With a disappointing 5-15 Big Ten record, the Northwestern Wildcats are stuck playing on the Big Ten Tournament’s opening day.
The Wildcats will take on Penn State on Tuesday at the United Center in Chicago, and they will seek to continue their momentum from a 94-73 victory over the Nittany Lions on Jan. 29. Northwestern is coming off close losses at the hands of Purdue and Minnesota, but prior to that, the ‘Cats had won three Big Ten games in a row, seemingly establishing some newfound momentum.
Here are three keys to taking care of business against Penn State.
Feed the forwards
Northwestern smoked the Nittany Lions in January behind a 60.3% shooting performance, and much of its success was headed by dominant performances from Nick Martinelli, Angelo Ciaravino and Tre Singleton, who combined for 71 points. Ciaravino’s 20-point outing was impressive in its own right, but Martinelli (34 points) and Singleton (17 points and 18 rebounds) were the most impactful players against the Nittany Lions, and they should be the centerpieces of the gameplan on Tuesday.
For starters, nobody on Penn State can guard Martinelli one-on-one, and he should seize every opening he can get to drive to the basket or pull up for a signature floater. If Martinelli draws double-teams, he should be prepared to make decisive passes, and Singleton is a player who is due for another breakout game given his athleticism and ability to get to the basket consistently.
If the ‘Cats can facilitate a two-man game between the senior and the freshman, they should be well on their way to success.
Make quick passes to facilitate open threes
Between Martinelli, Jordan Clayton and Jake West, the ‘Cats have three players shooting at least 39.4% from distance. All three should be reliable options against Penn State, but the key for the ‘Cats will be to make more decisive passes than they typically do to set up a sufficient number of open looks.
Often, Northwestern’s offense sinks into a lull late in games where the ‘Cats drain the shot clock and largely abandon effective ball movement around the perimeter. Much of this is by design to allow players like Martinelli and West to operate in pick-and-roll or iso situations.
However, given the season-long three-point success for Martinelli and the recent sharpshooting of Clayton and West, it is time for the Wildcats to embrace the three-ball in order to establish a sufficient lead and avoid another potential late-game collapse. If Martinelli and Singleton can get going close to the basket early on in Tuesday’s contest, that should allow the Wildcats to find more and more open three-point shots as the game goes on. Assuming NU can distribute the ball quickly and effectively, it should have a much easier time finding secondary options on offense if it leans on the three, especially in the closing minutes when teams will be keying on Martinelli above all else.
Dominate the rebound battle
Statistically, Penn State is one of the country’s worst teams on the glass, ranking 329th in the NCAA and 17th in the Big Ten with a -4.2 rebound margin (Northwestern ranks 331st in the NCAA and last in the conference at -4.3). The Nittany Lions don’t have a single player averaging more than 5.2 rebounds per game, and the ‘Cats exploited that weakness back in January, outrebounding Penn State 34-21 in that game.
As a unit, Northwestern has improved at hustling for rebounds throughout the season, but the ‘Cats still need to find more consistency in boxing out and securing clean boards instead of relying on fortunate tips and bounces. A plus-two rebound margin against Minnesota was a positive sign, but the Golden Gophers lack high-end size and played all five starters for 36 or more minutes with the absence of Jaylen Crocker-Johnson. A 28-26 rebounding edge in a Big Ten game is still progress, but NU cannot take too much solace in that particular performance given the extenuating circumstances.
Having Arrinten Page back could be a boost for the Wildcats on the boards, but Page needs to elevate his rebounding play from recent games to truly benefit his squad. Page missed the regular season finale against Minnesota due to an illness, and although he turned in some solid rebounding performances earlier in the year, the 6-foot-11 center hasn’t secured more than six in a game since January. Granted, Page’s minutes have been up-and-down, but if he can set an example as the tallest Wildcat on the court, good results should follow on Tuesday.
