Northwestern vs. Butler Game Thread

lou v

All-Conference
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Aug 27, 2004
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Well, the big news is that Nick Martinelli is out for today's game, which changes this game drastically. A source told me that he did, indeed, suffer a concussion at practice this week.

Butler has won seven straight in this series. The Bulldogs beat the Cats 71-68 last year.

Much like Northwestern (with Martinelli), Butler has two big scorers: 6-4 guard Finley Bizjack (17.7 ppg) and 6-7 wing Michael Adayi (16.5). Amazingly, Bizjack is the only Bulldog player who played in the win over the Cats last year.

Northwestern has scored 70 or more points in 11 straight games this season, the first time that's happened since 1970-71. Without Nicky Buckets, that streak could be in jeopardy. Someone will have to step up and provide some scoring to support Arrinten Page.
 

BenoitNU

Redshirt
Jul 1, 2025
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Green came in, scored 5 quick points and passed well (and played good d!), brought much-needed energy and confidence, and then immediately taken out in favor of Clayton, who Collins starts or plays a lot no matter how many shots he misses. The under-utilization of Green this year, but especially in a game when we need offense with Martinelli out, is frustrating to say the least.
 

TheC

All-Conference
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Butler has 21 rebounds already and Ajayi has 9. Why doesn't this team ever box out?!
 
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jensberg

Sophomore
Jul 28, 2006
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Reid definitely playing out of control. Singleton having trouble with their bigs. Paige hasn't done really much of anything. Green looks better and better every game. KJ finally getting some playing time and made two threes. Less Clayton would be good in my mind.
 

AdamOnFirst

All-Conference
Nov 29, 2021
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Green came in, scored 5 quick points and passed well (and played good d!), brought much-needed energy and confidence, and then immediately taken out in favor of Clayton, who Collins starts or plays a lot no matter how many shots he misses. The under-utilization of Green this year, but especially in a game when we need offense with Martinelli out, is frustrating to say the least.
He had 12 first half minutes
 

TheC

All-Conference
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Our starting guards have one rebound combined. Our starting center has one rebound. Rebounding is about attitude. This team lacks the toughness of the past few years.
 

BenoitNU

Redshirt
Jul 1, 2025
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He had 12 first half minutes
Yes, several minutes after I posted my complaint, Collins put him back in. Which is good. But taking him out when he’s hit two shots in a row in favor of Clayton (who hasn’t made a shot yet tobight but keeps taking them) is not good.
 
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MCC_Cat

Junior
May 29, 2001
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Disaster of a non-conference. Not a single quality non-conference win. Depaul and South Carolina are going nowhere and we barely beat them.
 
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May 29, 2001
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Tough loss. Too bad Martinelli was out, too big a hole to fill but still Cats came close. Hope Nick recovers quickly.

Thad Motta!- I remember when he coached Ohio State. What a storied career at OSU, Butler and at Xavier. (Quite the prominent schnozz displayed during the post-game interview closeup.)
 

Catreporter

Senior
Sep 4, 2007
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Disaster of a non-conference. Not a single quality non-conference win. Depaul and South Carolina are going nowhere and we barely beat them.
This is a developmental year with all these youngsters playing. I'm just hoping for a few Big Ten wins. Boo's first team was 3-17 in the BIG, right?
 
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May 29, 2001
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I guess folks don’t get Peacock.
It’s frustrating that you need to subscribe to various services/apps esp to watch different sporting events. Just another way to gouge consumers/sports fans. Hard to keep track what is coming up to watch with games/events spread across the services. I still have cable (Spectrum) but have also added other services like Peackock, Apple and Prime. It all adds up.
 
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Baz = Heisman

Junior
Aug 15, 2025
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This is a developmental year with all these youngsters playing. I'm just hoping for a few Big Ten wins. Boo's first team was 3-17 in the BIG, right?
Yes. But at this rate, Collins will be on the hot season next year. And he’s losing his star.
 

TheC

All-Conference
May 29, 2001
19,125
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It’s frustrating that you need to subscribe to various services/apps esp to watch different sporting events. Just another way to gouge consumers/sports fans. Hard to keep track what is coming up to watch with games/events spread across the services. I still have cable (Spectrum) but have also added other services like Peackock, Apple and Prime. It all adds up.
How else are you gonna be able to pay 20 year old kids a million bucks a year?
 

Purple Pile Driver

All-Conference
May 14, 2014
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We lost by 3 points without our best player. This is not a shocking result and the sky is not falling.
Shame on you NC, don’t you know that Reid, Clayton, AP, and Singleton stink. Just read the game thread. If only we played KJ and Green the whole game we might have won.
 
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