Northwestern University Athletics
NU Closes Out Pre-Conference Slate Against Central Connecticut State
12/21/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 21, 2009
Central Connecticut State at Northwestern
Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117)
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2009
Evanston, Ill. • 7 p.m.
Streaming Video: BigTenNetwork.com (Rob Coons and Mark Carman)
Audio: WIND-AM 560 and wgnradio.com (Dave Eanet and Sterling Williams)
Gametracker: NUsports.com
In-game Twitter updates: @NU_SportsLIVE
Northwestern Game Notes (PDF)
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern wraps up the primary portion of its nonconference season Tuesday night as it hosts Central Connecticut State at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Live streaming video of the contest can be accessed via BigTenNetwork.com.
The Wildcats (9-1) enter as winners of eight straight contests and will look to equal their longest winning streak since the 1993-94 squad opened with nine straight victories. A victory against the Blue Devils would give Northwestern its second-best start to a season in school history behind only the 1930-31 Big Ten championship squad which opened 12-0.
NU is coming off a 70-62 win over Stanford last Saturday, the Wildcats' fourth win this season over a nonconference BCS foe. Only Texas, Kentucky and Wisconsin have also matched that total. John Shurna led Northwestern with 22 points and eight rebounds in the win over the Cardinal. The 'Cats forced 18 Stanford turnovers in the contest.
The Wildcats have two remaining non-conference games scheduled once the Big Ten season starts, against Texas-Pan American Jan. 7 and vs. Chicago State March 3.
Series History: First meeting. Northwestern is 5-0 all-time against members of the Northeast Conference, defeating Robert Morris twice and Long Island, Monmouth and St. Francis (N.Y.) once apiece.
Scouting Central Connecticut State
• Central Connecticut State (3-5) is playing its first game since posting a 70-68 overtime home win over Albany Dec. 12. Vince Rosario came off the bench to score a game-high 17 points, while David Simmons contributed a double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds.
• Junior guard Shemik Thompson leads the Blue Devils with an average of 14.0 points per game. Simmons posts norms of 7.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest.
• Howie Dickenman is in his 14th season as the head coach of the Blue Devils and had been named NEC Coach of the Year four times.
So Far, So Good
Northwestern's 9-1 record is the best 10-game start to a season during the Carmody era and the best by a Wildcat team in 16 years. The Wildcats have started 7-1 in consecutive seasons for the first time in school history. NU earned five wins in the month of November this season for the first time ever. A win over Central Connecticut State would equal NU's longest win streak since the 1993-94 season when it opened the campaign with nine straight victories. The Wildcats would also tie the 2006-07 team for the most wins prior to the new year (10).
Bombs Away!
Northwestern's 20 3-point makes and 47 3-point attempts in the win over North Carolina A&T Dec. 13 both established new Big Ten records. The 20 makes bested the previous conference mark of 18 set by Ohio State against LSU Jan. 15, 2005, while the 47 attempts topped Michigan's total of 42 against Florida Gulf Coast Dec. 22, 2008. The previous school records were 15 makes vs. Arkansas State Dec. 3, 2007 and 36 attempts at Ohio State Feb. 1, 2003. The Wildcats lead the Big Ten and rank sixth nationally with an average 10.0 3-point makes per game.
Helping Hand
Northwestern is well known for playing "team" offense and that's reflected in the statistics. The Wildcats have assisted on 74.7 percent of their field goals this season, posting 177 assists on their 237 made baskets. The percentage ranks first in the nation. In fact, NU has ranked in the top five nationally in assist percentage each of Bill Carmody's 10 seasons as head coach. The Wildcats assisted on 25 of their 30 field goals in last Wednesday's win over North Florida.
Marathon Man
There's little question that Michael Thompson is the most important player on the court for Northwestern. Not when you consider that he has played either 39 or 40 minutes in seven of the Wildcats' first 10 contests this season. Thompson leads the Big Ten with average of 37.5 minutes per game.
Home Sweet Home
The contest against Central Connecticut State wraps up NU's four-game homestand. After setting a program best with 13 home wins in 2008-09, the Wildcats play a school-record 19 regular-season home games during the 2009-10 campaign. NU's lone nonconference road game was at N.C. State in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Northwestern is 6-1 at home so far this season with the lone loss coming to nationally ranked Butler Nov. 18.
A Challenging Slate
The 'Cats face a challenging slate in 2009-10, playing 18 of their 31 regular-season games against teams that participated in postseason play a year ago. NU is one of four schools in the country who have posted four nonconference wins against BCS conference schools, joining Texas, Kentucky and Wisconsin. Northwestern's Big Ten slate should prove to be quite the challenge as the Wildcats' first 10 games are being played against teams that reached the 2009 NCAA Tournament. In the 18-game conference schedule, NU will not host Ohio State or travel to Purdue this season.
Up Next...
Northwestern opens Big Ten play Wednesday, Dec. 30 as it travels to Illinois. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.
