On second thought, maybe ESPN sage Pat Forde was on to something when he suggested college basketball players need to keep their elbows to themselves.  In the wake of another in a series Big Ten flying elbows delivered, this time by Indiana’s Devan Dumes upon the shoulder of Michigan State’s Tom Herzog late in IU’s 75-47 loss to the Spartans, IU head coach Tom Crean issued an announcement suspending Dumes indefinitely. Then, in today’s Big Ten Teleconference, Crean acknowledged that there were a “few instances” where Dumes crossed the line between tough play and fair play, citing another incident at Northwestern where IU received feedback from Big Ten Conference.

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Last week, we wrote Northwestern’s penchant for delivering a tantalizing upset each season was insufficient to placate hungry Wildcats fans in 2009.  Now is the time for Bill Carmody and his Northwestern players to sustain the level of competitiveness they showed against Michigan State throughout the remainder of the season.  On Saturday night, Wildcat fans rejoiced as Northwestern (12-7, 4-5) showed the ability to stare another win in the face and not blink as they prevailed 66-63 against Wisconsin in one of the Big Ten’s best games of the season. Hoopraker correspondent Elsass giddily took in the action from his perch behind the Wildcat bench. (more…)

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You can’t lace up your sneakers and hit the court without confidence and expect to win.  If you think you’re playing a team better than yours, in about 2 hours they most certainly will be.  In the wake of a shellacking by Michigan State to open the Conference season, Minnesota responded in kind against Ohio State.  Last night in Madison, the Golden Gophers pulled off one the great Big Ten comebacks in recent memory. (more…)

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With the conclusion of the non-conference slate of games comes a moment of solitude where we acknowledge the blossoming of last season’s promise into this season’s reality.  Outside the shadow of Mount Nittany, it may be a mild surprise that Conference’s best backcourt thus far comes from Penn State. The reign of Talor Battle and Stanley Pringle, however, may be short-lived as the Big Ten is loaded with talented guards. (more…)

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The Northwestern Wildcats helped even out the split of games in the ACC/Big10 matchups by beating the Florida State Seminoles 73 to 59 last night in Evanston before 3537 fans.  For a long time fan and watcher of Wildcat basketball there were some reasons to gain some optimism that things may be heading in the right direction for the Cats.  (more…)

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They’ve been such an easy mark for the better part of fifty years.  But, with an influx of talent and size combined the maturation of several key players, Northwestern, yes Northwestern, is poised to become more than an also ran of Big Ten basketball this season.  Customarily overlooked and routinely disparaged, Northwestern has an opportunity to crack the upper division in the Big Ten and with it (yes, Lake the Posts)…post-season play. (more…)

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