We Did Come to Play School!

TheC · Feb 5, 2026

While I know there are a few exceptions on here, I think most of us on this board are big NU fans because we went to school there. And, let's face it... we didn't go there because of the top notch athletics. We went there for the academics. We did come to play school.

I've been an NU fan now for almost 40 years. While we have had some success in the big 2 sports during that span, most of the time we have been mediocre to bad in both. And when we have had success, we haven't had top 15 in the country kind of success except the '95 team. 1995 was our miracle run and its unlikely we'll see anything like that again in my lifetime in either sport. There are too many things working against us. So, I'm trying to learn to be happy with the moments we get. I know that's rich coming from me, but I'm getting too old to keep playing the game of unrealistic expectations that Northwestern athletics is ever going to join the big boys, even for a season or two. We just don't get those kind of players to come here. Look at that Illinois team last night. Look at the Michigan team this year. That combination of size and skill pretty much across the lineup is something we've never come close to having here during my fandom. We are who we are.

This year's hoops team is especially bad. It has been a thoroughly disheartening season. But, when you dig down a little, it kinda' makes sense. NU is not the kind of program that can reload. When we start over, we have to start from scratch. We saw it after the McIntosh/Law group left and now we're seeing it after the Boo/Brooks group has left. We are playing one proven player and a bunch of newbies who are not Top50 kind of players. On top of that, the BIG seems historically strong this year. That is a combination for disaster... like last night.

So, we'll look for moments of joy and hope the West/Singleton group is the next good group of Wildcats (assuming they stay for four years) and see if they can make some noise in 2-3 years - it probably won't be Sweet 16 noise, but at least tourney contenders.

stpaulcat · Feb 5, 2026

TheC said:
While I know there are a few exceptions on here, I think most of us on this board are big NU fans because we went to school there. And, let's face it... we didn't go there because of the top notch athletics. We went there for the academics. We did come to play school.

I've been an NU fan now for almost 40 years. While we have had some success in the big 2 sports during that span, most of the time we have been mediocre to bad in both. And when we have had success, we haven't had top 15 in the country kind of success except the '95 team. 1995 was our miracle run and its unlikely we'll see anything like that again in my lifetime in either sport. There are too many things working against us. So, I'm trying to learn to be happy with the moments we get. I know that's rich coming from me, but I'm getting too old to keep playing the game of unrealistic expectations that Northwestern athletics is ever going to join the big boys, even for a season or two. We just don't get those kind of players to come here. Look at that Illinois team last night. Look at the Michigan team this year. That combination of size and skill pretty much across the lineup is something we've never come close to having here during my fandom. We are who we are.

This year's hoops team is especially bad. It has been a thoroughly disheartening season. But, when you dig down a little, it kinda' makes sense. NU is not the kind of program that can reload. When we start over, we have to start from scratch. We saw it after the McIntosh/Law group left and now we're seeing it after the Boo/Brooks group has left. We are playing one proven player and a bunch of newbies who are not Top50 kind of players. On top of that, the BIG seems historically strong this year. That is a combination for disaster... like last night.

So, we'll look for moments of joy and hope the West/Singleton group is the next good group of Wildcats (assuming they stay for four years) and see if they can make some noise in 2-3 years - it probably won't be Sweet 16 noise, but at least tourney contenders.

I dunno, Duke did it.

prez77 · Feb 5, 2026

We debate this constantly, but Duke makes compromises on its admits rather obviously. So once we get past the lack of winning tradition problem, which I'm sure is not negligible, I'm sure NU could do the same if administration and donors wanted to. So far, they haven't.

AdamOnFirst · Feb 5, 2026

stpaulcat said:
I dunno, Duke did it.

Vandy with an amazing year in football and hoops too.

Were a rich school with the unique advantage of being in a major city, an exciting place for a rich young athlete to live. We need a process similar to football to rightsize up the available resources to bring talent into the program. There is no reason NU needs to hold itself back in any way.

SouthportCat · Feb 5, 2026

I think it is unfair to declare the season a catastrophe. Last night’s game certainly was, but overall this team has competed. It seems clear that our system and philosophy require a year+ for full acclimation for first years and transfers. Exception seems to be graduate senior transfers with a ton of collegiate experience coming to veteran-laden Wildcat squads (Leach, Langborg).

This is conjecture, but it seems deliberate that all three of our portal acquisitions had two or three years left. Only a handful of programs historically have shown the ability to consistently reload every year with little to no falloff. Duke is obviously one but history and admissions make them not an apples to apples comparison. Kentucky, Kansas, UNC, Illinois, Indiana - blue bloods have had plenty of first round exits or tourney misses with more paper talent.

This group of freshmen has shown a lot of promise. Singleton has made immediate impact and keeps improving. Same for West and to a lesser extent Kropp. Is any of them likely to be a lottery pick? No, but I think we would all take the type of stability, leadership, and improvement that Boo, Berry, Nicholson, Martinelli, Barnheizer et al showed.

We are so far above the KO era and the Carmody era (his job was to level us from joke to non-joke and he succeeded) that it isn’t really a conversation. Even when we are down we are definitely a “tough out” for most BIG teams, especially in our building. The improvement in recruiting service standing for our incomings tells me better high school players look at NU now to play ball and not just get the degree.

Not the coda we wanted for Martinelli, but he is the bridge between NCAA teams (and last year’s team was a tourney team on talent) and he is leaving it on the floor and showing both high level recruits and guys who will take years to develop that Evanston is a destination worth being at. If he can lead the NCAA in scoring and be a guy who wills his way into the NBA (I wouldn’t bet against it), that puts three Wildcats in the Association plus Boo in the G League and tells the story of how the arrow still points up.

hdhntr1 · Feb 5, 2026

TheC said:
While I know there are a few exceptions on here, I think most of us on this board are big NU fans because we went to school there. And, let's face it... we didn't go there because of the top notch athletics. We went there for the academics. We did come to play school.

I've been an NU fan now for almost 40 years. While we have had some success in the big 2 sports during that span, most of the time we have been mediocre to bad in both. And when we have had success, we haven't had top 15 in the country kind of success except the '95 team. 1995 was our miracle run and its unlikely we'll see anything like that again in my lifetime in either sport. There are too many things working against us. So, I'm trying to learn to be happy with the moments we get. I know that's rich coming from me, but I'm getting too old to keep playing the game of unrealistic expectations that Northwestern athletics is ever going to join the big boys, even for a season or two. We just don't get those kind of players to come here. Look at that Illinois team last night. Look at the Michigan team this year. That combination of size and skill pretty much across the lineup is something we've never come close to having here during my fandom. We are who we are.

This year's hoops team is especially bad. It has been a thoroughly disheartening season. But, when you dig down a little, it kinda' makes sense. NU is not the kind of program that can reload. When we start over, we have to start from scratch. We saw it after the McIntosh/Law group left and now we're seeing it after the Boo/Brooks group has left. We are playing one proven player and a bunch of newbies who are not Top50 kind of players. On top of that, the BIG seems historically strong this year. That is a combination for disaster... like last night.

So, we'll look for moments of joy and hope the West/Singleton group is the next good group of Wildcats (assuming they stay for four years) and see if they can make some noise in 2-3 years - it probably won't be Sweet 16 noise, but at least tourney contenders.

When I got there in 68, (before the Dark Ages) there was at least the vision of competitiveness. Parsegian had moved on a few years earlier, Agase was HC in foot and we had an interesting BB program (played UCLA at the stadium my Frosh year) But Strotz was then put in as President and actively worked to destroy athletics and after a couple years no one that came could say with a straight face that they came because of top notch athletics,

hdhntr1 · Feb 5, 2026

SouthportCat said:
I think it is unfair to declare the season a catastrophe. Last night’s game certainly was, but overall this team has competed. It seems clear that our system and philosophy require a year+ for full acclimation for first years and transfers. Exception seems to be graduate senior transfers with a ton of collegiate experience coming to veteran-laden Wildcat squads (Leach, Langborg).

This is conjecture, but it seems deliberate that all three of our portal acquisitions had two or three years left. Only a handful of programs historically have shown the ability to consistently reload every year with little to no falloff. Duke is obviously one but history and admissions make them not an apples to apples comparison. Kentucky, Kansas, UNC, Illinois, Indiana - blue bloods have had plenty of first round exits or tourney misses with more paper talent.

This group of freshmen has shown a lot of promise. Singleton has made immediate impact and keeps improving. Same for West and to a lesser extent Kropp. Is any of them likely to be a lottery pick? No, but I think we would all take the type of stability, leadership, and improvement that Boo, Berry, Nicholson, Martinelli, Barnheizer et al showed.

We are so far above the KO era and the Carmody era (his job was to level us from joke to non-joke and he succeeded) that it isn’t really a conversation. Even when we are down we are definitely a “tough out” for most BIG teams, especially in our building. The improvement in recruiting service standing for our incomings tells me better high school players look at NU now to play ball and not just get the degree.

Not the coda we wanted for Martinelli, but he is the bridge between NCAA teams (and last year’s team was a tourney team on talent) and he is leaving it on the floor and showing both high level recruits and guys who will take years to develop that Evanston is a destination worth being at. If he can lead the NCAA in scoring and be a guy who wills his way into the NBA (I wouldn’t bet against it), that puts three Wildcats in the Association plus Boo in the G League and tells the story of how the arrow still points up.

The tough thing is that even as we are improving, so is the rest of the league

Catmandoo78 · Feb 5, 2026

SouthportCat said:
I think it is unfair to declare the season a catastrophe. Last night’s game certainly was, but overall this team has competed. It seems clear that our system and philosophy require a year+ for full acclimation for first years and transfers. Exception seems to be graduate senior transfers with a ton of collegiate experience coming to veteran-laden Wildcat squads (Leach, Langborg).

This is conjecture, but it seems deliberate that all three of our portal acquisitions had two or three years left. Only a handful of programs historically have shown the ability to consistently reload every year with little to no falloff. Duke is obviously one but history and admissions make them not an apples to apples comparison. Kentucky, Kansas, UNC, Illinois, Indiana - blue bloods have had plenty of first round exits or tourney misses with more paper talent.

This group of freshmen has shown a lot of promise. Singleton has made immediate impact and keeps improving. Same for West and to a lesser extent Kropp. Is any of them likely to be a lottery pick? No, but I think we would all take the type of stability, leadership, and improvement that Boo, Berry, Nicholson, Martinelli, Barnheizer et al showed.

We are so far above the KO era and the Carmody era (his job was to level us from joke to non-joke and he succeeded) that it isn’t really a conversation. Even when we are down we are definitely a “tough out” for most BIG teams, especially in our building. The improvement in recruiting service standing for our incomings tells me better high school players look at NU now to play ball and not just get the degree.

Not the coda we wanted for Martinelli, but he is the bridge between NCAA teams (and last year’s team was a tourney team on talent) and he is leaving it on the floor and showing both high level recruits and guys who will take years to develop that Evanston is a destination worth being at. If he can lead the NCAA in scoring and be a guy who wills his way into the NBA (I wouldn’t bet against it), that puts three Wildcats in the Association plus Boo in the G League and tells the story of how the arrow still points up.

2-10 in conference play is hard to spin as anything but a pretty big disaster.

And in 2026, it’s just not realistic to think you have to bottom out like this. Down years, sure. But to be headed for probably a 4-16 season in conference play and a bottom 3 finish is crazy.

TheC · Feb 5, 2026

SouthportCat said:
I think it is unfair to declare the season a catastrophe. Last night’s game certainly was, but overall this team has competed. It seems clear that our system and philosophy require a year+ for full acclimation for first years and transfers. Exception seems to be graduate senior transfers with a ton of collegiate experience coming to veteran-laden Wildcat squads (Leach, Langborg).

This is conjecture, but it seems deliberate that all three of our portal acquisitions had two or three years left. Only a handful of programs historically have shown the ability to consistently reload every year with little to no falloff. Duke is obviously one but history and admissions make them not an apples to apples comparison. Kentucky, Kansas, UNC, Illinois, Indiana - blue bloods have had plenty of first round exits or tourney misses with more paper talent.

This group of freshmen has shown a lot of promise. Singleton has made immediate impact and keeps improving. Same for West and to a lesser extent Kropp. Is any of them likely to be a lottery pick? No, but I think we would all take the type of stability, leadership, and improvement that Boo, Berry, Nicholson, Martinelli, Barnheizer et al showed.

We are so far above the KO era and the Carmody era (his job was to level us from joke to non-joke and he succeeded) that it isn’t really a conversation. Even when we are down we are definitely a “tough out” for most BIG teams, especially in our building. The improvement in recruiting service standing for our incomings tells me better high school players look at NU now to play ball and not just get the degree.

Not the coda we wanted for Martinelli, but he is the bridge between NCAA teams (and last year’s team was a tourney team on talent) and he is leaving it on the floor and showing both high level recruits and guys who will take years to develop that Evanston is a destination worth being at. If he can lead the NCAA in scoring and be a guy who wills his way into the NBA (I wouldn’t bet against it), that puts three Wildcats in the Association plus Boo in the G League and tells the story of how the arrow still points up.

Other than the word choice to describe this season, I think we are saying a lot of the same things. I think NU is a program that will compete for appearances in the tourney every 4 to 5 years. The idea that we are on our way to reaching another level where we become a program that consistently makes the tournament and can play beyond the first weekend is what I am thinking is probably not realistic.

Sec_112 · Feb 5, 2026

TheC said:
While I know there are a few exceptions on here, I think most of us on this board are big NU fans because we went to school there. And, let's face it... we didn't go there because of the top notch athletics. We went there for the academics. We did come to play school.

I've been an NU fan now for almost 40 years. While we have had some success in the big 2 sports during that span, most of the time we have been mediocre to bad in both. And when we have had success, we haven't had top 15 in the country kind of success except the '95 team. 1995 was our miracle run and its unlikely we'll see anything like that again in my lifetime in either sport. There are too many things working against us. So, I'm trying to learn to be happy with the moments we get. I know that's rich coming from me, but I'm getting too old to keep playing the game of unrealistic expectations that Northwestern athletics is ever going to join the big boys, even for a season or two. We just don't get those kind of players to come here. Look at that Illinois team last night. Look at the Michigan team this year. That combination of size and skill pretty much across the lineup is something we've never come close to having here during my fandom. We are who we are.

This year's hoops team is especially bad. It has been a thoroughly disheartening season. But, when you dig down a little, it kinda' makes sense. NU is not the kind of program that can reload. When we start over, we have to start from scratch. We saw it after the McIntosh/Law group left and now we're seeing it after the Boo/Brooks group has left. We are playing one proven player and a bunch of newbies who are not Top50 kind of players. On top of that, the BIG seems historically strong this year. That is a combination for disaster... like last night.

So, we'll look for moments of joy and hope the West/Singleton group is the next good group of Wildcats (assuming they stay for four years) and see if they can make some noise in 2-3 years - it probably won't be Sweet 16 noise, but at least tourney contenders.

I'm all over the place about how to perceive this season. Most of me agrees with you, C. But my inner B=H (key word ... "inner") believes this is NU excuse-making that historically landed NU in this mindset in the first place. I'm sorry, but at some point I hope a season like this truly becomes completely unacceptable. But I don't think NU is there yet, especially with such lousy fan support.

There's a decent list of arguments why a season like this shouldn't happen - flexibility of the portal, actual recent winning, competitive facilities, NIL that allows you to spend your way to improvement.

Also, from a more practical standpoint, these aren't the days of $25, 5th row center-court seats. There "should" be a certain responsibility that comes with the prices NU now requires.

But in the end, being an NU fan STILL requires some realistic patience. It's clear they're not paying top-20 NIL money.

Grade requirements still limit things.

There's still an ugly history that needs to be overcome.

And geez ... the fan support. Yuck!! And now we have a generation of students who have SOOOOOOO many other options. I'm pretty surprised how quickly and whole-heartedly they've bailed on the program. So be it. It's their school.

NU is far more than a complex nut to crack. And you're fooling yourself if you judge it by the standards of other B10 programs - even lower level ones. NU has a culture imbedded in its students before they even arrive on campus that athletics somewhat needs to overcome.

I'm willing to see where this goes. CC has more than earned the right to build. But if I were him, I'd be a bit concerned whether me, the program and the school are stuck in a "build to win" mindset that is outdated. With so many changes to the game at a lightning pace, I think we're just starting to get to the point to be able to evaluate that fairly.

In the meantime, I think it's fair to say the floor for the program can't be this low in multiple years. That's when you need to truly re-evaluate.

hdhntr1 · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
2-10 in conference play is hard to spin as anything but a pretty big disaster.

And in 2026, it’s just not realistic to think you have to bottom out like this. Down years, sure. But to be headed for probably a 4-16 season in conference play and a bottom 3 finish is crazy.

With the new conference lineup (18 teams), who you play and when and where you play them can have a lot to do with the record. For example, 2 of the three teams we play twice this year are IL and NEB (two of the top teams in the conference). Or to have the one time we ply teams like Rutgers, UCLA and the like being on the road. Schedule did not do us a lot of favors

wildcatpn · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
2-10 in conference play is hard to spin as anything but a pretty big disaster.

And in 2026, it’s just not realistic to think you have to bottom out like this. Down years, sure. But to be headed for probably a 4-16 season in conference play and a bottom 3 finish is crazy.

Agree and I bet Jackson would agree also. It’s unacceptable and I’m sure Jackson will work with Collins to try and make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Catmandoo78 · Feb 5, 2026

TheC said:
Other than the word choice to describe this season, I think we are saying a lot of the same things. I think NU is a program that will compete for appearances in the tourney every 4 to 5 years. The idea that we are on our way to reaching another level where we become a program that consistently makes the tournament and can play beyond the first weekend is what I am thinking is probably not realistic.

We are in an era that continues to make it nearly impossible for mid majors to earn an at large bid because the selection process and scheduling is rigged so violently against them.

On top of that, the power 4 talent pool has never been deeper as the mid major schools get raided every off season.

It’s never been easier to make the tourney. There isn’t a good excuse.

Anon1756236851 · Feb 5, 2026

AdamOnFirst said:
Vandy with an amazing year in football and hoops too.

Were a rich school with the unique advantage of being in a major city, an exciting place for a rich young athlete to live. We need a process similar to football to rightsize up the available resources to bring talent into the program. There is no reason NU needs to hold itself back in any way.

I don't believe the living in or close to Chicago thing carries much weight anymore.

Hungry Jack · Feb 5, 2026

We have significant barriers with regards to admissions and NIL. No question.

that said, I am down on Collins and the coaching staff for how this year has played out. I like all the first years, but whatever has happened with KJ is very concerning to me. This disconnect should not happen with a player who contributed significantly in his first year. Similarly, I don’t think the transfers we brought in were adequately vetted in terms of fit for a style of play. Maybe they need more time in our “system” , but I still view this as a coaching failure

Skunkpilot · Feb 5, 2026

Reid, page, and green have all had their moments this year but big picture don’t fit. Very disappointing.

TheC · Feb 5, 2026

Hungry Jack said:
We have significant barriers with regards to admissions and NIL. No question.

that said, I am down on Collins and the coaching staff for how this year has played out. I like all the first years, but whatever has happened with KJ is very concerning to me. This disconnect should not happen with a player who contributed significantly in his first year. Similarly, I don’t think the transfers we brought in were adequately vetted in terms of fit for a style of play. Maybe they need more time in our “system” , but I still view this as a coaching failure

I'm not ready to sour on Collins yet, but it does harken back to discussions during the lean years after the McIntosh group left where Collins failed to bring in adequate guards, leaving a roster with clear holes in it, especially at lead guard. There were questions about his ability to properly construct an organization. Of course, I just wonder if it is so hard to convince talented players to come to NU, that CCC takes what he can get regardless of position. This time he tried to get a capable point guard (though it hasn't quite worked), but lacks big men.

Max_Power · Feb 5, 2026

TheC said:
I'm not ready to sour on Collins yet, but it does harken back to discussions during the lean years after the McIntosh group left where Collins failed to bring in adequate guards, leaving a roster with clear holes in it, especially at lead guard. There were questions about his ability to properly construct an organization. Of course, I just wonder if it is so hard to convince talented players to come to NU, that CCC takes what he can get regardless of position. This time he tried to get a capable point guard (though it hasn't quite worked), but lacks big m

There was huge roster turnover combined with a decision to change playing style. We forget how much Brooks was a one man wrecking crew on defense. The only player on the roster who could approach that level is Gelo. Every other player due to youth or inexperience is a minus defender. We all knew Reid would struggle. Singleton is probably close to Page in career minutes played and Page is a Junior. This roster was really not constructed to win this year. Now, NU has significantly more financial assets as it enters into next year. They will have to pay to retain Singleton, West and Kropp but no one else is going to get a big raise heading into next year and Nick's money will be back on the books. The money will be there to add one or two quality veterans - if they decide to take that direction. My biggest disappointment this year (other than the obvious no one can shoot) has been the defense. However, I will keep hope alive that the coaches will spend the offseason working on defense and that as the game slows down for them, Gelo, Green, West and Singleton will become better shooters. If you want to see what can happen with a year in a P5 program to a player, look at Davis at Illinois. He was below average last year. This year he is used to the game speed and has become a weapon. And I don't read too much into last night, Illinois is probably playing the best in the Big10 right now and I would have them as the No. 2 team in the Country sniffing at No. 1. Will it last through the tourney? Did they peak too soon? We will see. NU is young - too young in the portal age. Can this nucleus be good in two years - from what I have seen - I believe they can.

Hungry Jack · Feb 5, 2026

I’m not throwing in the towel. But I think it’s fair to question the coaching staff at this point.

barney31 · Feb 5, 2026

Unless and until NU spends money on a level of Michigan Illinois MSU and other top teams in the BIG TEN, it will be difficult to compete with the "big boys".

macarthur31 · Feb 5, 2026

If you look at kenpom NetRating which is how many points per 100 possessions a team would score against an average D1 team and subtracts how many points per 100 possessions a team would give up against an average D1 team - the Cats are at +11.7. That's the 69th best (noice) among all 365 D1 teams.

For perspective, the B1G is rated 2nd toughest conference, because a team would have to have a +18.23 NetRating to go .500 in their conference.

Here's the bottom half of the B1G:

Team	Conf Record	Net Rating	Overall kenpom
Indiana	6-6	+20.23	40th
USC	6-6	+15.66	49th
Washington	4-8	+16.71	45th
Minnesota	4-8	+10.74	76th
Northwestern	2-10	+11.70	69th
Rutgers	2-10	+0.34	159th
Maryland	1-9	+2.46	140th
Oregon	1-10	+6.38	105th
Penn State	1-10	+3.14	129th

Yes, this year has sucked, and their B1G record reflects that. And, it also can be true that this team isn't absolutely inept - and there's things to build on. It's also fair to note that given the new world of the portal, it isn't a given that all these folks will return.

Other context: Here's this year and last year vs previous tourney teams:

Year	B1G Record	Net Rating	kenpom Rank	Offensive Rating	Defensive Rating
2026	2-10	+11.70	69th	116.9	105.2
2025	7-13	+17.02	44th	114.3	97.3
2024	12-8	+16.41	41st	115.9	99.5
2023	12-8	+15.59	38th	109.9	94.3
2017	10-8	+15.81	38th	111.3	95.5

Looking to next year, whatever the composition of the squad - they gotta figure out how to ratchet up that defense.

Baz = Heisman · Feb 5, 2026

prez77 said:
We debate this constantly, but Duke makes compromises on its admits rather obviously. So once we get past the lack of winning tradition problem, which I'm sure is not negligible, I'm sure NU could do the same if administration and donors wanted to. So far, they haven't.

And we never should. NU will lose all its casual fans if they do. I can assure you that. I know so many people who like NU first and foremost because “they do it the right way” and have “true student-athletes.”

Duke basketball is embarrassing when it comes to the STUDENT portion. Zion Williamson is illiterate and Kyrie Irving thinks the earth is flat (and that’s not even mentioning his anti-semitism). Obviously, Duke is a great school but they get clowned for their basketball admissions policy and rightfully so. Let’s not stoop to that level.

Baz = Heisman · Feb 5, 2026

AdamOnFirst said:
Vandy with an amazing year in football and hoops too.

Were a rich school with the unique advantage of being in a major city, an exciting place for a rich young athlete to live. We need a process similar to football to rightsize up the available resources to bring talent into the program. There is no reason NU needs to hold itself back in any way.

See my comment on Duke basketball standards with Vandy. Exhibit A - extreme dumbass Diego Pavia.

Baz = Heisman · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
2-10 in conference play is hard to spin as anything but a pretty big disaster.

And in 2026, it’s just not realistic to think you have to bottom out like this. Down years, sure. But to be headed for probably a 4-16 season in conference play and a bottom 3 finish is crazy.

Hungry Jack said:
We have significant barriers with regards to admissions and NIL. No question.

that said, I am down on Collins and the coaching staff for how this year has played out. I like all the first years, but whatever has happened with KJ is very concerning to me. This disconnect should not happen with a player who contributed significantly in his first year. Similarly, I don’t think the transfers we brought in were adequately vetted in terms of fit for a style of play. Maybe they need more time in our “system” , but I still view this as a coaching failure

Collins deserves a ton of blame.

1) Page is horrible on defense - which used to be our identity - and is clearly a low IQ basketball player.

2) Reid is selfish, whiny and too small for the B1G level.

3) KJ should be getting 20+ minutes a game as either a starter or 6th man and he barely plays for a team that can’t shoot when he can shoot!

4) Bennermann and Gill should have been getting run since late December when it was obvious this season was going to be a train wreck.

Catmandoo78 · Feb 5, 2026

Baz = Heisman said:
And we never should. NU will lose all its casual fans if they do. I can assure you that. I know so many people who like NU first and foremost because “they do it the right way” and have “true student-athletes.”

Duke basketball is embarrassing when it comes to the STUDENT portion. Zion Williamson is illiterate and Kyrie Irving thinks the earth is flat (and that’s not even mentioning his anti-semitism). Obviously, Duke is a great school but they get clowned for their basketball admissions policy and rightfully so. Let’s not stoop to that level.

Who in the world is clowning Duke’s basketball admissions, outside of the 70 year old men on this forum? What in the world are you talking about?

Purple Pile Driver · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
Who in the world is clowning Duke’s basketball admissions, outside of the 70 year old men on this forum? What in the world are you talking about?

Very few people care except the often referenced silent majority.

SDakaGordie · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
2-10 in conference play is hard to spin as anything but a pretty big disaster.

And in 2026, it’s just not realistic to think you have to bottom out like this. Down years, sure. But to be headed for probably a 4-16 season in conference play and a bottom 3 finish is crazy.

You don’t recall what we went through in prior years. Keep the faith; we are just as competitive and have as much young talent as those poor teams. As long as Collins gets what he wants from Jackson, we will be back.

AdamOnFirst · Feb 5, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
Who in the world is clowning Duke’s basketball admissions, outside of the 70 year old men on this forum? What in the world are you talking about?

It has devastated Duke’s academic ratings and *gets handed note* uh, I’m being told it has not at all impacted Duke’s academic prestige in any way whatsoever

LathamLad · Feb 5, 2026

Some very good comments on this thread, in my opinion. We don't have to agree with all of them, but for some reason this most resembled sitting in a circle of intelligent folks with strong viewpoints who still respect each other.

This old guy thanks you.

TheC · Feb 6, 2026

LathamLad said:
Some very good comments on this thread, in my opinion. We don't have to agree with all of them, but for some reason this most resembled sitting in a circle of intelligent folks with strong viewpoints who still respect each other.

This old guy thanks you.

That's not supposed to happen on the internet. We have failed miserably.

hdhntr1 · Feb 6, 2026

Purple Pile Driver said:
Very few people care except the often referenced silent majority.

And they are not talking

Catreporter · Feb 6, 2026

Maryland just lost two home games by a combined 50 points. Doubt that has ever happened. Penn State lost by 47 at Michigan last night. BIG has three of the top ten teams in the nation and projects 7 or 8 more in the NCAA tourney. Until Illinois, the team had played everyone pretty tough. This is a top heavy league this year and the bottom third of the league is paying for it. Chris may have to re-evaluate his recruiting strategy after this year, especially with Euro league players coming over here as "freshmen" at age 21 or 22. But let's not forget what he has accomplished here. Three NCAA bids, two second place Big Ten finishes. Haven't seen that kind of competitiveness since the 50s and 60s when I was growing up as an usher and later as a student (and unfortunately, only the Big Ten champ went to the tourney, and Big Ten did not participate in the NIT)

Eurocat · Feb 6, 2026

Baz = Heisman said:
Obviously, Duke is a great school but they get clowned for their basketball admissions policy and rightfully so. Let’s not stoop to that level.

Letting in 5 kids a year so they can play ball for us won't hurt our reputation one bit. I'm all for it if it leads to more wins. And no-one is clowning Duke for it's basketball admit policy. If anything when they hear about ours people are like "What the hell is wrong with you idiots?".

Catmandoo78 · Feb 6, 2026

Catreporter said:
Maryland just lost two home games by a combined 50 points. Doubt that has ever happened. Penn State lost by 47 at Michigan last night. BIG has three of the top ten teams in the nation and projects 7 or 8 more in the NCAA tourney. Until Illinois, the team had played everyone pretty tough. This is a top heavy league this year and the bottom third of the league is paying for it. Chris may have to re-evaluate his recruiting strategy after this year, especially with Euro league players coming over here as "freshmen" at age 21 or 22. But let's not forget what he has accomplished here. Three NCAA bids, two second place Big Ten finishes. Haven't seen that kind of competitiveness since the 50s and 60s when I was growing up as an usher and later as a student (and unfortunately, only the Big Ten champ went to the tourney, and Big Ten did not participate in the NIT)

We tied for 2nd once, right? Boo’s junior year? When was the other time?

Baz = Heisman · Feb 7, 2026

Catmandoo78 said:
We tied for 2nd once, right? Boo’s junior year? When was the other time?

Yes. We were T-2 and T-4 under the GOAT’s steady hand.

Baz = Heisman · Feb 7, 2026

Eurocat said:
Letting in 5 kids a year so they can play ball for us won't hurt our reputation one bit. I'm all for it if it leads to more wins. And no-one is clowning Duke for it's basketball admit policy. If anything when they hear about ours people are like "What the hell is wrong with you idiots?".

Not true at all. Among my friends who are hardcore college basketball fans we all love to throw shade at Duke for Zion, Kyrie, Lattner, etc who are all rock dumb. Obviously, guys like Battier were elite student-athletes but lowering your standards makes it look like you’re cheating the system. That’s not worth it.

SDakaGordie · Feb 7, 2026

Baz = Heisman said:
Not true at all. Among my friends who are hardcore college basketball fans we all love to throw shade at Duke for Zion, Kyrie, Lattner, etc who are all rock dumb. Obviously, guys like Battier were elite student-athletes but lowering your standards makes it look like you’re cheating the system. That’s not worth it.

You are a defender of our academics and get ridiculously upset when we have down years. You cannot not have both in the last 50 years of college basketball. It’s why Collins is so respected by his peers - he has done the impossible in getting us where he has.

Curdog7 · Feb 7, 2026

Max_Power said:
There was huge roster turnover combined with a decision to change playing style. We forget how much Brooks was a one man wrecking crew on defense. The only player on the roster who could approach that level is Gelo. Every other player due to youth or inexperience is a minus defender. We all knew Reid would struggle. Singleton is probably close to Page in career minutes played and Page is a Junior. This roster was really not constructed to win this year. Now, NU has significantly more financial assets as it enters into next year. They will have to pay to retain Singleton, West and Kropp but no one else is going to get a big raise heading into next year and Nick's money will be back on the books. The money will be there to add one or two quality veterans - if they decide to take that direction. My biggest disappointment this year (other than the obvious no one can shoot) has been the defense. However, I will keep hope alive that the coaches will spend the offseason working on defense and that as the game slows down for them, Gelo, Green, West and Singleton will become better shooters. If you want to see what can happen with a year in a P5 program to a player, look at Davis at Illinois. He was below average last year. This year he is used to the game speed and has become a weapon. And I don't read too much into last night, Illinois is probably playing the best in the Big10 right now and I would have them as the No. 2 team in the Country sniffing at No. 1. Will it last through the tourney? Did they peak too soon? We will see. NU is young - too young in the portal age. Can this nucleus be good in two years - from what I have seen - I believe they can.

I wouldn’t pay anything for Kropp and West. They are serviceable players with limited upside. Singleton has some upside but I don’t see any elite athleticism. He is a big body.

the one guy I want to keep is Reid. He is too careless with the ball but has the most upside.

Purple Pile Driver · Feb 7, 2026

Curdog7 said:
I wouldn’t pay anything for Kropp and West. They are serviceable players with limited upside. Singleton has some upside but I don’t see any elite athleticism. He is a big body.

the one guy I want to keep is Reid. He is too careless with the ball but has the most upside.

Reid has more upside than Tre? West will be better than “serviceable” as well.

Skunkpilot · Feb 7, 2026

Curdog7 said:
I wouldn’t pay anything for Kropp and West. They are serviceable players with limited upside. Singleton has some upside but I don’t see any elite athleticism. He is a big body.

the one guy I want to keep is Reid. He is too careless with the ball but has the most upside.

Reid?? Are you ok. He’s defense is non existent

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