Recharged Cats ready for Big Ten Tournament debut

Northwestern finally knows its opponent for its first game of the 2023 Big Ten Tournament on Friday night at the United Center (5:30 p.m. CT, BTN).

Tenth-seeded Penn State outlasted Illinois, 79-76, on Thursday night, giving No. 2-seed Northwestern a shot at revenge against the Nittany Lions.

For the first time since the Big Ten implemented its current format, Northwestern earned a double-bye in the conference tourney, punching its ticket straight through to the quarterfinals. It is uncharted territory for the Wildcats, who have been accustomed in recent years to competing in a play-in game on Wednesday as one of the bottom four seeds.

Northwestern hasn't played a game since last Sunday, when it closed its regular season with an impressive 65-53 win over Rutgers. The Wildcats have taken the extra time this week to focus on the team.

The time off couldn't have come at a better time, according to head coach Chris Collins. He said playing 12 games in February to make up for a COVID pause caught up to the Cats down the stretch.

"It was taxing, it, it took a toll on our team," said Collins, who was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the first time in his career this week. "It felt like we were starting to get a little bit worn down towards the end of the season."

Before the season-closing win over Rutgers, Northwestern had lost three straight in heart-wrenching fashion.

First was a second-half collapse to Illinois, when Northwestern let an 18-point halftime lead slip away in front of a raucous crowd in the State Farm Center. They followed that with a 16-point loss in Maryland's Xfinity Center, where the Terps finished undefeated in Big Ten play. The onslaught concluded with a grueling overtime loss to these same Nittany Lions, at home on senior night.

Senior guard Chase Audige, the newly crowned Big Ten co-Defensive Play of the Year, likened Northwestern's February stretch run to playing multiple tournament-esque games. That sort of experience will come in handy now that it's March.

Collins could not overstate the importance of winning at Rutgers. It earned the Wildcats a 12th Big Ten win for the first time in history and enabled them to finish second in the league for the first time since 1959.

"That's what was so big, to get that Rutgers win," he said.

Northwestern also reaped another major benefit: rest. Collins gave the team Monday and Tuesday off this week. He thinks the "recharge" will help his team's energy level and restore their "pop" when they take the floor on Friday night.

The nature of the double-bye does create some interesting caveats, however. The Wildcats got time off but didn't know their opponent until the night before.

Collins took this as a positive, seeing it as an opportunity to "fine-tune" his team and work on the little things all week.

"The one thing when you get into tournaments, because you have less prep time, you really have to stay true to what you do," said Collins. "Certainly you game-plan, and you do what you can against the other team.

"But can you be strong with what your principles are? How do you play offense? How do we defend? And I think that's big when you get in these settings, especially when you're playing back-to-back and you have very little preparation time."

This self-scouting period should help the Wildcats address some of the issues they have had as of late, such as closing out games and beating the press.

This tournament quirk is tempered by the fact that Northwestern played Penn State just last week, leaving the scouting fresh in the players' minds. An evening tip on Friday also gives the Cats the morning to prepare for the Lions.

As the game approaches, the Wildcats are not letting the stakes get to their heads. Collins stressed the importance of sticking to what they've done all season.

"Continue to do the things we've done throughout the course of the year," said Collins. "The stakes are higher, but you can't change. You can't be different. We gotta stay true [to who we are]."

Not letting the moment get to their heads does not mean that the Cats are not excited. Players and coaches alike dream of playing in moments like these.

First-team All-Big Ten point guard Boo Buie said he wants to emulate his older brother, Northwestern assistant coach Talor Battle, who played in the Big Ten Tournament championship game in 2011 with Penn State, losing to Ohio State.

While Collins tried to keep the routine "as relatively normal as possible" this week, he knows that the conference tournament, the venue and the possibility of winning a championship makes this week special.

"I mean, it's human nature. They know what's at stake. They know it's a Big Ten Tournament," said Collins. "That's the game you're dreaming [of] when you're doing drills, and you're on these shooting machines and you're shooting. Your imagination is taking you to playing in the United Center on a Friday night, in a packed house, a Big Ten quarterfinal.

"So our guys are excited. I know they're gonna be ready to play and looking forward to seeing what we can do."

March basketball and a one-and-done format bring a lot of pressure. But Collins summed the situation up simply.

"At the end of the day," he said, "it's just basketball."

And playing basketball is something the Wildcats have done pretty well this season.