Vanderbilt faces Northwestern team not ready to wake up from dream season

Vanderbilt Hustler Northwestern's Scottie Lindsey attacks the basket against Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament semifinals March 11, 2017. Photo courtesy of Northwestern Athletics
It’s been quite a year of firsts for Chicago sports teams.
Not long after the Chicago Cubs took home their first World Series in over a century, the Northwestern Wildcats are going dancing for the first time in the program’s 113-year history. They made sure to add a little drama to the mix too.
Heading into their second-to-last home game of the season against the Michigan Wolverines, this team knew that a win would more than likely clinch a tournament spot. The atmosphere was electric, as a sellout crowd in Welsh-Ryan arena was ready to witness history.
After nearly 40 minutes of basketball during which neither team could gain the edge, Northwestern had the ball with 1.7 seconds needing to go all 94 feet to break the tie and give them the win. Nathan Taphorn launched a one-handed pass through the air that seemed to travel in slow motion, and it settled into the hands of Dererk Pardon, who turned and laid it off the glass as time expired.  The shot fell, and Northwestern’s tournament drought fell with it.
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It’s been a dream season for the Wildcats and their head coach, Chris Collins. Collins, the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Doug Collins, took the job at Northwestern in 2013 after working as an assistant at his alma mater, Duke. He inherited a program with a history of disappointment, but, being a local guy, Collins was dedicated to righting the ship. It’s easy to see his impact on this team, as the Wildcats play an extremely well-coached brand of basketball that focuses on defense on smart passing.
Northwestern’s defense has been its biggest strength all season long. The Wildcats rank 23rd in the country in defensive  ...


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