Indiana men’s basketball (14-5, 5-3 Big Ten) will travel to Evanston, Illinois, at 7 p.m. Wednesday to face Northwestern (11-7, 2-5 Big Ten) with hopes of carrying its momentum into Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The Hoosiers defeated Ohio State in nail-biting fashion last time out, overcoming the Buckeyes 77-76 in overtime Jan. 17. Following a pair of blowout losses to Iowa and Illinois, Indiana will hope its victory in Value City Arena can serve as a turning point in conference play.
The Wildcats were on the other side of an extra time finish in their most recent matchup, falling to No. 20 Michigan 80-76 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Jan. 19.
Although Indiana dominates the series history between the two programs 119-57, Northwestern has won its past four games against the Cream and Crimson.
Meet the Wildcats
Northwestern is led by head coach Chris Collins, the 2022-23 Big Ten Coach of the Year. Now in his 12th year at the helm, he’s guided the Wildcats to all three of their program’s NCAA Tournament appearances, including back-to-back trips in 2023 and 2024.
Despite his success, Collins had a difficult task entering this season — replacing the program’s all-time leading scorer, former guard Boo Buie.
An experienced Northwestern scoring duo have picked up the mantle Buie left behind. Junior forward Nick Martinelli leads the Big Ten in scoring with 20 points per game and senior guard Brooks Barnhizer ranks sixth in the conference with 18.4 points per game.
Regardless, the Wildcats have struggled offensively as a team. They rank 16th in the Big Ten with only 73.4 points per game and, outside of Martinelli and Barnhizer, only graduate student guard Jalen Leach averages double-digit scoring.
One major factor in Northwestern’s lack of offensive production is pace of play. The Wildcats rank 265th among 364 Division I teams and last in the Big Ten with 66.7 possessions per 40 minutes.
In turn, the methodical offensive approach has yielded Northwestern numerous close games throughout this season. Twelve of the Wildcats’ 18 games have been decided by single digits. In comparison, Indiana only has three such games this season.
Close matchups have been a theme in the series between the two sides as of late, with the past three games decided by a combined 7 points. All three of which were won by Northwestern.
“Coach Collins pushes those guys to play hard,” Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said in a Zoom press conference Tuesday. “We’ve had some close games with them and haven’t been able to get over the top.”
Indiana’s reinforcements
For five straight games, Woodson has been without one of his key contributors in junior forward Malik Reneau. The Miami native averaged 14.1 points per game before suffering a knee injury in the first minute of a matchup against Rutgers on Jan. 2.
Fortunately for the Hoosiers, the Reneau-less stretch that included a pair of 25-point losses may be coming to an end Wednesday. Both Reneau and freshman forward Bryson Tucker, who missed the Ohio State matchup, may be able to return to the floor against Northwestern.
Whether Reneau and Tucker suit up or not, Woodson knows his team needs to carry over the same intensity they played with in the win over Ohio State.
“You can’t go in there with a soft attitude and soft mind,” Woodson said. “They’re going to force you to play hard and you got to meet that physicality, because if you don’t, it could be a long night. That’s where I think the game is going to be won tomorrow.”
Inconsistency has been the story of Indiana’s season. The Hoosiers have had three different winning streaks of at least four games, but each of their losses have been by at least 16 points. According to Woodson, those struggles may stem from an inability to play with effort on a regular basis.
“I think we play hard at times,” Woodson said. “I just got to get us playing harder for 40 minutes consistently.”
Broadcast information
The 177th matchup between Indiana and Northwestern will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network. Brandon Gaudin will handle play by play duties alongside analyst Robbie Hummel on the call.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
