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2008 Northwestern Basketball Predictions & Season Preview

Written October 14, 2008 by Luke Knight

Bill Carmody is going to be on the hot seat this season to produce results in his 9th year at the helm of the Northwestern Wildcats. Last season’s 8-22 record and an embarrassing 1-17 record in the Big Ten must be improved on for Carmody to extend his tenure at Northwestern. In the last 2 seasons, Carmody’s teams have won 3 Big Ten games, a stat that would get most coaches fired. In Carmody’s defense, he simply hasn’t had the talent to compete against the top-notch Big Ten competition, but that gap in talent was mostly created by his poor recruiting. This season should be different as Northwestern signed perhaps the best recruiting class in school history, with five incoming freshman who could play immediately, and several will definitely see minutes. These freshmen join a couple of core sharpshooting guards in Craig Moore and Michael Thompson, and star forward Kevin Coble. Carmody lacked size in previous years, but he added two big men with his recruits. This will definitely be an improved Wildcat team from years past so keep an eye on the college basketball odds on them. Check out BetUS where Northwestern is at +50000 odds to win the NCAA Championship. With odds like that, the Wildcats have low expectations, so if the young guys come along they will be a team to watch with your basketball betting.

Freshmen Kyle Rowley and Luka Mirkovic, 7’0” and 6’11” respectively, will platoon the center position, giving the Wildcats size they haven’t seen in the past. Mirkovic can face up and has decent shooting range, while Rowley is still raw but is dangerous around the basket. Both are strong passers which will get them immediate minutes. Coble is the leader of this front court. Coble averaged 15.9 points and 5.4 rebounds, despite missing 9 games to be with his ailing mother. Coble had trouble finding a groove for long stretches last season, but the two incoming big men should less his rebounding load. He needs to improve on the defensive end of the court also. Freshmen John Shurna and Davide Curletti will share time at the other forward spot, along with sophomore Mike Capocci, an athletic lefty who struggled down the stretch. The tandem of Shurna and Curletti should also help increase Northwestern’s rebound total. Ivan Peljusic should give the team depth at the small forward position, as he won’t have to play as an undersized center this season.

Craig Moore is the captain of this team, and the leader of the backcourt. Moore averaged 13.4 points and ranked among the league leaders in steals with 1.83 steals per game and assists with 3.1 assists per game last season. Moore also improved in every statistical category and led the Big Ten in 3-pointers made per game with 3.23. Michael Thompson set a school freshman record last season for assists with 128. He improved his shooting this spring and he should be more of a leader this season to the young guys. Jeremy Nash and Jeff Ryan will provide some depth, or at least Carmody hopes so. Nash is a dependable defender, but needs to get better on the offensive end of the court. Ryan played out of position last season, like many on the Wildcat team, but will see minutes at both guard positions. Freshman Nick Fruendt, the 6’5” recruit and smallest in the class, is a natural scorer but needs to bulk up to play in the Big Ten. Fruendt could redshirt this season, giving him time to bulk up, but he also could bring added scoring to the wing.

Final Analysis

The Wildcats should be much improved in the post, as they brought in four players standing 6’8” or taller. There is more depth to this team now, and Coble, Moore, and Thompson should be able to take breathers without giving the game away. Carmody has been able to use personnel, or the lack thereof, as an excuse for 9 seasons now, but with the talented recruiting class added to the core group of players, that excuse is gone. Carmody will have a chance to showcase his skills as a coach, and if this Wildcat team isn’t drastically improved from its 1-win conference season last year, he could be shown the door out of Evanston. We have Northwestern finishing somewhere near the bottom of the Big Ten, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be much better, especially with the addition of their incoming big men. The fate of Bill Carmody remains to be seen, but we expect the Wildcats will win more conference games than last season. At +3000 odds at BetUS to win the Big Ten Conference, the Wildcats will be an under-the-radar team to watch this season.