Fun Fact
Over the past four games NU’s adjD is holding teams below 0.85 PPP on average. That is better than ANY DIVISION 1 team has performed over
the season. Spectacular!!! On offense NU
has score 0.845 PPP. That is worse than
ANY DIVISION 1 team has performed over the season. Horribad!!! Has there ever been such a schizophrenic
team?
We read somewhere a CCC quote that said a coach’s job is to
maximize what he has on hand. We couldn’t
agree more. The above statistics show
that he has done an amazing job of that on defense. But on offense he couldn’t do any worse.
@NU 63 Purdue 60 2OT
NU fans are giddy with excitement over Tuesday night’s win. Contract extension for CCC? Will CCC leave NU for Duke when Coach K
retires? Has CCC found his coaching
identity? Could NU have a winning record
in the B1G and make the NCAAs?
Whoa now. We hate to
rain on the parade but people are starting to say some nutty things. Look it.
We get that 3-4 in the B1G is a good thing seeing how NU had been blown away in its first three B1G games. We get
that NU has won three of its last four games.
We get that the defense has been a revelation.
But let’s be real. Per
kenpom for its three victories NU has defeated the #92 Illini and the #101
Boilermakers at home and the #70 Hoosiers on the road. These are all lower tier B1G teams. Two of the games were at home. One of those home wins required double OT to win.
Let’s assume a best case scenario that NU can somehow consistently impose its
will against lower-tier B1G teams to eke out wins in spite of the moribund offense. The other two other lower-tier B1G teams are
#78 Nebraska and #107 Purdue. NU has but
five games against these five other B1G lower tier B1G teams.
Because NU fumbled its way through the non-conference season
even the NIT is but a dream unless NU can earn a .500 B1G record. If NU wins the five remaining games
against the lower-tier. That gets NU to
eight BIG wins. NU will need to steal a
win from the upper tier. In other words
everything has to go about as well as can be realistically expected to even
make the NIT.
How about taking the “short-cut” to the NCAAs by winning the
BTT? Four games in four days with NU’s
short bench not to mention the heavy hitters in the top-tier? Fuggedaboutit.
GAMBLE Report
All told NU is now ranked #144 which is up two spots from
last report and still 12 rungs behind 2013. The
defense is up 3 spots to a very impressive #18 while the offense is down 4
spots to #323. Break out the confetti
and fireworks RIGHT!?!?!?
Bigger picture NU continued its trend of solid fundamental
defense. NU has eschewed the notion of
trying to turnover its opponents in favor of positional defense that better
interferes with shot selection and facilitates rebounding. This is a winning formula and CCC deserves
credit for the heavy lifting done on the defensive end of the court.
On offense NU continues to slump. NU has improved its ball protection in B1G
play but in so doing has lost its gains from getting to the charity stripe more
often and creating open looks once an opponent’s defense has broken down. NU’s FTR is now #228 which is down over 80
rungs since the end of the non-conference slate. Similarly the effective FG% for the offense
is an abysmal #307 which is over 90 rungs worse than at the beginning of B1G
play. Overall the offense is down over
70 spots.
BIG Gamble Report
The defense continues to leap up the B1G charts. The Adj D is up 3 more spots and is now #5 in
the B1G. The eFG% is now THE BEST in the
B1G. Looking ahead NU could vault up to
the #2 defense in B1G if they can keep up this stout defense.
Overall NU is still #12 in the B1G. There is that rainy parade thing again.......
