Quick Thoughts: Northwestern vs. LSU

1. Don't be fooled, Northwestern has a balanced offensive attack.

John Shurna lit it up today with a career high 37 points on 10-21 shooting and 13-14 from the FT line.  He is a bona fide star even if he doesn't look the part and will be one of the top players in the Big Ten. However, he is not the only player who can score on this Northwestern team. Drew Crawford looked healthy and played aggressive defensive in the 1-3-1 and that led to many of his 17 points on the break.  Former #103 ranked recruit and Sophomore JerShon Cobb looked solid in his mid-range game and scored 8 crucial points in his first game back from offseason surgery.  Backcourt players, Alex Marcotullio, Reggie Hearn, and Dave Sobolewski all hit big 3's and all should have a legitimate offensive role the rest of the season.

2.  LSU's Johnny O'Bryant is going to be a star.

The former top 50 recruit is athletic, agressive, and hard-working. Oh, and he can shoot free-throws. 21 point, 8 rebound games might not come as easily in games against better frontcourts, but come the end of this year, and next season, Johnny O'Bryant will be a household name for any college basketball fan.

3.  Northwestern's 1-3-1 looked good.
Never been a fan of the 1-3-1, especially when former PG Juice Thompson would be on the bottom and get posted up and abused by opposing big men.  However, today the switch was positive, and the active hands and energy led to many of the 16 turnovers.

4.  Northwestern's defensive rebounding looked awful.
While they only lost the rebounding battle 29-26, LSU had 11 offensive rebounds and whether a result of the 1-3-1 or just inability to box out, that is unacceptable.  Luka Mirkovic is much too good for only 1 rebound and 0 points and other big man Davide Curletti had only 4 points and 2 rebounds to go along with 4 TOs.  They were also beat on a lot of put backs including a huge put back slam by Malcolm White.  Northwestern will probably not make their first tournament unless Mirkovic and Curletti show more aggressiveness on the boards.