No. 11 Hoosiers look to tame Wildcats Sunday

The Big Ten season is as much about wins as it is endurance. IU has one, Northwestern the other. \nThe No. 11 Hoosiers host Northwestern on Sunday in a battle of the conference’s first–place team and the conference’s last–place team. Going into their conference showdown with the No. 13 Wisconsin Badgers Thursday night, the Hoosiers were 6-0 in conference play, while the Wildcats (7-11, 0-7) had yet to win a game in the Big Ten.\nBut Northwestern’s record isn’t a result of a lack of effort. Freshman guard Michael Thompson and junior guard Craig Moore rank first and fourth, respectively, in the Big Ten for most minutes played per game (35.9 and 34.6 minutes). \n“I wish they didn’t have to play so many minutes, to tell you the truth,” Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said during a teleconference with reporters Monday. “They’re pretty good together.”\nAnd it’s their intelligence that Carmody likes as much as their prowess on the court. \n“They both think the game, or they think they know,” Carmody said. “Usually they’re right. They think what will work, what won’t work. They have coaches’ heads.”\nFor the second consecutive week, Northwestern plays a Sunday game, which Carmody said affects the endurance of his players. After last Sunday’s game, the team took Monday off, but with classes his players did not get a day to sleep in, Carmody said. \nThe Wildcats are 7-11 on the season, and Wednesday they beat Texas–Pan American in their last non-conference game of the season.\nHistory may be against Northwestern if it is looking to extend its winning streak to two.\nThe Wildcats have never made the NCAA Tournament and haven’t beaten the Hoosiers in Bloomington since an 86-81 win on Jan. 13, 1968.\nIU star freshman Eric Gordon will most likely still be battling an injury to his non-shooting left wrist on Sunday. Gordon leads the Hoosiers and the conference in scoring. \nSunday’s game (Noon, Big Ten Network) will be the first at home against Northwestern for IU coach Kelvin Sampson. Sampson and the Hoosiers knocked off the Wildcats in Evanston, Ill., last year, and the teams played just once, in Bloomington, during Mike Davis’ last season as coach. \nThe two teams will meet again in Evanston on Feb. 23.