The Northwestern Wildcats started the year as the only team in a BCS conference to have never made an NCAA tournament. After Thursday afternoon's loss to Minnesota, they will end the year in the same spot.As for Minnesota, their ticket should be punched. They are now 22-9, with an RPI hovering around 40. If the Gophers really want to nail down their first tourney berth since 2005, they could upset Michigan State Friday, though that doesn't seem likely or necessary.
Northwestern trailed for most of the game, but used a 19-5 second half run to take a temporary lead. They held a two-point lead as edge as 6:15 left in the game. Minnesota, though, was not to be denied. They outscored Northwestern 19-4 the rest of the way, to win comfortably.
Kevin Coble led the Wildcats with 21 points, though he only scored two of those in the second half. Minnesota used a very balanced scoring attack, while using quality defense and hitting their free throws. The Gophers had seven steals, 11 blocked shots, and hit 20 of 26 free throws.
The real story of the game, though, was the step taken forward by each team under their head coaches.
It's easy for Northwestern fans to hate Bill Carmody.
After all, he's been there since 2000, and this was only his second season with a winning record. After an abominable 3-31 regular season conference record in the past two seasons, though, this campaign has to give the program hope for the future. Next year really could be the year they break the drought. The only departing player who regularly logged meaningful minutes is Craig Moore. Granted, Moore was the second-leading scorer, a team leader, and their best perimeter shooter. He will be missed, but they still have Coble and a solid base of role players. Michael Thompson, for example, should continue to grow as a quality player. There's room for improvement here.
As for Minnesota, the Tubby Smith era is a rousing success, even if its just in its second season. He's building a program, and this is the next step. He'll continue to build upon it next season, as they inch toward national prominence. It will be interesting to see if there is a true ceiling, or if can make the Gophers into a powerhouse.
