EVANSTON, IL – Northeastern vs. Northwestern. Isn’t that just a mouthful?
Call it what you will – the Directional Derby, the Clash of the Compass, or a basketball version of Key and Peele’s East-West Bowl – and then stick it in the deepest depths of your memory, because this matchup doesn’t happen all that often.
Before Sunday, it’d been 31 years to the day since these two last faced off. For those counting at home, that’d be December 29th, 1993; that contest resulted in the Huskies suffering a 92-65 loss, one of many en route to a 5-22 campaign which saw the end of head coach Karl Fogel’s tenure.
In the decades since, both schools have undergone dramatic changes, both on and off the court. But, when it came time to play basketball on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Welsh-Ryan Arena, the difference between 1993 and 2024 wasn’t particularly glaring. It ended up being just two points, as the Huskies improved on a 27 point loss in ‘93 with a 25 point loss in ‘24, falling 85-60.
This one was always going to be tough sledding – Northwestern ranked inside KenPom’s top-50 before the game, making them far and away the toughest opponent on the Huskies’ schedule – but it was Northeastern that jumped in front early. Bill Coen’s bunch knocked down six threes in the opening ten minutes, coupling efficient perimeter play with stingy, aggressive defense to silence a raucous Evanston crowd and take a 22-9 lead.
Chris Collins’ Wildcats weren’t going to be daunted by an early deficit; his regime has prided itself on defense, ball security, and slowly grinding down their opposition. It’s a formula which has been immensely successful, guiding Northwestern to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
That formula clicked into gear by the middle of the first half; after a couple of early turnovers, they began to figure out Northeastern’s press defense, embarking on a 26-11 run to close out the half. Spearheaded by senior guards Ty Berry and Jalen Leach (and assisted by a bevy of Husky turnovers), Northwestern sank a few threes and began drawing fouls en masse, grabbing their first lead on a Leach triple. However, the visitors responded with two threes of their own, and the sides went into halftime with Northwestern clinging to just a two-point, 35-33 lead.
The Huskies have spent what seems like all season stumbling through the opening frame before turning it on for the back nine, to mostly positive results. If that was the script for Sunday’s contest, they certainly followed it through the first half, setting themselves up for a big second half and a potentially famous victory.
There would be no such storybook ending.
After being deployed somewhat successfully for most of the first half, Northeastern’s unorthodox press began to falter, allowing the ‘Cats to generate open looks seemingly whenever they felt like it. To make matters worse, the Huskies’ season-long ball security woes cropped up in a big way – after ten first-half turnovers, they notched 12 in the second on their way to a season-high 22.
“I give them credit,” said Collins on the Northeastern press. “We prepared for it, probably not as much as we should’ve… there’s a reason why Coach Coen (has been) a heck of a coach for a long time.”
22 turnovers would be challenging to overcome against most teams; against an upper-tier power-5 team like Northwestern, it’s a death knell. After a hotly-contested first half, the Wildcats opened the second by pouncing on that weakness; the teams battled for a few minutes, but after taking a seven-point lead at the under-16 media timeout, Northwestern’s star duo took over. Brooks Barnhizer and Nick Martinelli, each of whom has a legitimate shot at all-Big 10 honors, led the ‘Cats on a 13-2 spurt which gave Northwestern a 59-41 cushion with 11:35 to play.
Try as they might, that would spell the end for the Huskies; the margin never again broached single digits. Continued excellence from Barnhizer and Martinelli alongside Berry’s shooting prowess (again, punctuated by incessant Northeastern turnovers) pushed the deficit to 80-55 before the benches emptied. When the buzzer sounded moments later, the gap remained at 25, as the Wildcats rounded out non-conference play with a resounding 85-60 win.
It was once again a tale of two halves for the Huskies, who started strong but faded fast. After knocking down eight threes in the first half, Northeastern abandoned the shot completely in the second half, recording just one make on a paltry five attempts in the second frame while losing the period 50-27.
With no discernible outside threat in the second half, Northwestern was able to clamp down on defense, notching 20 of its 34 points off turnovers in the period. The Huskies also struggled to match up to the physicality of a Big 10 team, sending the Wildcats to the free throw line 22 times compared to just four times for the visitors.
As poorly as Northeastern played at times, it’s worth noting that Northwestern is about as hard a matchup as it gets for this group. With a deep roster full of big, strong guards and capable two-way players, the Wildcats were able to neutralize players such as Rashad King and Harold Woods, who’ve spent all season feasting on smaller, less physical matchups. Against Northwestern’s stellar defenders, the duo (and most of the roster) had no such luck, combining for nine turnovers and shooting just 7-17 from the floor.
There may be a silver lining to Sunday’s trouncing; LA Pratt had his best game in multiple months, finishing with 18 points and seven rebounds on seven-of-eleven from the field. It’d be a boon to the Huskies if he can perform similarly in conference play; his efficiency (or lack thereof) has been a bit of a strain on Northeastern’s offense at times so far this season.
Elsewhere, Masai Troutman contributed 18 points, while Woods and King chipped in eight each. However, bright spots were few and far between; only one player (JB Frankel) recorded more assists than turnovers, and every Huskies’ starter bar Collin Metcalf had +/- marks of -13 or worse.
For the Wildcats, positives came in droves. Four players (Barnhizer, Berry, Leach, Martinelli) scored in double figures, Barnhizer recorded his sixth-straight double-double, and four different players registered at least two steals. The aforementioned Barnhizer was a real-life Whack-A-Mole, popping up everywhere on the floor over and over again in his 39 minutes of action.
“Brooks has been phenomenal,” said Collins postgame. “What more can you say… the guy played the whole game. There’s other great players in the country, (but) I’m not sure anybody’s affecting the game in as many ways (as Barnhizer).”
Barnhizer often dealt with double-teams on the offensive end of the court, but was prolific both dribbling through and passing out of them, causing Northeastern fits. The senior guard certainly looked the part of an all-Big 10 teamer, and was ridiculously impressive in every facet of the game.
“I think Coach did a good job telling us to be willing passers,” Barnhizer said when asked how he handled double-teams. “We play the game the right way… we knew they’d throw different looks, but we did a really good job (of adjusting).”
Northeastern was once again missing William Kermoury, who was left out for the second straight game due to what appears to be an ankle injury suffered against Old Dominion. Interestingly, the Huskies are 6-1 with Kermoury and just 2-4 without him. He was seen in a practice video leading up to Sunday’s contest, so there is at least some hope of his return for Thursday’s CAA opener against Delaware. However, the Huskies have been conservative with injury management so far this season, so it wouldn’t be a surprise should they take their time bringing him back.
Sunday marked the end of non-conference play, which Northeastern finished 8-5. Despite the unsightly result, the thirteen games of evidence show that these Huskies are talented, much-improved, and raring to compete in the CAA.
“(Northeastern) has a good team,” remarked Collins. “I knew this was going to be a tough game… I think they’re going to win a lot of games in their league, and be a contender this year.”
The Huskies will kick off conference play (and 2025!) when Delaware comes to town on Thursday evening. Jacob Phillips will be on the call from Matthews Arena, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. on WRBB 104.9 FM.