Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Closes Out Regular Season at Indiana Saturday
3/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 5, 2010
Northwestern at Indiana
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Assembly Hall (17,357)
Bloomington, Ind. • 11 a.m. CT
TV: Big Ten Network (Wayne Larrivee and Jim Jackson)
Audio: WGN 720-AM and wgnradio.com (Dave Eanet and Bob Hildebrand)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 90 and XM 196
Gametracker: NUsports.com
In-game Twitter updates: @NU_SportsLIVE
Northwestern Game Notes (PDF)
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern closes out its 2009-10 regular season and goes in search of its first 20-win season in school history Saturday as it travels to Indiana. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. Central time with Big Ten Network providing live television coverage.
The Wildcats (19-11, 7-10 Big Ten) picked up their school-record 19th win of the season Wednesday, downing Chicago State 72-49 to finish their home season at 15-4. The Cougars were able to hang with NU throughout most of the first half, but a 25-5 run that spanned both halves eventually helped Northwestern pull away. Sophomore forward John Shurna had a solid all-around game with 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Freshman guard Alex Marcotullio came off the bench to score 15 points on five 3-pointers. The Wildcats held the Cougars to 5-of-29 shooting from the field in the second half.
NU could be either the No. 6, 7 or 8 seed for next week's Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis with a rematch against Indiana a possibility. A victory would be the Wildcats' 16th conference victory over the last two seasons, the most in consecutive seasons since 1959 and 1960.
First Meeting: Northwestern won its third straight game against Indiana in Evanston Feb. 7, downing the Hoosiers 78-61. All five Wildcat starters scored in double figures led by John Shurna's 16 points.
Scouting Indiana
• Indiana (9-20, 3-14 Big Ten) dropped its 11th straight contest Wednesday night at Purdue, falling 74-55. Verdell Jones III led the Hoosiers with 15 points, while Derek Elston added 13.
• Jones leads all active Hoosiers with an average of 14.7 points per game. Freshman Christian Watford contributes 12.0 points and a team-high 5.9 rebounds per game.
• Tom Crean is in his second season as the head coach at Indiana. He is 15-45 at IU and 205-141 in 11 overall seasons as a collegiate head coach.
Shurna Takes Charge
To say that John Shurna has elevated his game this season would be an understatement. After posting norms of 7.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game as a freshman, Shurna has raised those averages to 18.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 2009-10. He ranks fourth in the Big Ten in scoring and eighth in rebounding. The 10.8 point-per-game boost is the largest increase of any Big Ten player from last season to this season, is the ninth largest nationally and is the second-best of any player in a BCS conference. He scored at least 20 points in five straight games from Dec. 19-Jan. 7 and 12 times overall this season. After twice scoring 29 points in a game this season, he established a new career high with 31 points at fifth-ranked Michigan State Jan. 30. Shurna averaged 30.0 points per game in his two contests against the Spartans this season.
30-30 Vision
By virtue of John's Shurna's 31-point effort at Michigan State Jan. 30, Northwestern joined Oklahoma and Lipscomb the only three schools this season to have three different players score at least 30 points in a game. Michael Thompson scored 31 vs. Tennessee State Nov. 22 and Drew Crawford tallied 35 against North Carolina A&T Dec. 13.
Spreading the Wealth
Northwestern is well known for sharing the basketball while protecting it from the opposition at the same time. That's the case again this season. The Wildcats lead the Big Ten and rank fourth in the nation with a 1.54 assist-to-turnover ratio, having handed out 502 assists while committing only 327 turnovers. In its Dec. 30 overtime contest against Illinois, Northwestern handed out 21 assists while turning the ball over just three times. The three turnovers tied a low in the Carmody era and none of them came over the final 35 minutes of play.
So Far, So Good
With 19 wins, NU established the school record for victories in a season. The total eclipses the 1982-83 squad's total of 18. Northwestern's 36 combined wins over the last two seasons are also a school record. 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. Northwestern's nine-game win streak which was snapped Dec. 30 at Illinois was its longest since the 1993-94 squad opened its season with nine straight victories. The Wildcats' 10 wins prior to the new year tied the 2006-07 team for the school record for most victories before Jan. 1.
Bombs Away!
The Wildcats lead the Big Ten and are fourth nationally with averages of 9.3 3-point makes and 25.4 3-point attempts per game. NU'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 are tied for the most by any team in the nation this season. NU matched the attempts record with 47 against Illinois Dec. 30. The 20 makes bested the previous conference mark of 18 set by Ohio State against LSU Jan. 15, 2005, while the attempt total 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 tries at Ohio State Feb. 1, 2003.
Helping Hand
Northwestern is well known for playing "team" offense and that's reflected in the statistics. The Wildcats have assisted on 72.1 percent of their field goals this season, posting 502 assists on their 696 made baskets. The percentage ranks second 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.
Success Under Carmody
NU has reached at least six Big Ten wins for the sixth time in Bill Carmody's first 10 seasons as head coach. The program totaled six or more conference wins just five times in the previous 31 years prior to Carmody's arrival. NU's seven-game increase in conference wins from the 2007-08 to the 2008-09 season is the biggest jump since Minnesota went from three league wins in 2003-04 to 10 the following campaign.
Marathon Man
There is no questioning Michael Thompson's importance to NU. Not when you consider that he has played 38 or more minutes in 18 of Northwestern's first 30 contests this season. He leads the Big Ten and is fourth nationally with an average of 37.5 minutes per game. Despite playing as many minutes as he does, the NU floor general has committed either one or no turnovers 14 times this season and sports a 2.57 assist-to-turnover ratio. In Big Ten play, his assist-to-turnover ratio goes up to a conference-best 2.78 (69 assists, 25 turnovers in 646 minutes played). Northwestern is 16-5 when Thompson scores in double figures and is 3-6 when he doesn't. He became the 29th member of NU's 1,000-point club Feb. 17 vs. Penn State.
Crawford's Contributions
Freshman Drew Crawford stepped into the Northwestern starting lineup from the opening game of the season and has paid immediate dividends. He had a memorable performance in a win over North Carolina A&T Dec. 13. His 35 points set a Northwestern freshman record, besting the 30 Billy McKinney had against Illinois Feb. 16, 1974. It is the second-highest point total by any freshman in the country this season. Crawford's eight 3-pointers in the contest were one shy of the school record of nine set by Craig Moore against Brown Nov. 22, 2008. He was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his efforts, the first NU freshman ever to earn the honor. Crawford is averaging 10.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.
Cardiac 'Cats
Northwestern has proven this season that it isn't over until it's over. The Wildcats first displayed their comeback potential Nov. 22 against Tennessee State. Trailing by eight with 5:26 remaining, NU ended the game on a 16-1 run to earn a 69-62 win. In a Jan. 10 contest at Michigan, Northwestern found itself facing a 17-point first-half deficit. However, Drew Crawford sparked the comeback as the 'Cats rallied for a 68-62 victory. Minnesota was victim to NU's heroics Feb. 14. The Gophers led by 13 with eight minutes remaining before the Wildcats used a 20-4 run to help force overtime before eventually winning 77-74. Northwestern nearly turned the trick again at Wisconsin Feb. 21. Trailing by 14 at the half, the Wildcats rallied back to within a point before coming up just short.
Up Next...
Northwestern opens play at the 2010 Big Ten Tournament next Thursday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. Opponent and tip time are to be determined.
