and we did a very good job on him."

NU has earned the respect of opponents, but the team has yet this season to put the flashes of strong play opposing coaches have seen in them into a conference victory.

Administration: Making a Good AD

Northwestern is currently in the process of searching for a new Director of Athletics and Recreation after former director Mark Murphy stepped down to become the CEO and president of the NFL's Green Bay Packers.

University President Henry S. Bienen is conducting the search for a new athletic director. Director of Media Relations Charles Loebbaka said the search may take a long time, but it is continuing.

To fill the gap between the previous athletic director and the next one is Bob Gundlach. Bienen named Gundlach the Interim Director of Athletics and Recreation on Dec. 18. Gundlach has performed the duties of athletic director since Jan. 1.

Gundlach has been around the athletic program since 1988, when he was part of the committee on athletics and recreation. The linguistics professor has served as a faculty representative for the school at the conference and national level since 2002.

He said he was not being considered for the permanent position and will return to his role as a faculty representative once a new AD is found.

Gundlach said being the chair of a large organization -- or even a small one like his linguistics department -- is about being able to manage different leaders. Linguistics professor Gregory Ward said what Gundlach did well as chair was listening to different opinions and making sure everyone's voices were heard. He very rarely moved forward without a consensus in his department.

Despite being in the position for a short time, Gundlach still has a vision for what NU athletics should aspire to be. He said the program's foundation is integrity -- playing ethically and fairly and working as a team -- and then on striving for excellence.

"Any time a new person comes in, I think it’s an opportunity to take a fresh look at how we balance the different goals we have," Gundlach said. "A new athletic director would have to take a look at all the programs and ask again how we are aligned with the mission of the entire university and ask what it means to maintain that commitment to integrity and to strive for excellence in all the programs that we tackle. I think the main challenge is to take full fresh look at what we’re doing.”

Gundlach said he believes the new athletic director will need to have a firm commitment to NU's values as a school. They will need to balance the academic experience of student-athletes and the academic excellence the entire school strives for.

Ultimately a good athletic director is someone who is committed to the best possible experience for the student-athletes and the university.

"You need someone -- and I think we were fortunate with Mark Murphy -- who is committed to the highest quality experience for student-athletes across the whole spectrum, not only as students, but also as athletes and maybe that combination of what you learn as a student-athlete at Northwestern," Gundlach said. "It's not always easy, it's not always perfect at Northwestern. But I think to keep pushing as hard as we can for the highest quality experience for student-athletes is a good cornerstone for the quality you look for in an athletic director."

Men's Basketball: Cats Change Game Plan

Coach Bill Carmody said at the beginning of the season Northwestern would try and push the ball more with a true point guard in freshman Michael Thompson starting. The team did fairly well in the non-conference schedule, going 5-4 and shooting 48 percent in the first nine games of the season.

But the shooting has dropped off and the team has struggled since then, losing four straight entering Wednesday’s game against Chicago State. Now Carmody is beginning to re-think the strategy.

“I think maybe we’re just putting too much emphasis on pushing the ball downcourt and trying to get some shots,” Carmody said. “I think that helped us early in the year because Craig (Moore) and Jason (Okrzesik) were getting some early looks and knocking them down. Now I think it’s more (that) we’re doing that, but the other teams are doing it too and they like that kind of game. It helps them more than it helps us.”

Carmody said he feels more comfortable running a half-court offense with sophomore forward Kevin Coble back in the lineup. He said Coble gives the team a guy who can put the ball in the basket in a half-court setting. He is now worried about the team’s defense, getting the ball on rebounds and executing on offense.

The faster pace will still be there, but Carmody said it will be used more judiciously.…

With a four-game losing streak, Carmody might be looking to shake the lineup a little bit. He said Saturday sophomore guard Jeremy Nash could see more playing time as the team continues to struggle defensively.

“(I am) probably going to have to look to get him in there a little bit,” Carmody said. “Defensively he gives us something. We’re not getting much offense from the other guys. He has always been a smart player. He’s very healthy now.”

Nash missed the first eight games of the season with a back injury and has struggled to crack the rotation after averaging 2.4 points and 0.7 steals per game in 26 games as a freshman. He is averaging 2.7 points per game in three games this season and scored a season-high six points in three minutes late during Saturday’s game.…

Sophomore Kevin Coble missed practice Monday to be with his mother for her final round of chemotherapy. The sophomore forward took a leave of absence from the team for the first nine games of the season to be with his mother in Arizona while she recovered from breast cancer.

He returned to the team Jan. 2 against Penn State and is averaging 18.3 points per game since returning, including a career-high 34 points Saturday.