Fitz welcomes 17 new ‘Cats on Signing Day
It was a ho-hum signing day for Northwestern, relative to what you might have seen around the country on ESPN. Starting at 6am, recruits faxed in their signed letters of intent to play for the ‘Cats, and by noon all 17 had been collected. There were no last minute commitments or de-commitments, and no high school senior was surrounded with cameras deciding whether or not to put on a Northwestern hat.
Northwestern did not sign a 4-star player like they did last year with offensive lineman Patrick Ward, and they didn’t get many commits from the state of Illinois like they did in 2008 (only one this year, defensive lineman Chance Carter—from Evanston).
ESPN Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg ranked NU’s class as the 8th best in the Big Ten. Rivals.com ranked them 9th in the conference and 77th in the country (Auburn, who beat the ‘Cats in the Outback Bowl had a class ranked 4th). more 
NU dominates Michigan, 67-52
Recap:
Freshman Drew Crawford scored 17 points as the Wildcats bounced back from a two-game losing streak to defeat Michigan 67-52 at Welsh-Ryan Arena Tuesday night. NU jumped out to a five point lead at halftime after hitting five consecutive three-pointers late in the first half. The real story, however, was the defense. The Cats held the Wolverines to just 22 points and six field goals in the second half, paving the way to an easy victory. With the win, NU moves to 15-7 (4-6 Big Ten) and, more importantly, keeps their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. more
The time for cautious optimism is over. After watching the Wildcats almost destroy their tournament hopes against Texas-Pan American, I declared the worst to be over. After the disaster in Columbus, I took solace in the win over Illinois. But now, with 10 games left until Selection Sunday, it’s time to face reality: If Northwestern wants to appear on an tournament bracket for the first time in school history, they are going to have to step it up—and fast. more
Week three of intramural basketball has arrived, and that means no more double-rostering hi-jinks and rule clarification shenanigans. With the meat of the schedule at hand, it’s time to bust out the first rankings for this season. So while your squad might be tops according to the power ranking formula on the NUIM web site, numbers can only say so much. The best example is the Deep Friars, #1-ranked in the white league as of this week, and impressive numbers to boot. But the Friars have yet to play a team with a win, or with a ranking above 70th. more
NU road struggles continue in nail-biting loss in Minnesota
Last night’s game against Minnesota looked, at times, like the ‘Cats win over Michigan in Ann Arbor a couple weeks back. On the road against a more athletic team, NU fought back from behind, but unlike against Michigan, it was too little, too late, as they fell to the Golden Gophers, 65-61. more
An emotional victory over rival-Illinois brings tourney hopes back to life
Being a Wildcat fan cannot be good for your health; with a team like the ‘Cats, you can never relax. Northwestern is not consistently great, they are not consistently terrible, and they are not consistently mediocre. They are just straight inconsistent. Whenever the ‘Cats step onto the court, there’s no telling whether they will be able to hold their own with the likes of Purdue and Michigan, struggle and trade points with a team like Texas-Pan American, or get blown away like they did against Ohio State.
Each week since the Texas Pan-American game, it has been the same story for NU. One game, the ‘Cats lose a tough one (Wisconsin) or get demolished (Ohio State), forcing their fans to concede that they have no shot at the NIT, let alone the Big Dance. But in the other game, they either pull a huge upset (Purdue) or play inspired basketball, whipping their fans into tournament frenzy (Illinois). Each disappointing game is coupled with a motivating one and frankly, I’m just getting confused. We are still totally uncertain about our destiny as each week we give and take, and ultimately we’ve ended up exactly where we started. more
With flag football season in the rear view mirror, it’s on to the most popular of the intramural sports: basketball. Every baller on campus claims to be the star of their weekly pick-up game. The Paul Pierce of Patten. The Steve Nash of SPAC. All the arguments are settled winter quarter, where 5 days a week the lights come on at Blomquist and teams hit the hardwood for 36 minutes of roundball. With 85 White league teams, 10 Purple (and almost 40 Co-rec) scheduled to hoop it up in 2010, we’ll be here to sort out the who’s who and give you the scoop on who’s for real and who played a cupcake schedule. more
‘Cats can’t build off Purdue win, walloped by Ohio State
There’s something you should know about Northwestern. While they may have finally gotten over the hump this season when it comes to winning close games, and may even reach the summit and make it to the Big Dance, consistency is not their strong suit.
After Saturday’s marquee victory over Purdue, the ‘Cats laid an egg in Columbus on Tuesday night, falling to the #25 Buckeyes 76-56. The game was over two minutes in, and we can only hope that NU uses this as motivation to beat the Illini on Saturday. Onto the grades. more
Even the most optimistic of ‘Cats fans came into this week with anything less than total confidence. With a 1-2 record in the Big Ten, it seemed clear that for Northwestern to stay alive in the tournament discussion, they needed to take one of their next two games against No. 16 Wisconsin or No. 6 Purdue. Once Trevon Hughes willed the Badgers to victory by nailing three three-pointers in a row, it seemed as though NU was destined to drop to the bottom of the Big Ten rankings. more
‘Cats can’t make grades in failed effort to upset the Badgers
Maybe it was too much to ask for Northwestern to beat Wisconsin in both football and basketball. NU will have to settle for a win on the gridiron this year and an upset on the hardwood last year. (Unless they find a way to win in Madison—doubtful.) For anyone who didn’t make it to the game—which is absolutely unacceptable, especially when Northwestern hosts a top 25 team—or anyone that wants to relive the heartbreak, here is yesterday’s report card. more
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