Big Ten Daily (Dec. 14): Chicago State Stuns College Basketball World, Upsets Northwestern

Chicago State stunned the college basketball world Wednesday night by upsetting No. 25 Northwestern. The Wildcats now own the best win (beating then-No. 1 Purdue) and the worst loss in the Big Ten.

The joke has already been made hundreds of times on social meda, but it's worth repeating: Chicago State is now officially Chicago's Big Ten team. The Cougars earned the right to steal that slogan after pulling off an unthinkable 75-73 upset over No. 25 Northwestern on Wednesday night.

Chicago State's Wesley Cardet Jr. went off on the Wildcats, scoring 30 points while knocking down 13-of-21 shot attempts. He got some assistance from Jahsean Corbett, who pitched in with 17 points in the Cougars' victory.

Wednesday's upset in Evanston was one of the most shocking we've seen in college basketball — for multiple reasons. For years, Chicago State has been regarded as one of the worst Division I basketball programs in the country.

The upset marked the first time in program history that Chicago State has ever defeated a ranked opponent. From 2015-21, the Cougars won just a total of 20 games. Entering Wednesday night's game, CSU owned a 3-9 record and ranked No. 335 in KenPom.

In the words of college basketball savant Jon Rothstein, "Northwestern lost a buy game. The epitome of brutality."

"Give them credit, they were prepared, they played with energy and every time we tried to get away from them a little bit, they responded," Northwestern coach Chris Collins said. "They made shots, they forced turnovers, they got into the open floor, got to the basket. You have to give their kids a lot of credit. ... They were worthy of winning tonight."

After Wednesday night's disappointment, Northwestern now has the best win and the worst loss in the Big Ten. Just two weeks ago, the Wildcats upset then-No. 1 Purdue in overtime. 

It makes the loss to Chicago State even more head-scratching.

Rutgers Extends Greg Schiano

Greg Schiano will continue his run at Rutgers through the rest of the decade. The school announced a contract extension for its football coach on Wednesday.

Schiano's new contract will keep him in Piscataway through the 2030 season. He will be paid $6.25 million in 2024. The extension comes after the Scarlet Knights finished the year with a 6-6 record and earned a spot in the Pinstripe Bowl.

“I would like to thank President Holloway, Athletic Director Pat Hobbs, the Board of Governors and our entire team for their continued belief in what we are building,” Schiano said in a statement. “Rutgers is home to my family and me, and we are blessed to have the opportunity to build a championship program right here in New Jersey.”

Schiano is in his fourth season of his second stint with the Scarlet Knights. He also led the program from 2001-11. 

Rutgers has enjoyed plenty of good news this week on the football front. Earlier in the week, star running back Kyle Monangai announced his return for the 2024 season. 

Monangai rushed for 1,099 yards and seven touchdowns during the 2023 campaign. He became the first Rutgers running back to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in over a decade.

"Thank you to Coach (Greg) Schiano for taking a chance and believing in me when nobody else would," Monangai wrote on Twitter. "Playing at Rutgers and representing New Jersey has truly been an honor.

"I'm excited to announce that I'll be returning to Rutgers for my senior season. I love my teammates and believe we are just scratching the surface of what we can accomplish."

Juwan Howard Drama

Apparently, Michigan's athletic department can't go a full week without some sort of drama. The latest incident involved basketball coach Juwan Howard getting upset with strength coach Jon Sanderson.

Rumors began swirling about an "altercation" between Howard and a member of Michigan's staff earlier in the week. Although things didn't get physical, it sounds like there was a heated exchange.

College basketball insider Jeff Goodman reported on the situation, saying everything started when Howard's son, Jace, began yelling at a training staff member.

"He was in the training room and he was walking out and he got into it with the trainer. Almost to the point of berating the trainer — over the line," Goodman said on the Field of 68 podcast. "The strength coach, John Sanderson, he hears it and gets pissed off. ... And says something to the effect of, 'That's why the culture is the way it is around here.'"

When Howard heard the comments, he reportedly decided to confront Sanderson.

"So, Juwan hears this and Juwan gets upset, gets mad," Goodman said. "He went right up to Sanderson ... and they got — from what my sources tell me — chest-to-chest, nose-to-nose before they had to be separated."

These things happen in college athletics. Usually, this wouldn't be a big deal. But because of Howard's previous run-ins, it became a major story in the college sports world.

It doesn't help that Michigan owns a 5-5 record through 10 games.

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