Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Welcomes Wheaton (Ill.) Thursday Night
12/13/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 13, 2006
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Dec. 14, 2006 -- 7 p.m. CT
Northwestern (5-2) vs. Wheaton (Ill.) (5-2)
Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117)
Evanston, Ill.
The Broadcasts
Radio -- WGN 720 AM
(Dave Eanet, play-by-play; Dave Kaplan analyst)
EVANSTON, Ill. -- The Northwestern Wildcats (5-2), winners of four-straight, welcome the Wheaton (Ill.) Thunder (5-2) to Welsh-Ryan Arena at 7 p.m. Thursday night. The 'Cats will attempt to match their longest win streak since last season when they won five-straight from Dec. 18-Jan. 7. The last time the Wildcats won six-straight games was in 2001, coach Carmody's second season in Evanston.
The Wildcats have won their last three games by a combined five points and are coming off a 77-75 overtime win against Western Michigan last Saturday. In the game, Craig Moore and Kevin Coble each recorded career highs (26 and 25, respectively), scoring 51 of NU's 77 points.
The Division III Thunder, meanwhile, also are 5-2. They have not played since their 112-52 win over Principia College back on Dec. 6. Wheaton is ranked No. 24 in the latest D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll.
A Northwestern Win Would ...
Give the Wildcats their fifth-straight victory, matching their longest win streak since winning five in a row last season from Dec. 18-Jan. 7. The last time NU won six in a row was in 2001.
Improve the Wildcats to 6-2, NU's best start to a season since the team went 8-2 to open the 2001-02 campaign, Carmody's second season in Evanston.
The Series
This is the first meeting between the two schools.
About The Thunder
Noting the Western Michigan Game
Moore Heating Up
After a record-tying performance in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge win over Miami (Fla.), sophomore Craig Moore followed that up Saturday night with a career-high 26 points in the 77-75 overtime win over Western Michigan as the Wildcats improved to 5-2 -- matching the best season start for NU in the last four years. Moore was 8-of-11 from the field, hit 6-of-9 from 3-point range and 4-of-5 from the stripe. He also had a game-high three steals in 41 minutes of action.
Moore, who tied the school record for 3's in a game with seven against the Hurricanes, has scored 50 points in the last two games (25.0 ppg). He is 16-of-22 (72 percent) from the field and 13-of-19 (68 percent) from long range. Compare that to the first five games of the season when Moore was averaging just 6.0 ppg and shooting 23 percent (6-of-26) from long range.
He leads the Wildcats this season with 19 3-pointers and 11.4 ppg. He is third in the Big Ten with 2.71 3FG per game and 10th in 3FG percentage (.422).
Moore Best Over Two-Game Stretch
Craig Moore's 13 makes from behind the arc over the last two games is the best mark over a two-game stretch in Northwestern's history. The previous mark was 12 set by Geno Carlisle in 1996 and again by Sean Wink in 1997. Carlisle hit 17 in a three-game span and 22 over a four-game -- both in 1996--and both school records.
Youngsters Key Four-Game Streak
Over the current four-game win streak, the Wildcats have received big contributions from a freshman and sophomore. Second-year man Craig Moore leads the 'Cats with 15.5 ppg over the last four games and is shooting 51 percent from behind the arc (16-of-31) Freshman Kevin Coble, meanwhile, is averaging 12.3 ppg and shooting 53 percent (18-of-34) from the field in that same stretch. More impressively, the duo is a combined 18-of-22 (.818) from the FT line.
Nail Biters
If the non conference portion of the schedule is any indication, the Wildcats are in for one heart-pounding season. Five of the seven games this year have been decided by five points or less, with the Wildcats winning their last three games by a total of five points. They dropped a 64-61 decision to Cornell to open the season as Craig Moore's three to tie it at the end rimmed out. The other defeat was at Stanford when the Wildcats had the Cardinal on the ropes, tying the game at 53-all with under two minutes to go.
Northwestern In The NCAA Ranks
According to the latest NCAA Division I statistical report, Northwestern ranks No. 2 nationally in fewest turnovers per game (10.6) and is eighth in scoring defense, giving up just 53.4 ppg. They also are 17th with only 15.1 personal fouls per contest.
The Wildcats turned the ball over a season-low five times in the win over cross-town rival DePaul--with two of those coming on shot clock violations. They also kept the TO's in the single digits against Miami (Fla.) with only nine miscues. Individually, Tim Doyle is 13th in the nation with 6.14 assists per game while Craig Moore is 66th in 3-point FG percentage.
Northwestern In The Big Ten
The Wildcats are the second-best defensive team in the Big Ten, giving up just 53.4 ppg. They also rank third in steals (8.29 spg) and fourth in field goal defense (.392). They have the best assist/turnover ratio in the league (+1.43) and the best turnover margin (+5.00).
Individually, Craig Moore ranks 20th in scoring (11.4 ppg) and third in both FT percentage (.833) and 3FG made per game (2.71). Tim Doyle leads the league in minutes played (36.8), is third in assists per game (6.14), fifth in assist/turnover ratio (+2.53), 22nd in scoring (10.6) and 12th in FT percentage (.706). Vince Scott leads the conference in assist/turnover ratio (+3.43) and 13th in both assists per game (3.43) and blocked shots (1.14).
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