Collins and the Cats excited for the season to tip off

EVANSTON-Northwestern held their first media availability of their 2023-24 men's basketball season on Tuesday.

Head coach Chris Collins addressed the media at length, discussing goals for the season, the upcoming exhibition and season opener, as well as where the program stands after returning to March Madness for the second time in program history.

Here are our takeaways from what he had to say:

Northwestern excited for the season: It was a wintry day outside of Welsh-Ryan Arena, and Collins fielded questions as the first snowflakes of the season cascaded down.

"I woke up this morning and saw some snow flurries. That confirms that it's basketball season," said Collins, who is starting his 11th season in Evanston. "We're excited to get going."

The opening scrum of the season gave Collins some time to reflect on not just the change in seasons, but the changes in himself from his first tourney run in 2017 to now.

The Wildcats followed that first trip to the Big Dance with a losing record the following year. Coming off of an appearance in the second round of the tournament last season, Collins hopes to handle things better this time around.

"I was a young coach at that point, going through it for the first time. Now, six years later, I'm old," Collins said with a chuckle. "I'm six years older, grayer. I have to wear reading glasses now...

"I take a lot of responsibility for not helping that [2017-18] team, things I could have done to be a better leader for that group or avoid some of the pitfalls... Every team is different. It's a whole new group but I hope that coming into [this season] and not taking our foot off the gas pedal, we still have a lot more we want to accomplish."

Collins pulled back the curtain a bit on secret scrimmage: The secret scrimmage industry is alive and well this time of year in college basketball, and the Wildcats held their very own at Welsh-Ryan against Iowa State on Saturday.

The Cats came up short, but Collins was pleased with what he saw.

"There were a lot of positive signs in how we played," he said. "I like how connected we are, I think the chemistry is in a really good place.

"I see the connection, the camaraderie, I see how we're sharing the ball. But yet you watch the film and realize it's October and there's a lot of things [to work on]."

Cats open with scrimmage, then PTI showdown: The Wildcats will play an exhibition against Division-II McKendree on Wednesday night. They then open their season for real on Nov. 6 against Binghamton.

"Scheduling is a crazy puzzle to try and put together," he said. "You have oppportunities to do two preseason events, a scrimmage and an exhibition. I think there's value in playing in front of a crowd, which we'll get tomorrow night."

McKendree got on Northwestern's radar for the exhibition as an in-state D-II program. NU likes to schedule in-state programs for these types of games to foster the Illinois network, and because of the Bearcats' success. Collins noted that McKendree won two games in the D-II postseason tournament last season.

"We feel it's going to be a formidable opponent that can give us a really good look heading into the year," he added.

Collins also made sure to highlight the importance of the season opener against Binghamton.

"We always want to have the PTI debate," Collins said with a laugh.

The hosts of ESPN's Pardon the Interruption are both alums of the schools battling in the season opener. Michael Wilbon, of course, went to Northwestern, while Tony Kornheiser attended Binghamton. They have even done live shows in Evanston for the contest in the past.

"It makes for good TV," Collins continued. "When you get the alums of both schools to argue about it a little bit on camera next week, that's always a good thing."

Collins made sure to note, jokes aside, that he's known Binghamton's coach, Levelle Sanders, for a long time, and that's a key part of the connection that has set up the series.

A few injuries down the roster: The Wildcats staved off a major injury scare earlier this summer, when star point guard Boo Buie injured his hand. But Buie has recovered fully from hand surgery and is ready to start the season.

Collins noted three day-to-day injuries that will keep players out from the exhibition tomorrow against McKendree, and possibly against Binghamton on Nov. 6: sophomore forward Nick Martinelli, and freshman guards Jordan Clayton and Parker Strauss.

Martinelli was the only one expected to be a part of the rotation. He has 10 days to recover for Northwestern's first true test: Dayton.

Collins proud of his 'little brother,' Jon Scheyer: Duke pulled in a commitment from No. 1 2024 prospect Cooper Flagg over the weekend, which opened the door for Collins to talk about his connections with Duke's second-year head coach, Jon Scheyer.

Scheyer played his high school ball at Collins' alma mater, Glenbrook North, in nearby Northbrook. He then played for Collins, when Collins was an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke.

"I like to tell Coach Scheyer that he's the second-best player from Glenbrook North High School," Collins said. "I'm super proud of him and everything he's accomplished. I view him in a lot of respects like a little brother. I knew him when he was a five-year-old kid. I knew his parents, they used to bring him to my high school games...

"We won a national championship together [at Duke, in 2010], I'd say we're pretty close. He might think differently. He doesn't listen to me as much as he used to, he's big time now," Collins concluded with a smile.

Tourney trip doesn't change recruiting targets: Collins said his team isn't resetting its recruiting sights in the aftermath of returning to March Madness.

"I really don't get too much into stars or ratings," he said. "I think the thing we have to focus on is staying true to guys who fit our program. We've been able to get some guys throughout the years, some were touted and some weren't."

Indeed, Northwestern was able to land four four-star players in the three years following its tournament appearance in 2017. Yet the Wildcats' star players in last season's NCAA run was three-star Buie and unranked Chase Audige, who transferred from William & Mary.

"You look at a guy like Boo [Buie], he had no high Division 1 offers," said Collins. "Now he's a preseason All-American."