ESPN Men's Basketball

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Was it too much to ask?

Was it too much to hope that just one time -- this time -- would be Northwestern's turn as fate's chosen beneficiary? Was it too much to think that maybe, despite all the reasons to believe the contrary, the Wildcats might just catch a break? Could Northwestern fans, besieged constantly by reminders of their program's historic futility, finally feel the freedom of belief?

The short answer? No.

"It's very tough," Northwestern guard Drew Crawford said.

"Disappointing," forward John Shurna said. "Kind of a tough way to go out."

Wednesday night was Shurna's senior night, an honor he shared with Davide Curletti, Nick Fruendt and Luka Mirkovic. Shurna & Co. are the school's all-time winningest class, one that also set a school record with three consecutive postseason appearances.

Of course, none of those postseasons has been of the NCAA tournament variety, which is why Wednesday night's game was so much more than a disappointing loss, so much more than an emotional senior night spoiled by a 75-73 defeat.

Indeed, the game against Ohio State was one of the biggest in Northwestern's history. That title is fresh, because we said the same exact thing in the wake of Feb. 21's home loss to Michigan. And we could say the same again Saturday, when Northwestern travels to Iowa to play its regular-season finale. At this point, every game Northwestern plays is abnormally important for reasons that go beyond conference record or pride or graduating seniors or even a one-year bubble scenario.

Why? You know why: The Wildcats are still searching for their first-ever NCAA tournament bid. This is the only team in a major conference to never visit the NCAA tournament. You have heard about this ignominious distinction more than a few times in the past few weeks (and months and years) because it's impossible to talk about this program without dwelling on its unique, defining story of woe.

Wednesday night was merely another page in that book. At first, the action looked predictable enough. After a quick six minutes of dominant interior play and hot shooting, a focused and freewheeling Ohio State team -- one that looked vastly different from the weekend's home loss to Wisconsin -- had opened an 18-8 lead. By the five-minute mark, the lead was 30-18.

Just before the half, it was all the way up to 39-26, before Shurna made a 3 to cut the deficit to 10, but no matter. Clearly, the Buckeyes were in control.

Ohio State was moving the ball seamlessly against Northwestern's zone, using skip passes and penetration to find easy first looks. Better yet, when the first looks didn't drop, OSU forwards Jared Sullinger and Deshaun Thomas pounced. Together, they combined for 15 offensive rebounds (and 28 total) and carried the Bucks to an eye-popping offensive rebounding percentage of 62.5 percent.

Northwestern -- for which Shurna, who shoots nearly as many 3s as 2s, counts as an interior player, and a team that plays 6-foot-1 guard David Sobolewski in the baseline of its 1-3-1 zone -- had nothing remotely close to an answer.

"They destroyed us on the backboards," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said.

His team's only answer was hope: hope that enough 3s went down to stay within striking distance, hope that Ohio State caught a few bad bounces, hope that the game was just close enough to steal in the end. Lo and behold, that's exactly what happened. The Wildcats gradually cut OSU's lead throughout the second half, first to six, then to five, then to four.

And although Ohio State seemed to have an answer each and every time -- an Aaron Craft 3 here, a Sullinger putback there -- the Cats, led by Shurna and a 13-of-27 mark from 3, and aided by said bad bounces (and a huge JerShon Cobb steal), found themselves down by three. With the ball. With 16 seconds to play.

You've probably already seen what happened next. Guard Alex Marcotullio, against the advice of his better angels, launched what felt like a 30-foot 3. Like all great last-second shots, it seemed to hang in the air forever before splashing through the net and sending Welsh-Ryan Arena into convulsions of euphoria and disbelief.

The only problem: There still were 7 seconds on the scoreboard and Thad Matta called a timeout, and before you could realize it -- before Welsh-Ryan could process what was happening -- Craft was sprinting down the court and heaving the ball ahead to Sullinger, who had established the perfect position to quickly turn and score with his right hand, and now there's 3 seconds left, and Shurna is hoisting a half-court shot that hits the front of the rim and misses, and ... wait. What just happened?

A cynical fan -- or an out-and-out jerk -- probably would say Northwestern happened. This is what Northwestern does, especially in recent seasons. It takes its fans to the brink, to the point of ecstatic belief, before revealing some fresh new horror.

Frankly, if the aforementioned cynic said this to you, it'd be pretty difficult to disagree.

But while the short answer above might have been "no," it was impossible to talk to Crawford and Shurna after the game and not sense some lack of emotional weight. Both were positive, even upbeat, or at least as upbeat as a human being can be after what they had just seen. (Before shooting the above video, I cursorily asked Shurna, "How's it going?" His response: "Ha. I've been better." Note to self: Never use that phrase on a dreary Monday morning again.)

"Obviously it's tough," Crawford said, "but we played great down toward the end of the game, and we're all proud of our team. I think we're a resilient bunch, and we'll be ready to go on Saturday."

Maybe Shurna and Crawford are used to all the will-they-or-won't-they talk by now. Maybe they've chosen to ignore it. It was surely no surprise that every question, press-room murmur and speculative amateur bracketologism Wednesday night dwelled on whether this team would be the one to finally, mercifully end college basketball's most infamous streak.

It was the first question Matta faced when he sat down for his postgame news conference: Is Northwestern a tournament team?

"Yeah," Matta said. "Oh yeah. ... I know this. I would hate on Selection Sunday to have Northwestern come across, to have to play them."

Shurna was quizzed about how, with so much pressure and bubble speculation compounding in the final week of the season, his team could rebound. ("Gotta win," he said.) Crawford was asked whether Wednesday's loss "proved" anything to the selection committee about Northwestern's makeup.

"I don't think a loss means too much," he said, flashing a better understanding of the selection process than his inquisitor.

The truth is, a loss doesn't mean much, if anything. The good news, however, is this: Other bubble teams lost Wednesday night, too, and in Joe Lunardi's most recent bracket update, the Wildcats were still listed as the last team in the tournament. Nothing is guaranteed, but in Northwestern's case, that's a good thing. The Cats might not be safely in the tournament, the way they would have been had Shurna's final prayer been answered, had Matta and and Craft and Sullinger not so ruthlessly executed their final four-second game winner. But this group isn't obviously out of the field, either.

"Had we won the game, it would have been a great win for us," Crawford said. "But that's not really going to keep us down at all. We're excited to finish this season strong. And it starts in practice tomorrow."

And so another five days -- or 11 days -- of bubble speculation will continue. Can this star-crossed program get it done? Can Shurna go out on something more than disappointment? Can Northwestern fans, against all reason and rationale and evidence to the contrary, dare to believe?

The short answer, at least Wednesday night, was no.

But the long answer? Let's wait and see.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern senior Davide Curletti doesn’t know precisely when he stopped caring whether he started or how many points he scored in a given game, but it happened sometime during the past four years.

Part of that came with Curletti dealing with reality. Northwestern coach Bill Carmody has never seen him as a starter and his job for the Wildcats hasn’t been to contribute a double-double like he did as a high school senior. His role has been to be an energy player off the bench, or as Carmody puts it, “the Energizer Bunny.”

It’s not the most glamorous of roles, but then again, the 6-foot-9, 230-pound Curletti isn’t the most glamorous of players. He doesn’t outjump opponents for rebounds; he outworks them. He doesn’t outmaneuver defenders for buckets; he outthinks them.

Curletti has embraced that role and been consistent in it. He averaged 2.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.9 rebounds in 11.9 minutes over 91 career games before Saturday, and his numbers this season hadn’t been much different. He averaged 3.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 16.8 minutes in his first 16 games.

So no one, not even Curletti, could have predicted his performance on Saturday. Making only the second start of his career, Curletti scored 17 points, grabbed six rebounds, dished out four assists, stole two balls and blocked one shot in 36 minutes while helping Northwestern to an 81-74 upset of No. 7 Michigan State.

Because Curletti has become such a team-first kind of guy throughout his career, he was even careful of how he accepted everyone’s praise on Saturday. Although inside he was feeling pretty good about himself, he made sure everyone knew he wanted the win to be about the team’s play, not his own.

“It’s not about trying to be cocky or anything like that, but it’s just that it feels really good and I’m glad it happened,” Curletti said. “Obviously, I hope it happens again, but at the same time you got to think beating the No. 7 team out-trumps all of that.

“Last year my best game was against Wisconsin where I had a similar game, but we lost. When someone asked me of my favorite game of my career, I said last year’s loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament. I later realized I didn’t even think about Wisconsin. Big wins do really matter in the long run.”

Curletti did confirm that Saturday’s game leaped that overtime loss to Ohio State and became his No. 1 career highlight. And of all the individual plays Saturday, Curletti will never forget his backdoor cut which led to a wide-open dunk to give Northwestern a 57-50 lead with 12:27 remaining. As he flushed the ball, Northwestern’s bench and nearly everyone wearing purple jumped off their seats at Welsh-Ryan Arena.

“It was great,” Curletti admitted. “It was really awesome.”

So how did Curletti go from being a career role player to a star in one of the program’s biggest wins? He claimed he did nothing different.

“It’s kind of like you work hard and some games you’ll get only one offensive rebound and you’ll get maybe two points, but other games, if you stick with it, you’ll have a night like this,” Curletti said. “For me, coming off the bench, you always have to have energy. That’s what I try to do. That’s kind of what my role was the last couple years, so that’s what I’m just going to keep on doing.

“I like working hard, and I consider myself a hard worker. I feel my best way of contributing on this team is to do that. You always need a guy like that on a team.”

You also need stars like Northwestern’s Drew Crawford and John Shurna, and those were the names rolling off Michigan State’s tongues leading up to Saturday’s game. Afterward, it was all about Curletti. Spartans coach Tom Izzo took a stab at pronouncing Curletti’s first name (DAH-vuh-day), but he got his last name perfect.

“Curletti was the difference in the game if you ask me,” said Izzo, who had been quite pleased with his big men prior to Saturday’s game. “He’s the one who snagged those [rebounds] when we had them, and he took them and scored on them. Curletti was a big difference in the game and deserved the play and credit he got. I thought it was a brilliant move by Bill to start him.”

Carmody’s brilliance actually was a last-second decision. He opted against starting a smaller lineup with Shurna at center and went with Curletti at the 5. Curletti’s one and only other start came against Ohio State as a freshman on Feb. 18, 2009. He finished with two rebounds on that day.

When Curletti discovered just before the game he was starting, he didn’t jump for joy. He understood he needed to play as he’s always played.

“To be honest, it didn’t really matter to me,” Curletti said. “It has been a while [since I started.] I’m also a senior now. I have to put the team ahead. I can’t be nervous. I have to play my game.”

And so he did.

Last night, after Northwestern lost 66-64 in overtime at Michigan, a Wildcats fan/friend sent over the following postgame Gchat analysis:

"I'm done with Northwestern hoops," he said. "Just can't do it any more. It's like getting kicked in the [onions!] every year, five times a year."

Can you blame him? On Wednesday night, the Wildcats had the opportunity to beat the No. 13-ranked team in the country, Michigan, on its home floor. And all things considered, Northwestern played well. The Wildcats shot the ball at an eFG% rate of 56.5. They committed a few turnovers (25.0 percent turnover rate), but John Shurna and Drew Crawford combined for 41 points on 31 shots, and Northwestern's defense held the Wolverines to barely more than a point per trip on the offensive end.

And then, in the end, things went crazy. Northwestern yielded an early 10-point second-half lead as Michigan battled back, eventually tying the game in regulation and earning a 66-63 lead with 6.5 seconds left in overtime. It appeared Northwestern was finally finished, but with 0.3 seconds left, Michigan guard Tim Hardaway Jr. fouled Northwestern guard Alex Marcotulio -- who had yet to record a shot attempt all evening, and has shot just 37 field goals on the season (and just nine free throws) on a three-point field goal attempt. Yes, Hardaway Jr. committed this foul. It was one of the more ill-advised mistakes we've seen all season.

Naturally, it worked perfectly. Marcotulio missed the first. He had no choice but to miss the third intentionally, and there wasn't much the Wildcats could do from there.

It was a devastating loss, and it came in succession with another one-point defeat -- a last-second 57-56 home loss to Illinois -- last week. Northwestern also led by 10 in that game (albeit late in the first-half, as opposed to early in the second). It also had late opportunities to win. But Illinois earned a loose-ball foul on the final possession and seven-foot center Meyers Leonard blocked Crawford's last-ditch three, and Northwestern lost that game, too.

It's hard to decide which loss hurts more. In the first, Northwestern had the opportunity to get a solid home win against a decent but not great foe; now that Illinois has gone on to upset Ohio State at home, that missed opportunity looks even more glaring. But Thursday night's game could have been a breakthrough -- a sign that Northwestern could go on the road and win against some of the best competition in the Big Ten, in this case a team that just narrowly lost at Indiana and trounced Wisconsin on the same floor. It would have been a major statement. And, lest we forget, it would have been an awfully nice data point for the NCAA tournament resumé, too.

Therein lies the inherent difficulty of being Northwestern. When most programs lose back-to-back heartbreakers, fans chalk it up to an OK-can't-win-'em-all understanding, at least in the big scheme of things. For Wildcats fans, who have but one overriding goal -- get to the NCAA tournament -- these kinds of missed opportunities feel far more urgent. Northwestern is just right there. It's been right there for much of the past three seasons. Each season, they've found a way to fall just short.

Where this team goes from here -- whether these past two losses will be a breaking point, or a launching pad, or neither -- will be fascinating to watch. In the meantime, give your Northwestern fan friend a nice sturdy pat on the back. Buy him a root beer, or 10. As usual, it ain't easy being purple.

Jon Barry and Rob Stone discuss Northwestern's 76-60 win at Georgia Tech and the team's star duo of John Shurna and Drew Crawford.

Behind 27 points from Drew Crawford, Northwestern defeats Seton Hall 80-73 to win the Charleston Classic.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's student section T-shirt slogan -- "Make Shots" -- isn't just dry-witted and cliché-free. It's also pretty solid basketball advice.

Fitting, then, that these Northwestern Wildcats have to follow it so closely. When John Shurna and company aren't draining 3-pointers from all angles -- when Shurna makes only one shot, singular -- they're going to struggle to score points against athletically superior teams.

Michigan State is one such team, and so it went at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Monday night. Northwestern -- one of the nation's best outside shooting teams with perhaps its best pure shooter in Shurna -- shot 31 percent (18-of-57 from the field) at home in a resilient, but disappointing, 65-62 loss to the Spartans.

"We've just got to be able to move on from this," NU forward Drew Crawford said. "We're going to learn from it, learn how to run our offense more precisely. ... We're going to practice hard tomorrow and get ready for the rest of the Big Ten season."

That's probably the right attitude to take, but Northwestern has to consider this something of a disappointment, because there is good news and bad news baked into the loss.

The good news is that the Wildcats hung tough, came back from a 13-point deficit with 3:51 remaining in the second half, and nearly forced overtime before a bad inbound play doomed Crawford's last-ditch 3-point attempt. Juice Thompson, who had been quiet for much of the night, came alive in the final minutes and almost singlehandedly led his team to an unlikely comeback.

"Juice put us on his back and willed us back into the game," Crawford said.

More good news: Northwestern had a chance to win despite its best player -- a guy averaging 61.8 percent from 3 this season -- struggling through an ankle injury that robbed him of his ability to find open shots in Bill Carmody's tricky Princeton offense. For a team that has relied so much on outside shooting thus far, that counts as something of a moral victory.

Shurna's release is lightning-quick, but his feet, even when 100 percent healthy, are not. And his margin of error is a smaller when playing against athletic defenders like Michigan State's. Shurna never really found good looks -- his one made 3-pointer was the product of a leaning and-one foul on Michigan State guard Kalin Lucas -- and his production (11 points, 8-for-11 from the stripe) came entirely at the free throw line.

The bad news for Northwestern? The late heroics didn't produce a win. And what the Wildcats need right now is wins.

The calculus isn't difficult to figure out: Northwestern's NCAA tournament chances grow dimmer with every conference loss. As of Monday morning, ESPN.com bracketologist Joe Lunardi listed Northwestern as one of his first four teams to miss the tournament. Thanks to a nonconference schedule loaded with cupcakes and short on quality opponents (with the possible exception of St. John's), Northwestern can't afford to have a so-so conference season. It needs to handle its business against the Iowas and Indianas of the world, but it also needs to compile more than a few quality wins against the Purdues and Michigan States, too.

In other words, Monday night was a missed opportunity. With a trip to Illinois next on the docket, the Wildcats are in serious danger of beginning the Big Ten season 0-3. That's not the stuff mold-breaking NCAA tournament bids are made of.

"This is a very good team," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. "I know I say this every year, and it sounds like I'm being hard on Bill, but ... Shurna's not 100 percent. "I watched him move earlier in the year and I watched him move the last two games and I don't think he's quite there, and they need him. He's their best player."

Shurna's bum ankle was especially noticeable on the biggest play of the game, when forward Draymond Green rebounded a missed Lucas free throw over Shurna with :12 seconds remaining in the second half. Green scored an easy layup on the play, gave Michigan State a three-point lead, and forced Northwestern into desperation 3-pointers on its last two possessions.

Green was again the star for Michigan State, a team that seems to be slowly but surely figuring things out. Izzo said his lineups are still in flux, and that he should have called timeouts down the stretch to help his players avoid the late letdown, but that he was otherwise happy with his team's performance.

"I think it will be one of those years for us where nothing is going to be easy," Izzo said. "We just got a little out of whack and I think I'm the one that needs to be blamed for that."

Izzo wouldn't take the blame for Michigan State's biggest ongoing issue, which is the Spartans' seeming inability to keep itself from turning the ball over. Michigan State had another plus-20 percent turnover rate performance Monday night; the Spartans turned the ball over 14 times, including on four key plays during Northwestern's late run.

"That's the problem right now," Izzo said. "I don't have an answer for you on that."

Still, despite the late flurry, Green's all-around play, mixed with some smart shooting, some especially impressive perimeter defense, and a one-make night from the hobbled Shurna propelled Michigan State to the win.

Whether the NCAA tournament selection committee eventually takes Shurna's injury into consideration is now in Northwestern's hands, because to receive NCAA tournament consideration, the Wildcats need to win games against teams better than Northern Illinois and Georgia Tech. And to win games, they need to make shots. It all sounds so simple, doesn't it?

Northwestern was a few wins away from its first NCAA tournament berth last season without Kevin Coble.

The assumption was that if the senior forward returned from a season-ending foot injury a year ago that the Wildcats would finally break the infamous streak, especially with three more berths to be had with the expansion from 34 to 37 at-large bids under the new 68-team format in 2011.

Coble isn’t going to play again for the Wildcats, officially deciding to call his career over and focus on graduating in December. Coach Bill Carmody told ESPN.com Tuesday night that he saw this coming after multiple conversations with Coble over the past few weeks. Coble made it official Monday when he met Carmody in his office in Evanston after Carmody had returned from the road recruiting.

Maybe Carmody was camouflaging his disappointment over the decision but he wasn’t glum when reached by phone Tuesday night. The Wildcats were 7-11 without Coble last season, 20-14 overall and return leading scorer John Shurna, who joined other college players practicing against the U.S. National Team in Las Vegas last week.

Add the return of top scorers Drew Crawford and Michael Thompson in the backcourt, Luka Mirkovic inside with Shurna and fifth-year senior Jeff Ryan, back from an ACL injury, and Carmody sees another team that can be a factor in the Big Ten. The Wildcats add freshman guard Jershon Cobb, who is expected to contribute immediately.

“We’ve got good players,’’ Carmody said. “We’re going to have a nice year.’’

The Wildcats, sans Coble, beat NCAA-bound Notre Dame, Purdue and Minnesota during the regular season before losing at Rhode Island in the first round of the NIT.

One of the reasons for Carmody’s optimism lies with the Wildcats' well-timed trip to Italy next month. Coble wanted to make sure Carmody knew prior to the trip, or the 10 practices that are allowed, which will start on Aug. 16 before a Aug. 28 departure. He didn’t want to be wavering, go on the trip and then not play. That’s fine with Carmody. Now he knows he won’t have to figure out if Coble will be on the squad. Ryan isn’t cleared to play, but he’ll be on the trip to continue to be a leader. Carmody expects Ryan to be ready for the season. Cobb can go on to Italy under a new rule allowing freshmen to travel on summer foreign trips.

If the Wildcats are going to bond, find their identity and purpose for this season without Coble, the timing of the trip to Italy is perfectly placed.

“When I took a team at Princeton on a trip like this it turned out to be fantastic for us,’’ Carmody said. “We ended up having a nice year. We don’t start school until late September. So this is going to be real important for us. The practices are going to be something that will get us ready for next year.’’

The Big Ten has at least two national title contenders in Michigan State and Purdue. Ohio State won’t be too far behind with the addition of possible national freshman of the year in Jared Sullinger. Expect Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota to be NCAA tournament teams, as well. Iowa, Penn State, Michigan and Indiana are projected to be in the bottom four in some order and out of the postseason contention.

That leaves Northwestern in the middle, just like a year ago, with a chance to go in either direction. Having a healthy Coble may have tipped the Wildcats finally toward a bid. Knowing he’s unavailable in July and going on the trip to Italy in August to jump start the season should give the Wildcats a chance to figure out if they can finally be relevant on Selection Sunday.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Purdue maintained its defensive intensity through the halftime break, and tacked on some ferocious offensive rebounding.

Add in more heroics from junior guard E'Twaun Moore and junior forward JaJuan Johnson, and the Boilermakers proved too much for No. 7 seed Northwestern, holding on for a 69-61 victory. Second-seeded Purdue continues its Big Ten tournament title defense Saturday in the semifinals against Michigan State or Minnesota, while Northwestern waits for a likely NIT berth.

"Just knowing we have a guy in JaJuan Johnson in the inside who can be a big factor, and E'Twaun Moore, once he gets going, he's unstoppable," said guard Lewis Jackson, who provided a lift with four points and five assists. "We know we can feed off them."

Credit Northwestern for never going away, and Jeremy Nash brought the Wildcats to within a point in the final minute. But Boilermakers senior guard Chris Kramer, a nonfactor for nearly the entire game, responded with a 3-point play to make it a two-possession game.

There aren't many Purdue wins that don't feature a big play from Kramer, and you figured he would make his mark.

"We broke their 2-2-1 pressure and got it to JaJuan on the right wing," Kramer said. "I was cutting down the middle, he hit me right in stride, got fouled and just flipped the ball up, just trying to give it a chance, don't know how it went in.

"Any time you can help your team, it's great, but E'Twaun and JaJuan were big time for us."

After a sluggish start to the game, Purdue set the tone in the first 70 seconds of the second half, recording back-to-back 3-point plays. The Boilers continued to hound the Wildcats, slowing down one of the Big Ten's better offenses for most of the half. Moore stepped up big time with 28 points and five rebounds, and Johnson added 22 and eight rebounds. That's what Purdue needs in Robbie Hummel's absence.

Johnson struggled in a Jan. 16 loss to Northwestern, scoring just seven points before fouling out in only 18 minutes. He picked up two quick fouls Friday but never lost focus and scored 15 second-half points.

"I definitely felt the same, it was like, 'Aw, man, here we go,'" Johnson said of the early fouls. "I definitely didn't want to be in that situation. This time, I did a better job of staying in the game mentally. Coach [Matt] Painter did a real good job, subbing me in here and there, just a few minutes, just let me in the flow of the game, still.

"It helped me a lot in that second half."

Drew Crawford (15 points) and John Shurna (16 points) led Northwestern, but the Wildcats struggled with 15 turnovers and Purdue's pressuring man-to-man.

The officiating crew of Curtis Shaw, Paul Janssen and Dan Chrisman played far too big a role in the game, making questionable calls that affected both teams. There was no flow at all in the second half because a minute didn't go by without a whistle. Northwestern's entire starting backcourt fouled out, and Purdue also had several players in foul trouble. There were 52 fouls called.

Having Shaw officiate your conference tournament is just asking for national embarrassment, and the other two weren't much better.

"Big Ten basketball's reputation is it's a physical game," Shurna said. "A lot of calls were being called today, and it's a little tougher to get into it."

INDIANAPOLIS -- Northwestern came out hot and claimed an early lead before Purdue rallied behind stifling defense and the brilliance of junior guard E'Twaun Moore.

A few thoughts halfway through a good one.

• Purdue missed 13 of its first 16 field-goal attempts but didn't let the cold shooting have any effect on the defensive end. Northwestern generally handles the ball well, but the Boilers forced 11 turnovers in the opening half.
• Moore scored 16 of the Boilers' first 24 points and hit three 3-pointers in less than two minutes to spark a nice run late in the half. He's really taking control in the absence of star forward Robbie Hummel and not hesitating on any shooting opportunities.
• Much like his last game against Northwestern, Purdue center JaJuan Johnson found himself in early foul trouble. But after briefly leaving the floor with two fouls, the junior provided a jolt of offense for an otherwise cold Boilermakers team. If Johnson can avoid the whistles in the second half, he could be a difference-maker for Purdue.
• Northwestern center Luka Mirkovic has struggled mightily away from Evanston this season, but he's showing how he can affect a game tonight. Before leaving the floor with two fouls, Mirkovic passed the ball extremely well out of the post, finding shooters open for 3-pointers. And tonight, Northwestern is knocking down its open 3s. Fouls limited Mirkovic's effectiveness in the half, but he should be a factor in the final 20 minutes.
• The Wildcats were a two-man team (Michael Thompson and John Shurna) for most of Big Ten play, but they're getting more from other players for the second straight tournament game. Freshman Drew Crawford, who is battling a multitude of injuries right now, has 10 first-half points. Jeremy Nash is contributing at the foul line.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Four quarterfinal matchups in the Big Ten tournament are on tap today.

Let's take a quick look at each one.

No. 1 seed Ohio State vs. No. 8 seed Michigan (ESPN, noon ET)

Records: Ohio State (24-7), Michigan (15-16)

Season series: The teams split two matchups, with Michigan winning 73-64 in Ann Arbor and Ohio State prevailing 66-55 in Columbus on Feb. 27.

Advancement: Winner faces Wisconsin or Illinois in Saturday's first semifinal (CBS, 1:40 p.m. ET)

What to watch for Ohio State: National Player of the Year front-runner Evan Turner makes his first appearance in the Big Ten tournament, as Ohio State eyes a possible No. 1 seed in next week's NCAA tournament. The Buckeyes could sneak in to the top line, but only if they win the Big Ten tournament. Turner had 18 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in the teams' last meeting after sitting out a Jan. 3 game at Michigan with a broken back. Ohio State ranks second in the Big Ten in scoring defense (60.4 ppg) and will try to contain Michigan star forward DeShawn Sims with Dallas Lauderdale.

What to watch for Michigan: The Wolverines need a complete performance to beat the surging Buckeyes, and they'll look for big things from guard Manny Harris, who looked good in Thursday's first-round win against Iowa (22 points, 9 rebounds). Michigan played stifling defense for most of the Iowa win and needs a similar effort against Turner, David Lighty and William Buford. The good news is U-M seems to match up decently with Ohio State this year. "We beat them for a whole game, beat them for a half," Wolverines forward Zack Novak said Thursday. "They got us for one half this year, so we’re confident going in."

No. 4 seed Wisconsin vs. No. 5 seed Illinois (ESPN, 25 minutes after Michigan-Ohio State)

Records: Wisconsin (23-7), Illinois (18-13)

Season series: The teams split two meetings, with each squad winning on the other's home floor. Illinois stunned Madison at the Kohl Center on Feb. 9, but Wisconsin surged to a 72-57 rout Sunday in Champaign.

Advancement: Winner plays Ohio State or Michigan in Saturday's first semifinal.

What to watch for Wisconsin: The Badgers might be the hottest team in this tournament, having won four consecutive games. It's no secret the surge has coincided with the healthy return of forward Jon Leuer, who won Big Ten Player of the Week honors last week. Leuer (14.9 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and forward Keaton Nankivil (8.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg) really balance out Wisconsin's offense and will put pressure on Illinois bigs Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis. The Badgers flustered Illinois star Demetri McCamey in Sunday's win and need a similar defensive effort from Jordan Taylor.

What to watch for Illinois: McCamey's sideline confrontation with head coach Bruce Weber generated plenty of national attention, and it will be interesting to see how the mercurial star responds today. Illinois needs its best player to be at his best against a jelling Badgers team. The Illini are only 1-5 since their win in Madison and need to find other ways to score if the outside shots aren't falling. They also must rebound better after Wisconsin crashed the offensive glass well in Sunday's game.

No. 2 seed Purdue vs. No. 7 seed Northwestern (Big Ten Network, 6:30 p.m. ET)

Records: Purdue (26-4), Northwestern (20-12)

Season series: Northwestern won the teams' only meeting, 72-64, on Jan. 16, which marked Purdue's last loss with a healthy Robbie Hummel.

Advancement: Winner faces Michigan State or Minnesota in Saturday's second semifinal (CBS, 25 minutes after first semifinal).

What to watch for Purdue: After a rough start in its first game without Hummel, Purdue rallied last week for two wins. The Boilers need a strong effort today from center JaJuan Johnson, who was a nonfactor before fouling out against Northwestern the last time the teams met. Senior guard Chris Kramer also had a rough outing in Evanston and needs to be a bigger factor on both ends of the floor. Purdue's suffocating man-to-man defense could be the difference tonight. "Instead of someone picking you up at 21 feet, they pick you up at 90 feet," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said.

What to watch for Northwestern: The Wildcats actually match up well against Purdue. They have won two of the teams' last three meetings and choked away a big lead in the only defeat. Standout freshman wing Drew Crawford is very banged-up -- he had at least three ice packs on his body after Thursday's win -- so Northwestern needs production from other spots. Point guard Michael Thompson stepped up big against Indiana (16 points), but senior guard Jeremy Nash and sophomore center Luka Mirkovic need stronger performances today.

No. 3 seed Michigan State vs. No. 6 seed Minnesota (Big Ten Network, 25 minutes after Purdue-Northwestern game)

Records: Michigan State (24-7), Minnesota (19-12)

Season series: Michigan State won both meetings, but only by a combined eight points. After a 60-53 win in East Lansing, the Spartans needed a huge shot from Kalin Lucas to outlast Minnesota, 65-64, on Jan. 23 at Williams Arena.

Advancement: Winner faces Purdue or Northwestern in Saturday's second semifinal.

What to watch for Michigan State: The Spartans come off of a strong showing against Michigan on Sunday but will be without junior guard Chris Allen, who is suspended for the game. Allen ranks fourth on the team in scoring (9.1 ppg), and his absence will put a bigger burden on starting shooting guard Durrell Summers. Michigan State's front line has played better as of late and needs a strong performance against Minnesota bigs Damian Johnson, Ralph Sampson III and Colton Iverson. The Spartans haven't been great defensively this year, but they have held their last six opponents to just 57.2 points per game.

What to watch for Minnesota: After two blowout wins against bottom feeders, the Gophers can really boost their NCAA tournament hopes with a win today. They paced Michigan State in both games and endured one of several heartbreaking losses in the meeting at The Barn. If seniors Johnson and Lawrence Westbrook continue to answer the bell like they did Thursday, and if Devoe Joseph builds on a strong performance, Minnesota will be tough to beat. "Last time we played Michigan State we lost by one point," Joseph said, "and we made a lot of mistakes in the last four minutes, so I definitely think we can pull off the upset."

INDIANAPOLIS -- The 2010 Big Ten men's basketball tournament tips off today at Conseco Fieldhouse with three first-round games on tap.

Here's a quick look at the matchups:

No. 8 seed Michigan vs. No. 9 seed Iowa (ESPN2, 2:30 p.m. ET)

Records: Michigan (14-16), Iowa (10-21)

Season series: Michigan won both meetings, pounding Iowa 60-46 at Crisler Arena and rallying for a 80-78 overtime victory in Iowa City.

Advancement: Winner faces No. 1 seed Ohio State in the quarterfinals Friday (ESPN, noon ET)

Three things to watch:

• These are the two worst offensive teams in the Big Ten, as Michigan averages just 64.4 points and Iowa puts up 60.8 points. The Hawkeyes shot just 30.9 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from 3-point range (4-for-24) in the game in Ann Arbor, while Michigan had a 14-point first half Sunday against Michigan State. Despite the offensive struggles, the teams found their scoring rhythm in their last meeting, as both shot better than 45 percent from beyond the arc. Don't be surprised if the game comes down to 3-point shooting.
• Michigan center DeShawn Sims is a load for most opposing teams, and a smallish Iowa squad will have its hands full with the senior. Sims recorded double-doubles in both meetings with the Hawkeyes this year, including a 27-point, 10-rebound effort in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes will need strong defensive performances from Jarryd Cole and Aaron Fuller today.
• Iowa can't afford any sort of hangover effect if it expects to advance in Indy. The Hawkeyes lost their last two regular-season games, to Wisconsin and Minnesota, by a combined 62 points. Iowa endured its worst-ever loss to Wisconsin (67-40). As freshman guard Eric May told The (Cedar Rapids) Gazette, "You’ve got to Etch A Sketch it and get it out of your system."

No. 7 Northwestern vs. No. 10 Indiana (ESPN2, 25 minutes after Game 1)

Record: Northwestern (19-12), Indiana (10-20)

Season series: Northwestern crushed Indiana 78-61 in Evanston on Feb. 7, but the Hoosiers responded with an 88-80 overtime win Saturday at Assembly Hall.

Advancement: Winner faces No. 2 Purdue in the quarterfinals Friday (Big Ten Network, 6:30 p.m. ET)

Three things to watch:

• The matchup features two of the Big Ten's top offensive threats. Northwestern sophomore forward John Shurna was the Big Ten's leading scorer in league games (20.1 ppg). Shurna matched his career high with 31 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Saturday's loss to IU. Indiana guard Verdell Jones III finished sixth in the Big Ten in scoring for conference games (16.7 ppg). Jones racked up 28 points in the teams' first meeting.
• Northwestern needs to put a body on Indiana's Jordan Hulls, Derek Elston and Bobby Capobianco, especially after Saturday's game. All three Hoosiers freshmen recorded career highs in scoring, including 24 points from Hulls on 8 of 12 shooting from long range. Northwestern has struggled defensively away from its home court, and it'll be interesting to see if Wildcats head coach Bill Carmody sticks with the 1-3-1 zone against IU.
• Two of the Big Ten's top freshmen will be on display today. Northwestern wing Drew Crawford earned Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Year honors, and Indiana forward Christian Watford also gained consideration for the award. Watford will look to beat up Northwestern in the post, while the Wildcats need a lift from Crawford, who has been fighting injuries during the second half of league play.

No. 6 Minnesota vs. No. 11 Penn State (Big Ten Network, 7:30 p.m. ET)

Records: Minnesota (18-12), Penn State (11-19)

Season series: Minnesota won both meetings, but both were close. The Gophers prevailed 75-70 in Williams Arena and beat Penn State 66-64 in State College on Lawrence Westbrook's jumper as time expired.

Advancement: Winner faces No. 3 Michigan State in the quarterfinals Friday (Big Ten Network, approximately 9 p.m. ET)

What to watch:

• Minnesota certainly should be on upset alert, as Penn State is playing its best ball right now. The Nittany Lions won three of their final six Big Ten contests and lost the other three by a combined 14 points. Penn State lost 11 Big Ten games by 10 points or fewer, including seven by six points or fewer. Penn State guard Talor Battle averaged 21.5 points in two meetings with the Gophers this year.
• Gophers senior forward Damian Johnson will be playing with a chip on his shoulder today. Johnson's exclusion from the All-Big Ten Defensive team drew the ire of both he and head coach Tubby Smith, who called it "a travesty" and said Johnson should have been the league's Defensive Player of the Year. Johnson can showcase his defensive prowess today against Penn State's David Jackson, who has played well lately.
• Westbrook can make clutch shots, as he showed last month at Penn State, and everyone at the Big Ten tournament knows what Blake Hoffarber can do when the pressure is on. Minnesota needs both guards to be on target as the Gophers probably need at least two wins this week to make the NCAA field.

Jarvis Varnado had 17 points, 12 rebounds and 10 blocks in Mississippi State’s 82-80 win over Arkansas on Thursday. It was Varnado’s second career triple-double and the fourth in school history. He is one of just four active players with multiple triple-doubles, joining Ohio State's Evan Turner, Marshall's Hassan Whiteside and Liberty's Jesse Sanders. The last SEC player with more than one was Florida’s Nick Calathes. Perhaps even more significantly, Varnado passed Tim Duncan for third place on the all-time blocks list as he continues his pursuit of Wojciech Myrda’s record.

• At halftime against Washington State, Cal guard Jerome Randle had 11 points and nine assists and appeared to be on his way to one of the more impressive double-doubles of the season. Randle never got his double-double, but still put together one of the most impressive performances of the season. Randle scored 28 points in the second half to finish with a career-high 39 in the game. Randle and BYU’s Jimmer Fredette are the only players with 39+ points and 9+ assists in a game this season. The last player from a power six conference to go for at least 39 and 9 was Missouri’s Clarence Gilbert in a quadruple overtime game in 2001.

• Oral Roberts freshman Warren Niles entered the day having connected on one of his last 20 shots. Making his third career start on Thursday, something must have clicked. Niles scored a school freshman record 39 points and exceeded his previous career high by 23 points. His 39 points are the most by a freshman this season, besting Drew Crawford’s 35 for Northwestern. It wasn’t enough for the Golden Eagles though. Despite rallying back from a 20-point deficit to force overtime, IUPUI won 90-87.

• Georgetown shot the lights out in its win over Seton Hall. The Hoyas were 30 for 44 from the field. The 68.2 field goal percentage is the best in a Big East game under John Thompson III and the second best in school history. It was the fifth-best shooting performance by a team this season. The Hoyas starting trio of guards combined to shoot 71.4 percent, including six-for-eight from long distance.

• Gonzaga’s Elias Harris is starting to emerge as one of the top freshman in the nation. Harris, a native of Germany, scored a career-high 31 points to go with 13 rebounds in Gonzaga’s road win over Saint Mary’s. During the Bulldogs’ current five-game win streak, Harris is averaging 21.0 PPG and 10.4 RPG with a 69.5 field goal percentage.

Five things to know from Sunday's action:

1. Northwestern put on a historic display against North Carolina A&T, setting Big Ten records for 3-pointers made (20) and attempted (47) in a game. It was really the weekend of the 3, as Seton Hall and Centenary also hit 20 shots from long range on Saturday. So in the span of two days, we saw three teams hit at least 20 3-pointers in a game. It only happened once (by VMI) all last season. Northwestern was led by 35 points from Drew Crawford, the most by a freshman this season and a Northwestern freshman record. Prior to Sunday, Crawford had only six points in his last three games combined.

2. Fordham’s Chris Gaston is quietly one of the most productive freshmen in the nation. He went off for 32 points and 15 rebounds in the Rams’ 73-56 loss to St. John’s. The last freshman with 30-plus points and 15-plus rebounds in a game was Kansas State's Michael Beasley in February 2008. Gaston now leads all freshmen with 19.1 ppg, 12.0 rpg and seven double-doubles.

3. Entering the season, Wake Forest had not attempted fewer than six 3-pointers in a game this decade. On Sunday, the Demon Deacons attempted only five for the second time this season. In a 90-50 blowout of Elon, Wake Forest was just 2-of-5 from long distance. Those five shots were split between only two players: C.J. Harris and Ari Stewart. Ten different Wake players made multiple field goals. In a microcosm for the game, Elon attempted 24 3s, but only managed to hit one more than the Demon Deacons.

4. Fairfield freshman Derek Needham notched 14 assists against Sacred Heart to tie the most by a player this season. He more than doubled his previous career high in assists. But unlike John Wall (Kentucky) and Eugene Harvey (Seton Hall), who also have had 14 in a game, Needham also scored 19 points. Needham and Wall are the only freshmen averaging 15-plus points, five-plus assists and two-plus steals.

5. Xavier’s Jason Love only scored seven points in the Musketeers’ 83-79 double-overtime win over Cincinnati. However, he saved his best for last, scoring five of the final six points of the game. Love also tied career highs in rebounds (19) and blocks (5). The rebounds might be the most impressive statistic. In a game in which Xavier was outrebounded by nine, Love had half of the team’s 32 defensive rebounds. Prior to this season, the senior only had three double-digit rebounding games. He now has five this season, including three games of 15-plus rebounds.