Northwestern Coach Chris Collins Previews Indiana Game
Northwestern secured its biggest win of the season on Sunday, taking down No. 1 Purdue 64-58.
Boo Buie led Northwestern with 26 points, four rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks. Fellow senior guard Chase Audige added 15 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Purdue center Zach Edey scored 24 points and eight rebounds, but he turned the ball over six times as he faced constant double-teams and physicality from the Northwestern defense. And outside of Edey's production, the Boilermakers shot 27 percent.
Northwestern coach Chris Collins appeared on the Big Ten Network on Monday to recap the win and preview Wednesday's game against Indiana. Tipoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET at Welsh Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill., and Collins is focused on making sure there's no letdown after an emotional win.
"It starts today," Collins said. "We absolutely have to move on. It's engrained in my mind forever, my coach, Coach K, would always say, 'next play.' Whether you made a three, made a dunk, got a stop, you missed a shot, you turned it over, it's on to the next play. And we have to have a next play mentality starting today.
"I wanted the guys to enjoy yesterday," Collins continued. "I wanted them to celebrate and be with their families and their friends and take in what they had done, but when we come to the practice floor today, we've got to move forward to Indiana the same way we would have been saying that had Purdue kicked our butt yesterday. It's on to the next. In this league, you've got to move on, win or lose. You're seeing everybody can beat anyone on a give night, and the teams that are doing well are the ones that have the ability to respond, good or bad, and get to the next thing."
Northwestern defeated Indiana 84-83 on Jan. 8 at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Ind., and the Hoosiers will be hungry for revenge this time around.
Coach Mike Woodson's Hoosiers have gone from 1-4 in Big Ten play to 9-5 in roughly one month, led by Trayce Jackson-Davis and Jalen Hood-Schifino. The duo earned Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Week awards on Monday, and Indiana moved up to No. 14 in the AP top-25 poll.
Collins knows Northwestern has a major challenge on its hands this week.
"Certainly, I think Indiana is playing as well as anyone in the conference right now, maybe as well as anyone nationally," Collins said. "They're 8-1 in their last nine games. Trayce Jackson-Davis – we had our hands full yesterday with Edey. It's kind of fun I guess, you play the two most dominant players in the country back to back. It's not fun preparing for either one of these guys, and we're going to have our hands full. I know our guys will be excited, though. They know it's a big game, it's that time of year, and we're going to have to be at our best to be able to compete with those guys."
Related stories on Indiana basketball
- BIG TEN WEEKLY AWARDS: Indiana star forward Trayce Jackson-Davis earned his fourth consecutive Big Ten Player of the Week award on Monday, and point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week. CLICK HERE
- NATIONAL MEDIA COMMENTS ON INDIANA: Indiana has won eight of its last nine games, drawing praise from college basketball analysts throughout the country. Here's where the Hoosiers stack up in various power rankings released on Monday, as well as comments from the national media on Indiana. CLICK HERE
- AP TOP 25: Indiana basketball climbed four spots in this week's Associated Press Top-25 poll, coming in at No. 14. Purdue dropped to No. 3 after Sunday's loss at Northwestern, and Alabama claimed its first No. 1 ranking of the season. Indiana and Purdue are the only Big Ten team's in this week's rankings. CLICK HERE
- BIG TEN RACE ALIVE: No. 1-ranked Purdue got beat again on Sunday, losing at Northwestern, and suddenly Indiana is just two games out of first in the Big Ten race. Can winning a title really be a real thing? CLICK HERE
- GAME STORY: Indiana didn't allow a point in the final 5:12 and stole a huge road win at Michigan on Saturday night, winning 62-61 with a great defensive effort and 28 points from Trayce Jackson-Davis and 21 from Jalen Hood-Schifino. CLICK HERE
