Northwestern vs Illinois Basketball Recap

Northwestern 73, Illinois 68

The Northwestern Wildcats have a lot of work to do on the road to a first-ever NCAA Tournament berth, but one thing this often-deprived program doesn't have to worry about is its nagging and prolonged losing skid against its in-state rival.

The boys from the University of Illinois have made life difficult for Coach Bill Carmody's Cats over the past several seasons. The last time NU came through against the Fighting Illini on a slab of hardwood was Jan. 14, 2004, in the first season of Coach Bruce Weber's tenure as the chief in Champaign, Ill. After that rare occurrence, Illinois reeled off 11 consecutive triumphs over the Purple Gang, powered by dynamic shotmaking and, in most seasons, superior guardplay from athletes who were able to outclass Northwestern on the perimeter.

As the teams geared up for their second meeting this season, the Illini might have been motivated to stop a two-game losing skid, but it was Northwestern who needed this game even more... not just for Chicago-area recruiting, and not just for NCAA Tournament hopes, but for the simple yet profound satisfaction of knowing it could take down Big Brother in the Land of Lincoln.

This mission - whose ongoing lack of fulfillment gnawed at the members of the Northwestern basketball community - was finally accomplished on Saturday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena, but in a manner that was alternately surprising and logical.

The improbable aspect of NU's five-point breakthrough came in the fact that starting guard Michael Thompson - who came into this contest averaging just under 14 points a game - struggled to a foul-plagued four-point outing on 1-of-5 shooting. Thompson's only made shot was a key one, a 3-pointer that gave NU a 56-52 edge with 4:34 left in regulation, but if you had told Carmody or anyone else on the home team's bench that Thompson would have scored only four points, a lot of faces would have dropped. Something unexpected needed to happen for the Cats to knock off their nemesis, and in this cathartic conquest, Jeremy Nash is what happened against the Illini.

Nash - who began the night as an eight-point-per-game role player - hit 9 of 10 foul shots and tossed in three 3-pointers en route to a game-high 22 points. It's always going to be a challenge for the Cats to scratch together enough scoring, since they're spending the whole season without the services of injured star forward Kevin Coble, so when Nash had Thompson's back in this Illinois street fight, Northwestern found the measure of production it so sorely needed.

The more predictable aspect of this win was the fact that Northwestern did the deed with defense. The first game between these teams during this season - on Dec. 30 in Champaign - witnessed a high-scoring affair in which the Illini registered an 89-83 overtime win. Illinois shot 50 percent in a 45-minute contest, playing over the top of the smaller Wildcats and meeting little physical resistance. NU had to be tougher at the defensive end in order to strike back at Weber's lineup, and midway through the second half, the Cats found a bolder brand of defensive ball.

From the 14:16 mark of the second half until the 3:55 mark - yes, a span of over 10 minutes - the Illini scored only one made field goal against NU's zone. With better reactions and movements, the white-shirted workers put their elbow grease to great effect, clogging passing lanes and preventing Illinois big men Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis from feeling too comfortable. The pair of tall trees tallied 51 in the Dec. 30 win over NU, but they scored only 14 combined points in this game. Defense enabled NU to mask its offensive limitations, and when the home team drained a steady stream of late-game free throws (7 of 8 in the final 35 seconds), victory had been secured.

A very long and trying period of futility against Illinois had also been put to an end.

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