Men’s Hoops Live Blog vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: Keys to the game
1. Northwestern must rebound tonight to win.
The Wildcats won the rebounding battle in their opener against Central Arkansas on Sunday. Tonight might be a tougher challenge. Despite fielding a small lineup, the Islander are averaging 40.5 rebounds per game in two outings. Chicago native Demond Watt is pulling down 9.5 rebounds per game this season.
For the first time in a while, NU has the bigger team. Center Kyle Rowley needs to be a bigger force on the boards and starting forward John Shurna needs to recover from a zero rebounding performance in Sunday’s game. If Kevin Coble leads the team in rebounding again tonight, the Cats might be in trouble.
2. The defense must continue to put pressure on the ball and on the perimeter.
With a bigger lineup in tonight’s game, the guards can be aggressive on the perimeter trying to force steals and turnovers. The press will set the tone and force Texas A&M-Corpus Christi into tough situations. The pressure worked in Sunday’s game as the Cats held the Bears to 25 percent shooting and just 39 points. NU needs a repeat of its stifling defensive performance to gain a similar result tonight.
3. Don’t overlook Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
The Cats have a history of losing to teams from non-major — or even non-mid major conferences — in the past. This is the kind of trap game after a strong opening effort that NU could lose if the team does not play its hardest.
If the Cats focus and play their game and dictate the tempo of the game on offense and defense, this should be an easy win.
Keep it here for updates from Welsh-Ryan Arena throughout tonight’s game.
