Dejected Davis a no show at post-game press conference

EVANSTON, Ill. -- OK, so IU has been struggling on the road. That can be expected when playing the likes of Purdue, Michigan State and Louisville.\nBut this was Northwestern, who had yet to win a Big Ten game. \nAnd nearly half of the crowd at Welsh-Ryan Arena was wearing Cream and Crimson.\nBut the Hoosiers (14-7, 4-4 Big Ten) did not give the IU faithful much to cheer about as the Wildcats (9-10, 1-7) out-rebounded, out-scored and out-hustled them from the tip to the final buzzer.\nAfter the game, Coach Mike Davis did not appear in his regular radio show and was absent from the press conference as well. He sent out associate head coach John Treloar to take his place. \n"The intensity level wasn't where it was on Saturday (against Louisville)," he said. "I think it's hard to put your finger exactly on what the reasons are. But when you play four games in a row on the road, and you've got freshman playing minutes who have never been in a situation like this, it takes its toll on you. Hopefully they'll learn from it." \nOn defense, the Wildcats appeared to be a step ahead of the Hoosiers on nearly every play. Northwestern freshman forward Mohamed Hachad had a great deal to do with that, nabbing five steals in the first half alone and six of the team's 11 overall. \nThe Hoosiers lack of offensive poise led to several fast break scores for the Wildcats.\nIU struggled mightily on the defensive glass as well. In the first half, it gave up eight offensive rebounds, many of which were converted into easy put-back layups and three-point plays. The second half was no better and in the end the Hoosiers had been out-rebounded 13-10 on the offensive glass and 38-31 overall.\nDavis was apparently so frustrated with the lack of presence in the frontcourt that he eliminated it all together. Senior forward Jeff Newton and junior center George Leach both spent extended periods of time on the bench, logging 21 and 16 minutes respectively.\nHe instead opted for a five-guard lineup for a majority of the second half, using junior A.J. Moye, Tom Coverdale, Bracey Wright, Marshall Strickland and Donald Perry.\nBut the experiment proved ill-fated as the Wildcats went on a run that put them up 61-47 with just under six minutes to go and never gave the Hoosiers an opportunity to get back in the game. \n"I feel bad for anybody who had to watch this," senior guard Kyle Hornsby said. "Now we're just another team in the mix."\nPoint guard Tom Coverdale gave an equally dismal assessment of the team's performance, saying that some players on the team did "not even act like they cared."\n"What can you say?" he said. "It's the most embarrassing loss I've been a part of since I've been here"