Tag: northwestern basketball

Carmody gone at Northwestern; Duke Blue Devils Asst. could be Replacement

Carmody gone at Northwestern; Duke Blue Devils Asst. could be Replacement
Bill Carmody is officially gone.
Northwestern Athletic Director Jim Phillips met with the NU players this morning and will address the media at 5:30 tonight.  (The announcement of the press conference was made about 35 minutes. Multiple sources are reporting Bill Carmody is out as men's basketball coach.Word is Duke Blue Devils assistant Chris Collins is the top choice of the A.D. in finding Carmody’s replacement.
Reasons why Bill Carmody was let go:...
By Paul M. Banks,
March 16, 2013 at 12:06 pm • 

Iowa Hawkeyes end Northwestern Wildcats Season 73-59

Iowa Hawkeyes end Northwestern Wildcats Season 73-59
It wasn't supposed to end this way for the Northwestern Wildcats. No, not like this, 14-19 ousted in their first round game of the Big Ten Tournament by the Iowa Hawkeyes 73-59. No NIT, CIT, or other acronym tourney awaits them. Certainly not the big one: NCAA, which has never seen the Wildcats in 70+ years of NU basketball. After four straight NIT bids, maybe this could have been the year the Northwestern Wildcats "bubbled up" to the big dance. Instead the injury bug bit over and over again. And coach Bill Carmody was left with a shell of what he once had. The Northwestern Wildcats last won on Groundhog Day, and like the movie that bears the holiday's name, we've seen the same occurrences over and over and over again. With speculation on Carmody's status as head coach it will be interesting to see how much impact that has on NU's future college basketball totals for next season The Northwestern Wildcats kept "spotting" their opponents a lead to begin the game. As the Wildcats often found their opponents up by double digits before they've even scored.  It happened versus Wisconsin, Penn State and again in the Big Ten Tourney...
By Paul M. Banks,
March 14, 2013 at 9:58 pm • 

NU loses at home to Penn State: Final straw for Bill Carmody?

NU loses at home to Penn State: Final straw for Bill Carmody?
Last year Bruce Weber was dismissed from the Fighting Illini basketball program during the Big Ten Tournament, right after Illinois’ season ended. The same situation occurred two years prior with the Iowa Hawkeyes and Todd Lickliter at the Big Ten Tourney. Will we see the same thing with Bill Carmody and Northwestern this Big Ten Tournament? NU losing 66-59 at home to Penn State might have been the final straw to break the camel’s back. This was the Wildcats’ 6th loss in a row, and dropped them to 13-17, 4-13 in the Big Ten. Losing to PSU is a really big deal; especially at home. Penn State was 0-17 on the road under Patrick Chambers entering this game. Yes, this was indeed his first road win at Penn State. And Chambers got the job because the guy before him, Ed DeChellis, left Penn State for Navy. Yes, he left PSU FOR NAVY, not vice versa.With the victory, Penn State improved to 11-9 all-time at Northwestern. Do you know how many media members travel to cover the Nittany Lions on the road? Zero. Yes, that’s what PSU basketball truly is. And that’s why this loss makes Carmody’s seat that much hotter. (Go here for the pros and cons of why Bill Carmody should or should not return for a 15th season at NU.) Carmody was asked tonight if he was able to block out speculation about his job security...
By Paul M. Banks,
March 7, 2013 at 9:23 pm • 
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Northwestern upsets #12 Gophers, in front of very poor student showing

Northwestern upsets #12 Gophers, in front of very poor student showing
Every year Northwestern Wildcats basketball beats a couple ranked teams during the Big Ten slate. So whenever they play someone good at home you want to be there so you can see a big event, right? Like when the fans stormed the court after taking down a top ten Michigan State team last year. Well the “Wildside” student section doesn’t seem to think so. They hardly showed up at all two home games ago when NU lost even uglier than it sounds, 70-51 to the Iowa Hawkeyes. And they didn’t come out last night either...
By Paul M. Banks,
January 24, 2013 at 10:58 am • 

Northwestern signs tallest player in school history; Luol Deng's Cousin

Northwestern signs tallest player in school history; Luol Deng's Cousin
Northwestern basketball coach Bill Carmody announced the addition of Chier Ajou (pronounced SHEER ah-JOE) to the program for the upcoming 2012-13 season. But he may not be eligible until 2013-14, depending on the NCAA ruling At 7-foot-2, Ajou becomes the tallest player in Northwestern history. He competed for two years for Culver (Ind.) Academies prior... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
June 20, 2012 at 4:30 pm • 

Jim Phillips gives Bill Carmody another chance at Northwestern

Jim Phillips gives Bill Carmody another chance at Northwestern
Making four straight NITs is a weird thing in college basketball. To be that consistently mediocre, without bubbling up to the big dance (especially now that there are 68 teams) or falling down to no postseason is rather odd. An entire class of players knew what it is was like to be competitive, but not... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
March 22, 2012 at 1:19 pm • 
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Northwestern needs 3 Wins to grab a NCAA Tournament berth

Northwestern needs 3 Wins to grab a NCAA Tournament berth
In our latest NCAA Tournament bracket projection, we have Northwestern as a #12 seed, one of the last four teams in. Of course, this isn’t a place you want to stay right now as Selection Sunday approaches. Even though this is a supposedly “weak bubble,” bracket projections don’t and can’t factor in the “bid-stealing” that... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
March 1, 2012 at 8:30 am • 

Northwestern Almost Knocks off #10 Ohio State; losing 75-73

Northwestern Almost Knocks off #10 Ohio State; losing 75-73
Ohio State came in 33-2 and winners of 13 straight versus Northwestern when nationally ranked. So you had to like the chances of the nation’s #10 team in Evanston. When you saw them make their first six shots and jump out to a 69% to 35% field goal average (nearly double) about halfway through the... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
February 29, 2012 at 10:27 pm • 

Northwestern Tourney Chances hurt by home loss to Wolverines

Northwestern Tourney Chances hurt by home loss to Wolverines
When Northwestern beat Minnesota on Saturday, the Wildcats were able to pull out the win with strong three-point shooting and ball security, despite a bad rebounding ratio. Tuesday night against Michigan, the Cats rebounded well, but turned the ball over 17 times and shot just 18.8 percent from beyond the arc. The end result, a... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
February 21, 2012 at 10:43 pm • 
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Glen Ellyn's John Shurna becomes Northwestern's All-Time Leading Scorer

Glen Ellyn's John Shurna becomes Northwestern's All-Time Leading Scorer
John Shurna, the Big Ten’s leading scorer, came in averaging 25.6 points per game over the last five contests. With his 16th, 17th and 18th point tonight versus the Minnesota Golden Gophers, he is now the all-time leading scorer in Northwestern history. He got it done on a three from the top of the key... Read more »
By Paul M. Banks,
February 18, 2012 at 9:01 pm •