NCAA Tournament March Madness
#58 Northwestern
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Projection: likely out
Northwestern's résumé hinges on eye-opening nonconference moments and an uneven start in the Big Ten. A neutral win over South Carolina and a road victory at DePaul show the team can win away from home, and competitive neutral losses to Virginia and Oklahoma State indicate it can play with higher-profile programs. Those positives are undermined by an ugly setback at Wisconsin and a damaging home loss to Ohio State that expose inconsistency in league play. The remaining slate offers chances to reshape the narrative with tough road dates at Michigan State, USC and UCLA and marquee meetings with Illinois, Michigan and Purdue balanced by more favorable assignments like home dates with Penn State and Maryland and trips to Minnesota and Oregon that could firm things up. Until those opportunities are decided, the selection picture rests on whether Northwestern can turn sporadic strong performances into steady wins against top-level Big Ten opposition.
| Date | Opponent | Ranking | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11/3 | Mercyhurst | 330 | W70-47 |
| 11/7 | Boston Univ | 298 | W76-52 |
| 11/10 | Cleveland St | 321 | W110-63 |
| 11/14 | @DePaul | 122 | W81-79 |
| 11/21 | (N)Virginia | 23 | L83-78 |
| 11/23 | (N)South Carolina | 88 | W79-77 |
| 11/27 | (N)Oklahoma St | 55 | L86-81 |
| 12/3 | @Wisconsin | 38 | L85-73 |
| 12/6 | Ohio St | 39 | L86-82 |
| 12/13 | Jackson St | 327 | W93-53 |
| 12/16 | Valparaiso | 200 | 91% |
| 12/20 | (N)Butler | 51 | 47% |
| 12/30 | Howard | 299 | 97% |
| 1/3 | Minnesota | 118 | 80% |
| 1/8 | @Michigan St | 12 | 14% |
| 1/11 | @Rutgers | 145 | 69% |
| 1/14 | Illinois | 14 | 31% |
| 1/17 | Nebraska | 20 | 42% |
| 1/21 | @USC | 36 | 28% |
| 1/24 | @UCLA | 30 | 26% |
| 1/29 | Penn St | 106 | 77% |
| 1/31 | Washington | 47 | 56% |
| 2/4 | @Illinois | 14 | 15% |
| 2/8 | @Iowa | 22 | 23% |
| 2/11 | Michigan | 1 | 12% |
| 2/14 | @Nebraska | 20 | 22% |
| 2/18 | Maryland | 102 | 76% |
| 2/24 | @Indiana | 26 | 24% |
| 2/28 | Oregon | 82 | 69% |
| 3/4 | Purdue | 6 | 24% |
| 3/7 | @Minnesota | 118 | 61% |