The senior returned with a double-double against Montana State and was key down the stretch.
There is good and bad from the past two Northwestern games, but most importantly there is Brooks Barnhizer in Evanston once again. The ‘Cats survived a pair of contests against Eastern Illinois and Montana State at home with Barnhizer returning for the latter contest Tuesday evening.
This week’s column will focus on some of what Brooks brings to the table beyond the points column as well as a few defensive clips from Ty Berry’s mixed bag of a week.
Offense
What pops out in Barnhizer’s box score on first glance is the 20-point, 10-rebound double-double. Brooks did a number of good things scoring the rock, but what stood out to me most was his passing. Barnhizer registered a team high four assists and had a few more good passes that definitely could have gone in that column if a teammate had finished off the play. He made offense look a lot simpler for Northwestern after a disappointing performance on that end against EIU.
Barnhizer pulled off his best Boo impression on this play, which ultimately ended up being the bucket that broke the tie for good. Brooks smartly motions Leach up to set him a screen going left and stares down the pick. But as soon as his defender gambles on a steal, Barnhizer goes right and blows by his defender. Brandon Walker, tasked with defending Nicholson, has no choice but to step up. As soon as Walker loses contact with Big Matt, Barnhizer calmly lobs the ball for the 7-footer to slam home.
In the first four games, it was distinctly evident how much the Wildcats were missing someone who could blow by a defender on a dribble. Martinelli has been phenomenal, but he’s generally going over the top of defenders out of post-ups instead of past them from the perimeter. The main difference in the grand scheme is that when someone beats their defender off the dribble, it opens up more passing lanes. Buie created so many dunks for Nicholson and open threes for Berry and Langborg a year ago by driving and kicking. Based on what we’ve seen so far, it’ll be mostly up to Barnhizer to do the same for his teammates this season.
Defense
Brooks does it all
Barnhizer showcased his unbelievable basketball IQ and defensive chops all night. In addition to his 10 boards, Barnhizer had three steals, a block and was generally a menace to Montana State players all game.
Watch No. 13 on this play. Barnhizer initially leans in to take away a mid post entry to Walker. Then, when Walker does eventually get the ball, Barnhizer pulls off a brilliant display of strength and intelligence. Barnhizer innocently follows his man until the second Walker turns his head and can no longer see him. As soon as that happens, Barnhizer crashes down on the post for a double team. Many of Northwestern’s defensive breakdowns in this game came when it doubled the post but allowed an easy escape pass, resulting in a wide open three. Barnhizer doesn’t make that mistake, ripping the ball out of Walker’s hand as soon as he spins back.
As a bonus for this clip, we also get to see Barnhizer run the break. Against Dayton, Leach tried to pin someone to his back and was called for an offensive foul. Barnhizer executes the technique perfectly, boxing out Walker and letting Nicholson run to the rim without interference. Max Agbonkpolo is forced to defend two guys and Nicholson gets two free throws as a result. (Do NOT ask what happened on the ensuing free throws.)
Ty Berry’s ups and downs
The other two defensive clips feature a different team captain, both pulled from the Eastern Illinois game.
This first play stars the perimeter defense of Berry with some cameos from K.J. Windham and Nicholson to complete the play. Watch the way Berry chases two different players around a pair of screens on the perimeter and deters any drive to the interior. Switching directions on a dime is not an easy thing to do, especially when defending a guy with momentum. To add to the difficulty, Berry has to avoid getting chipped by the screen setter. The result is an impressive display by a crafty and talented veteran. When it’s Windham’s turn, Berry tags the short roller to allow Big Matt to recover before finding his guy. Windham and Nicholson get shoutouts for successfully taking away all of the options on the pick and roll. The only problem is Berry doesn’t box out the weak side, allowing EIU to corral an offensive rebound.
For as great as Berry is defensively, he got glued to the bench for defensive possessions down the stretch of the EIU game. The reason why is plays like this.
Berry gets caught ball-watching in what can best be described as a rookie move. For a fifth-year player in the system, this type of defensive miscue is inexcusable. He allows a backdoor cut right behind his back in a three point game in the second half. To add insult to injury, Leach and Nicholson manage to be so out of place that a guy who fell down in the middle of the play ends up scoring and getting fouled.
Coach Collins Clip of the Week
Fans of Chris Collins had to be fired up on Tuesday. The refereeing was far from perfect for the first thirty minutes and Northwestern’s skipper was letting the zebras know it. This clip was from a decidedly questionable call, leading to Barnhizer’s fourth foul with over ten minutes left in the contest.
Coach Collins is one of the most visceral coaches in the sport of college basketball. He’s not afraid to show the refs what they got wrong. In this case, he is screaming at the refs that Barnhizer stopped and didn’t push off. He’s probably right. Watching the replay, which isn’t included in the clip, Brooks didn’t extend the forearm and just used his natural strength to create space.
His facial expressions are also among the best in the business. When Collins gets mad, his eyes get wide and he loves to move his head around. He also flails his arms in the air constantly, disengaging from his default state of having them crossed in front of his chest disapprovingly.
Throughout the game, Collins could be audibly heard from the crowd shouting at the refs. From my seat under the Northwestern basket, I heard a number of different coaching cliches including: “Call it both ways!”, “That’s terrible, Kevin” and “That’s f***ing bulls***.” Fans of the purple and white should hope that Collins’ anger leads to greater intensity on the court because the ‘Cats have looked lackadaisical and uninspired at times this season.