Northwestern Wildcats
2023-2024 Result: 22-12 record (12-8 Big 10), NCAA tournament appearance
Projected Starting Lineup
Head Coach: Chris Collins (12th season)
Guard: Jalen Leach (5th year)
Guard: Ty Berry (5th year)
Guard: Brooks Barnhizer (SR)
Forward: Nick Martinelli (JR)
Center: Matthew Nicholson (5th year)
Key Additions
Jalen Leach (Fairfield)
Keenan Fitzmorris (Stony Brook)
Key Losses
Boo Buie
Ryan Langborg
The Wildcats lost their best player for the last several seasons to graduation in Boo Buie. This will drastically change the way that they have to play. They also lost Ryan Langborg, who nearly averaged 13 points a game last season. Chris Collins brought in Jalen Leach and Keenan Fitzmorris in the portal, but the bulk of this roster is made up of returning players. Brooks Barnhizer, Ty Berry, and Nick Martinelli are the returners who will be asked to step up in a big way to fill the shoes of Buie and Langborg.
Northwestern’s defense will be a product of their offensive pace, much like it was last season. The Wildcats allowed low points per game but efficient shooting. This is in large part due to their offense finishing 239th in shots per game last season. There is very little rim protection and while guards like Ty Berry, Brooks Barnhizer, and Jalen Leach accumulate some steals, they are not good enough athletes to compete with the top guards in the country, let alone the BIG 10. Matthew Nicholson and Keenan Fitzmorris will hold down the defensive backcourt, which should be slightly improved, but a lot of pressure will fall on them as Northwestern was in the bottom third of the country last year in two-point shooting percentage defense. Don’t let the points per game fool you. This Northwestern defense is not very good.
Boo Buie is gone. That is probably all that needs to be said about the Northwestern offense. Buie won’t be there to bail them out and carry them through games anymore. He also won’t make his teammates’ lives easier on the offensive end by his presence anymore. Brooks Barnhizer will be the go-to scorer, but that is not his game. He is a product of good guard play around him, and without Buie, the other team’s best defender will be found on Barnhizer. Ty Berry should be effective for Chris Collins’ team, and Nick Martinelli, who showed some great flashes last season when some guys were injured, will need to step up in a big way. Without a true scorer on roster and the lack of depth, it could be a challenging season filled with scoring droughts for Northwestern.
Recovering from the graduation of Boo Buie will be difficult. Buie was the ultimate underdog that put the Wildcats over the hump time and time again despite feeling like he was not capable. This current roster just isn’t talented enough on either end to stand much of a chance in the BIG 10, which should have Northwestern watching from the sidelines in March.