Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Head to Virginia for Big Ten/ACC Challenge
11/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 26, 2007
NU Men's Basketball Game Notes vs. Virginia
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Northwestern competes in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge for the ninth consecutive season Tuesday as it travels to Virginia. The game will be televised live by ESPNU with Quint Kessenich and Hubert Davis on the call.
WGN Radio (720 AM) will also carry the game with Dave Eanet and Shon Morris calling the action.
The Wildcats own a 2-6 all-time record in the Challenge, including a 61-59 home win over Miami (Fla.) last season. Craig Moore scored a team-high 24 points while tying a school record with seven 3-pointers in the victory.
Both of the previous all-time meetings between the Wildcats and Virginia have come as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The Cavaliers defeated NU 48-44 in Evanston Dec. 1, 2004 and then 72-57 in Charlottesville Nov. 20, 2005.
Last Time Out
Northwestern rallied back from a 14-point first-half deficit to take a four-point lead midway through the second half, but visiting Brown was able to fight its way to a 73-67 win over the Wildcats at Welsh-Ryan Arena Saturday. Junior Sterling Williams paced NU with a career-high 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor. Craig Moore and Michael Thompson, who had a career-best nine assists, contributed 14 points apiece. Brown raced out to a 26-12 first half lead, as the Bears hit six three-point shots, four by McAndrew. Trailing 38-30 at the intermission, Northwestern outscored Brown 11-2 to open the second half to take a 41-40 lead. Williams scored seven points for the Wildcats, while NU forced Brown into five quick turnovers. The lead changed hands eight times for the remainder of the game. Trailing 68-66 with 31.9 seconds remaining, Northwestern had a chance to tie, but Thompson hit only one of two free throws. Brown sank five of its six free throws to close out the game.
Getting Moore Out of Craig
After struggling during his sophomore season, junior guard Craig Moore has stepped up so far this year. He ranks second behind Michael Thompson with averages of 12.8 points and 4.5 assists per game and he leads the team with a norm of 4.8 rebounds per contest. Moore ranks fifth in the Big Ten in assists, 16th in scoring and he is also 11th with a .424 3-point field goal percentage.
The Juice is Loose
Freshmen across the country have been getting all sorts of coverage based on the immediate contributions they have provided. One newcomer who has flown under the radar is Northwestern point guard Michael "Juice" Thompson. The Chicago native has enjoyed an as impressive start to a collegiate career as any NU player in recent memory, ranking first in the Big Ten with an average of 5.5 assists per game and ninth with a norm of 15.3 points per contest. Thompson scored 16 points, all in the second half, against No. 20 Stanford in his collegiate debut Nov. 15. It was the most points by a Wildcat player in his first college game since Vedran Vukusic also had 16 points in the 2001 season opener. Thompson showed his debut was a sign of things to come Nov. 17 against DePaul as he tallied a game-high 24 points. He handed out a team-high seven assists in a victory over Benedictine Nov. 20 and then handed out nine more against Brown on Saturday, ranking him in a tie for the eighth-best single-game effort in school history.
Offensive Explosion
Northwestern's performance in its win over Benedictine Nov. 20 was one for the recordbooks. The Wildcats set bests under eighth-year head coach Bill Carmody in points (95), field goals made (36) and assists (32). The point total was NU's highest since a 97-93 overtime win over Michigan March 12, 1994, while the 32 assists set a new Welsh-Ryan Arena record. Meanwhile, freshman Mike Capocci's seven steals rank as a tie for the fifth most in a game in school history.
Scouting Virginia
• The Cavaliers won their first five games of the season before dropping a 74-60 decision Saturday to Seton Hall in Philadelphia. Sean Singletary led Virginia with 23 points and seven assists. Adrian Joseph added 16 rebounds.
•Singletary was a first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection each of the past two seasons and was a third-team All-America pick of the National Association of Basketball Coaches a year ago.
•Virginia earned a share of the ACC regular season title last season, finished 21-11 overall and participated in its NCAA tournament since 2001.
•Dave Leitao is in his third season as the head coach at Virginia and was named the ACC Coach of the Year last season. Prior to coming to Charlotteville, Leitao was the head coach at DePaul for three years.
Up Next...
Northwestern returns home to Evanston to face Savannah State at 11 a.m. Saturday.
