Northwestern's season is officially over, as it was not selected to participate in any postseason tournaments.
Obviously, it was already clear that the 'Cats weren't going to make the NCAA Tournament field of 68 yesterday during the selection show. But there was some thought that they might show up either in the Crown Tournament or the NIT.
Of the two, the Crown seemed more likely, since it selects two Big Ten teams that didn't make March Madness every season (granted this is only its second year in existence). Instead of Northwestern, though, Rutgers and Minnesota will be the conference's representatives.
Currently, it's somewhat unclear whether Northwestern simply wasn't selected to compete in the event or if head coach Chris Collins just didn't want to. Since the Wildcats finished No. 15 in the B1G this year, it figures that the former is probably likely, but Collins also has a history of turning down invitations to secondary or tertiary postseason events.
In fact, his Northwestern teams have never competed in any postseason tournament except for his three NCAA Tournament berths in 2017, 2023 and 2024.
This was an interesting season, though, because it felt like there was a pretty good argument for the 'Cats to continue playing. For one, it would have given senior captain and Big Ten leading scorer Nick Martinelli a chance to compete for one last accolade.
But most importantly, it would have given young players like Jake West, Tre Singleton, Angelo Ciaravino, Tyler Kropp and more the chance to keep playing. Once it was clear that this season was a wash, it became all about developing those guys.
Collins and co. did a great job of doing that -- West, especially, is a budding star -- but there was certainly a valid argument to keep them on the court as long as possible.
But, on the other hand, Collins sent Martinelli off into the sunset in their loss to Purdue at the Big Ten Tournament. Player and coach shared a clearly emotional moment on the court, and it felt like it was going to be the end. It's also been a long, taxing and frustrating season for these kids. They deserve a break.
And it's also definitely possible that Northwestern simply wasn't considered for any of these tournaments. It was a dark season in Evanston, and it wouldn't be shocking at all given their record and their standing within the country as a basketball school.