The Northwestern Wildcats played probably their finest game this season against Northwestern St., a NCAA participant in ‘06 having upset Steve Alford’s good Iowa team in the first round. The current Demon team does not have any of the starters from that team and it was clear early in the game against the Wildcats that this team has no NCAA invitation in its immediate future.
While Northwestern St. is not up to the competitive standards of last year, the Wildcats displayed the crisp, smooth style of play that all of us hard core basketball junkies relish. The NU defense produced 14 steals, most of them converted into easy lay-ups. But what was more impressive is the crisp passing for easy back doors and lay-ups that were triggered by Tim Doyle and Vince Scott. These two contributed 16 of the total 27 assists by the Cats (2nd highest in Cat history). The Cats made 73 percent of their shots in the first half, 63 percent for the game. This game was decided early and Coach Carmody cleaned his bench with about 7 minutes to go.
Northwestern St. had lost to the DePaul Blue Demons earlier in the week by about the same margin as the Cats 85 to 59 score. Although this was a very encouraging win for the Cats as the 2006 calendar expired, it was not an opponent that is of the caliber that will be experienced in the Big Ten conference season.
But the Cats played their best game and this may be a good sign for in the past this team has played to the level of their opponents on many occasions. The opening loss against Cornell and the near loss against D III Wheaton are reminders of how poorly the Cats can play.
In summary, the Cats had an unexpectedly good non-conference season with a 10 win, 3 loss record going into the Big Ten. The wins against Miami (ACC/Big Ten Challenge) and DePaul were the most impressive. At this point in the season, this team is better than the Vedran Vukusic team of last season. There is more scoring balance, a deeper bench, and several very promising freshmen. Kevin Coble continues to impress as he shows the depth of his precocious basketball skills in every game. If he continues to grow and freshman Ryan and junior Okrzesik continue to grow as steady performers, this team could pull off some surprises. Vince Scott’s work in the last few games will have to be sustained if the Cats are to gel into a surprise team in the Conference race.
There are reasons for optimism on Central Street, but do not get your hopes too high. The tough Big Ten schedule will wear down a young team quickly. The Cats will have to get off to a good start with the Penn. St. and Michigan games. Two victories here and they may have a chance to make some noise in the Conference race.
We will see!
ManCat
