Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Back Home to Meet Spartans
1/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 20, 2004
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EVANSTON, Ill. - When Northwestern men's basketball coach Bill Carmody first arrived in Evanston in September 2000, one of the things he talked about was making the Wildcats' Welsh-Ryan Arena "a true home-court advantage."
Last Wednesday was a prime example of what he was talking about.
Riding the momentum of a win at Iowa in the previous game, and the signing of Duke transfer Mike Thompson two days earlier, Northwestern knocked off 25th-ranked Illinois last Wednesday in front of a rollicking sellout crowd. It was exactly the type of atmosphere Carmody seeks on a regular basis at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Following the game, the thing that Carmody stressed as most pleasing to him was seeing all the students at both ends of the court. While he is appreciative of all the fans who come to Welsh-Ryan, he understands the enthusiasm a student body can provide.
When Carmody arrived at NU, the 'Cats had lost 22 straight Big Ten games; that stretch ran to 32 before they finally defeated nationally ranked Iowa at home. If you include that game, Northwestern is 11-9 at home against conference opponents.
The question for tonight is this: how do you replicate the atmosphere of the Illinois game for Michigan State? This time, the Wildcats are coming off a loss at Indiana Saturday, albeit without star forward Vedran Vukusic (he is a game-time decision for tonight).
Carmody certainly hopes the excitement generated by last week's game carries over. As he sees it, his team and the student body enjoy a symbiotic relationship -- his team performs well and, understandably, feeds off its home crowd; but it seems his team must have success to make the students more inclined to come out. It is a chicken-and-egg riddle that is not unique to Northwestern but certainly exists here.
Tonight's game ends the first leg of the Big Ten season; the 'Cats have one of their two byes this weekend. Prior to the season, Carmody could have said that the Big Ten scheduler did his team no favors -- three of these first five have been on the road, and the home games came against preseason favorites Illinois and Michigan State. The Wildcats will emerge with at least two wins, though, which sets the table, in a wide-open race, for an exciting conference campaign -- and, hopefully, a lot more full houses at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
GAME 17
Northwestern (7-8, 2-2 Big Ten) vs. Michigan State (7-7, 2-1 Big Ten)
Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2004 * 6 p.m. CST
Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117) * Evanston, Ill.
THE COACHES:
Northwestern: Bill Carmody, 4th season at NU (46-56); 8th season overall (138-81)
Michigan State: Tom Izzo, 9th season at MSU (196-85); same overall
TV: ESPN+ Local (Tom Hamilton, play-by-play; Shon Morris, analyst)
RADIO: WGN Radio 720 AM (Dave Eanet, play-by-play; David Kaplan, analyst)
The Fun Fact
Northwestern's 11-9 record in its last 20 Big Ten home games is the best stretch ever in Welsh-Ryan Arena. NU went 12-8 at "home" during the 1982-84 conference campaigns; after splitting the last two home games of 1982, the 'Cats went 7-2 in 1983 and 4-5 in 1984. Note that all 1983 "home games" were played at DePaul's Alumni Hall while McGaw Hall was being renovated into Welsh-Ryan Arena. Prior to that, NU went 14-6 in the old McGaw Hall from 1968 (7-0) and 1969 (4-3) into 1970 (3-3 in first six).
The NU-Michigan State Series
* The Wildcats and the Spartans are meeting for the 103rd time, with Michigan State leading the series 66-36.
* These teams have met just once each of the past two seasons; last year, Michigan State took a 64-51 decision in East Lansing.
* The last time these teams played in Evanston was Feb. 6, 2002 (a 61-49 NU win); prior to that victory, the last Northwestern win over Michigan State occurred Feb. 19, 1997.
* NU head coach Bill Carmody is 1-3 against the Spartans during his tenure with the Wildcats; he also lost to MSU in the second round of the 1998 NCAA Tournament, when he was head coach at Princeton.
