College Basketball: 7 thoughts on Northwestern, Illinois, Loyola and more as the halfway point approaches

What should we make of the Illini, Ramblers and Blue Demons? Here are seven thoughts on Loyola, Northwestern, Illinois and more as the college basketball season approaches its midway point.

1 – It was a telling week for Northwestern

After losing to Ohio State at home, Northwestern head coach Chris Collins was as frustrated as I’ve seen him in years.

The ‘Cats put up 80 points. Nick Martinelli and Arrinten Page were in a rhythm offensively. The guard play wasn’t an issue. The freshmen didn’t play like freshmen. But the defense couldn’t stop struggling.

Thankfully for NU, they had a reset week. With seven days before the ‘Cats next game against Jackson State, Collins said he was going to put Northwestern through some tough practices to get their defense back on track. It worked. NU went 2-0 in games against Jackson State and Valparaiso, limiting both teams defensively in the process. Next, though, Collins wants to see his team take the next step.

"Win a big game," Collins said last Tuesday. "I just talked about it with our guys. We're gonna break for Christmas after the game Saturday."

That Saturday game is a massive game against Butler. The Bulldogs are 8-3 with a win over No. 23 Virginia. They want the same kind of win. NU and Butler will play at Gainbridge Arena in Indianapolis. Specifically, Collins wants to see his team play in a game with high stakes.

"They have a high-level game, you have Butler in there, we're coming in," Collins said. "I told the guys, it's going to have kind of a tournament-like feel with two games on a Saturday afternoon."

That comes Saturday, and it’s a chance to see what NU has learned defensively.

The biggest place where the Wildcats struggle on defense is with their defensive rotations. Teams have been able to rotate into mismatches or rotate fast enough to gain a step on NU defenders. Both Ohio State and DePaul mentioned this post-game as something they were able to capitalize on vs. Northwestern. 

The first fix Collins wanted to see here was for his players just to keep the ball in front of them. That’s how you fix rotations. 

Butler is averaging 87.4 points per game. It’s a "what are we made of" game for NU.

Offensively, Northwestern will be fine with Page and Martinelli. They need to find their defensive presence Saturday and keep it.

2 – Nick Martinelli always finds a way to impress

Martinelli was asked how his leadership has trickled down to the rest of his teammates, especially the younger players.

Martinelli refuted that, instead crediting those younger teammates for helping him.

"I think you guys are missing how their actions trickle down to me," Martinelli said. "I think that my teammates motivate me each and every day. And it's a dog fight out there when I play against these guys and I have to jump a little bit higher, hit a little bit harder every single day and it’s just such a great atmosphere to be in."

That’s a perfect example for the younger players on the ‘Cats’ roster. Martinelli is a top-tier scorer, and understands how important his presence is after that.

3 – I’m waiting to be critical of Loyola

The Ramblers are 3-9. It’s a jarring sentence to compute. Head coach Drew Valentine usually has Loyola at a place where they’re winning the games it needs to.

Right now, Loyola has taken losses to Chicago State, NIU and Mercyhurst. That stings. The Ramblers’ fell to San Francisco 85-71 on Thursday evening. 

"Our intensity wasn’t where it needed to be in the first half and the second half had a lot of mental errors," Valentine said, according to Loyola Athletics. "That said, I have to give the guys credit. They found a way to compete and even when San Francisco went on runs, I thought we responded better than we have some other times this season. Losing is never positive, but we took some positive steps today."

But, I’m waiting to be critical of any team in the transfer portal era, especially Loyola. The Ramblers play their best basketball in the second half of the season. Having nine losses this early on puts them in a rut, but they’ve turned seasons around before.

Wait to see if they can do it again. Valentine has earned that patience in Rogers Park.

4 – Non-conference matters little for DePaul 

Through non-conference play, the Blue Demons were 8-3. That’s all you need to know about that, really.

There were some inconsistencies offensively, like settling for shots late in the shot clock and jarring turnovers, but DePaul came through the other side with a winning record, including a win over Georgia Tech. That’s the important part.

Now, the Demons started Big East play with a loss to St. Johns. Next up, UConn. That’ll wake you up.

"I feel like we’re in a good spot," DePaul forward CJ Gunn said. "It just came down to the minor things as the game went along."

If the Holtmann era wants to take off, they’ll need to start stringing together Big East wins. That’s easier said than done, to be clear.

The Big East is a gauntlet. It’s not just UConn and St. Johns, there’s also Marquette, Seton Hall and Creighton.

What helps this year is the continuity on the roster. Gunn is an important piece, as well as Layden Blocker and NJ Benson. There are also four players averaging two or more assists per game for the Demons.

What they need to do in conference play, though, is turn up the physicality. 

"Just being the more physical team," Gunn said. "If you watch the game, you can see we want it more than they do."

5 – Keep an eye on Kruz McClure

Of those four players averaging two or more assists per game, one is freshman guard Kruz McClure.

He’s averaging 2.3 assists and 7.3 points per game on an average of 18.1 minutes per game. That’s important, especially considering he could be the future at point guard for DePaul. Blocker is a great player, but McClure has looked the part.

If he comes into his own during Big East play, that’ll be a key development for Holtmann’s squad.

6 – Illini have to get over the hump

Brad Underwood has a lot of pieces to put together, I’ll give him that.

David Mirkovic, Keaton Wagler, Kylan Boswell, Andrej Stojakovic and the Ivisic brothers are a combination of players the Illinois coaching staff needs to figure out how to win with. Oh right, they’re also adding Toni Bilic in the new year, too.

The good news is that they’ve won with these players.

Wins over Tennessee and Texas Tech were impressive. The Illini have enough talent to win on talent alone.

But what about games against Alabama and UConn? Illinois lost both those games. Plus, they lost to Nebraska at home. If they want to be true contenders, they need to beat teams like those with the roster they currently have.

I believe they can do it. Watching them play Alabama made it clear they can keep up with these top teams. They just need to 

It’s interesting to see if the Illini will put it together to beat the likes of Michigan State and Michigan, two teams that are also Final Four contenders in the Big Ten.

7 – Keaton Wagler might be the X-factor

Mirkovic and Stojakovic are the two players who will be atop every opposing team’s game plan. That duo will be a problem come Big Ten play 

Wagler has become a key fixture in that rotation. He earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors on Monday. This came after scoring 19 points against Nebraska and 23 points against Ohio State.

Mirkovic won Big Ten Freshman of the Week twice already. Wagler has proven he’s a key part of this team, but he’s also proven to Underwood that he can be trusted in Big Ten play.

7A - Bradley in a Game of the Year?

The Braves won their first triple overtime game this week, beating Indiana State on the road. That was their first three-OT game since playing at Missouri State when I was a junior at Bradley.

If anything, the Braves proved they have depth. That's something that can carry them far, especially as they try and seize control of a Missouri Valley Conference that does not have a top-tier Drake team anymore.

7B - Hoiball keep churning

One of the best stories of the year so far is the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Ex-Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg has the Huskers at 11-0 and ranked No. 15 in the nation. They stunned Illinois with a buzzer beater. They're damn fun to watch.

Nebraska comes to Northwestern on Jan. 17 if you want to see one of the best coaching reclaimation projects take the next step. 

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