THE OFFICIAL RUTGERS-NORTHWESTERN PREDICTION THREAD
- Thread starter bac2therac
- Start date
I worry about a kick in the b@11s after the excitement of the past 2 weeks, but I don't care.
Rutgers 69
Northwestern 66
Rutgers 69
Northwestern 66
Northwestern is missing a starter and is 1-5 in conference on the road.
Penn State was missing a starter and had no conference wins on the road.
That's eerily similar so take nothing for granted.
A key will be if Northwestern had enough time/film to figure out how to play the new look Scarlet Knights featuring JWill and Ogbole. Let's pick up the Q1 W to enhance NIT status and keep the NCAA dream alive for another week.
Penn State was missing a starter and had no conference wins on the road.
That's eerily similar so take nothing for granted.
A key will be if Northwestern had enough time/film to figure out how to play the new look Scarlet Knights featuring JWill and Ogbole. Let's pick up the Q1 W to enhance NIT status and keep the NCAA dream alive for another week.
its Q2 but its going to count as a huge quality win for the resume
RU 71
NW 58
Northwestern is a thin team missing its best 3 point shooter that is 1-5 in the B1G on the road coming into a red hot Rutgers team that is undefeated with JWill and Ogbole riding a 3 game win streak and playing with all the confidence in the world
Davis and Simpson did a great job against Young recently who is a similar small quick PG amongst the leagues best. JWill shuts down Barnhizer. The NW offense struggles mightly. Rutgers defense continues to impress
Rutgers dominates the boards. NW is last in the conference ins effective FG defense so we should be able to get good looks. They are the worst in foul rate so if we attack the rim, we should get to the line
NW 58
Northwestern is a thin team missing its best 3 point shooter that is 1-5 in the B1G on the road coming into a red hot Rutgers team that is undefeated with JWill and Ogbole riding a 3 game win streak and playing with all the confidence in the world
Davis and Simpson did a great job against Young recently who is a similar small quick PG amongst the leagues best. JWill shuts down Barnhizer. The NW offense struggles mightly. Rutgers defense continues to impress
Rutgers dominates the boards. NW is last in the conference ins effective FG defense so we should be able to get good looks. They are the worst in foul rate so if we attack the rim, we should get to the line
Penn State game was different because JWILL did not play. Rutgers 67-60.
Let's not also lose sight of 1-18. Jwill or no Jwill tough to win 1-18
Noah disappoints by only shooting 4 for 4 for 3’s. Knights continue to roll.
Ru 70- 60.
Ru 70- 60.
I feel like FIG. I’m quite confident for us to win !
Hate feeling too confident !
I know why I am feeling confident !
I don’t know why I’m not taking the prior 20 games into account however.
Anyhows will go with a barn burner:
Rutgers -64
Northwestern- 63.
Hate feeling too confident !
I know why I am feeling confident !
I don’t know why I’m not taking the prior 20 games into account however.
Anyhows will go with a barn burner:
Rutgers -64
Northwestern- 63.
Bad news when you are confident. Usually you have the sky is falling no matter what game it is. LOL.
Best of Luck,
Groz
Ty Berry is out for the season, per Jon Rothstein.
With Berry, NW had 4 guys who could light it up on any given night -- Buie (18.8 ppg), Barnhizer (14.5 ppg), Langborg (12.0 ppg), and Berry (11.6). On threes, Berry leads the way at 43.3%, then Buie at 40.3%, then Langborg at 40.2%, and then Barnhizer at 35.6%. Even Nick Martinelli off the bench is a solid rotation guy at 7.7 ppg and 10-25 on threes (40%). As a team, they average 39.6% on threes. It's an embarrassment of riches from deep.
The point is, the loss of Berry is surely significant, but NW is still a very dangerous team from deep. Of course, losing 29.7 minutes from Berry, which will be replaced by a combination of Martinelli, more Barnhizer and Langborg, and freshman Jordan Clayton, who has played in 20 of NW's 24 games and averages 8.2 mpg but has literally only scored 9 points all season (so I'm guessing he's more of a garbage time type of guy).
What this means is that NW will be playing Buie, Barnhizer, Langborg, and Martinelli for 35+ minutes EACH. As others have said, we need to press them 94 feet for 40 minutes and tire them out. Being on the road in a hostile environment and playing 35+ minutes against a relentless press will create jelly legs in the 2nd half.
Teams often rise to the occasion when a key player is out (see Penn State without Clary), so, like many in this thread, I am worried about a fall back to earth for us and NW rising to the challenge of losing Berry. But I think our defense is playing so well right now that we will overcome these issues.
Payback for last year's beatdown at the RAC...
Rutgers 70
NW 62
With Berry, NW had 4 guys who could light it up on any given night -- Buie (18.8 ppg), Barnhizer (14.5 ppg), Langborg (12.0 ppg), and Berry (11.6). On threes, Berry leads the way at 43.3%, then Buie at 40.3%, then Langborg at 40.2%, and then Barnhizer at 35.6%. Even Nick Martinelli off the bench is a solid rotation guy at 7.7 ppg and 10-25 on threes (40%). As a team, they average 39.6% on threes. It's an embarrassment of riches from deep.
The point is, the loss of Berry is surely significant, but NW is still a very dangerous team from deep. Of course, losing 29.7 minutes from Berry, which will be replaced by a combination of Martinelli, more Barnhizer and Langborg, and freshman Jordan Clayton, who has played in 20 of NW's 24 games and averages 8.2 mpg but has literally only scored 9 points all season (so I'm guessing he's more of a garbage time type of guy).
What this means is that NW will be playing Buie, Barnhizer, Langborg, and Martinelli for 35+ minutes EACH. As others have said, we need to press them 94 feet for 40 minutes and tire them out. Being on the road in a hostile environment and playing 35+ minutes against a relentless press will create jelly legs in the 2nd half.
Teams often rise to the occasion when a key player is out (see Penn State without Clary), so, like many in this thread, I am worried about a fall back to earth for us and NW rising to the challenge of losing Berry. But I think our defense is playing so well right now that we will overcome these issues.
Payback for last year's beatdown at the RAC...
Rutgers 70
NW 62
Revenge game after embarrassing loss at the RAC last season.
Rutgers 66 Northwestern 61
Rutgers 66 Northwestern 61
It's usually the first game when a player goes down they rally for a win but them the actual loss takes its toll
No depth. Press all game. Tire them out. Even if it's just on ball pressure to bother Boo bringing up the ball. Make him work and think
Attack the rim. NW fouls and they have a shallow bench. That's a dangerous combination
How are we going to stop Boo Buie in 2026?
The keys for us will be:
- Win the turnover battle
- Win the OReb battle
- Make our free throws
NW does not shoot it particularly well from inside the arc, and without Berry their 3-pt shooting will take a hit as well. They are pretty solid on FTs.
NW does tend to get more shots than their opponents, by getting turnovers and ORebs.
Assuming we meet those three objectives, we should win, and being at home will help.
RU wins 72-64
- Win the turnover battle
- Win the OReb battle
- Make our free throws
NW does not shoot it particularly well from inside the arc, and without Berry their 3-pt shooting will take a hit as well. They are pretty solid on FTs.
NW does tend to get more shots than their opponents, by getting turnovers and ORebs.
Assuming we meet those three objectives, we should win, and being at home will help.
RU wins 72-64
Rutgers riding high since Jeremiah became eligible. Impressive 3 game win streak and seemingly getting better each game. Fanbase energized. Potential magical run to the tourney about to unfold
Northwestern 1-5 on the road. Down a key piece.
I've seen this before. We're ripe for a let down. It won't be easy. But Rutgers eeks it out and leaves us dreaming for a few more days at least
Rutgers 61
Northwestern 58
Northwestern 1-5 on the road. Down a key piece.
I've seen this before. We're ripe for a let down. It won't be easy. But Rutgers eeks it out and leaves us dreaming for a few more days at least
Rutgers 61
Northwestern 58
You could have bet Northwestern + 2.5 and hoped for RU to win and not cover. You could be happy twice!
I hear you regarding a possible letdown.
One thing to consider is, did we play over our heads in those last 3 games, or is this our new normal?
I tend to lean toward the latter, because much of it is predicated on effort, especially on defense and on offensive rebounding.
Add to that the individual performance of JWill and his impact on the team’s improved performance overall, plus the ability of our coaches to gameplan and make more effective substitutions based on our new team chemistry.
Bottom line is, we are simply a different and better team than we were before. Whenever AWill is a go, then we’ll be at full strength for the first time all year, but for now the parts are playing as a more complete whole.
I like our chances from here on out.
Rutgers 67
Northwestern 61
This is usually where the backup comes in and crushes our collective soul but I’m not picking against us until we lose again.
Northwestern 61
This is usually where the backup comes in and crushes our collective soul but I’m not picking against us until we lose again.
Very true, although I don’t think manifesting a <2 point game is good for my heart health
We were not only terrible in that game, but every loose ball seemed to go their way. I wanted to gouge my eyes out.
Rutgers is playing well since JWill joined the lineup. Northwestern is missing their best 3 point shooter. These things make me hopeful.
My big question is how J Williams reacts to being at the top of the scouting report? We will see some different defensive strategies to stop him from having an impact. Can we adjust?
I am 0 for the last 3. I can't jinx RU by picking them.
NW 68
RU 65
My big question is how J Williams reacts to being at the top of the scouting report? We will see some different defensive strategies to stop him from having an impact. Can we adjust?
I am 0 for the last 3. I can't jinx RU by picking them.
NW 68
RU 65
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