Midway through February, Northwestern has played the 11th-hardest schedule in college basketball, according to KenPom. The 10-16 Wildcats are on pace to record the second-losingest season of the Chris Collins era, but there is still time to right the ship and build momentum into 2026-27.

Northwestern is still winless this month, largely thanks to a brutal stretch that featured games against now-No. 1 Michigan, No. 9 Nebraska, No. 10 Illinois and Iowa over the course of 10 days.

Only five games remain in the 'Cats' turbulent season. Fortunately for Collins, the schedule does lighten up a bit, and all 18 Big Ten teams are guaranteed a conference tournament berth in March. Any sort of cohesion and chemistry could go a long way toward building the younger Wildcats' confidence and ensuring Collins' most prolific recruits don't hit the transfer portal.

Northwestern has dropped five consecutive games, as well as 13 of its 15 Big Ten matchups. The 2019-20 Wildcats — Collins' worst season at the helm — went just 3-17 in conference play, despite rostering two future NBA players in Pat Spencer and Pete Nance.

Will this year's Northwestern squad pick up two more wins and exceed that group? Or will the 'Cats end their regular season on a 10-game skid? Here are all five of NU's remaining regular-season games, ranked by how likely Northwestern is to come out on top:

Evanston, Ill. | Record: 9-16 (2-12 Big Ten)

The Ducks have experienced the worst year-over-year collapse this season among Big Ten teams that brought back the same head coach. Oregon was a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament a year ago and finished 25-10, but now sits at the bottom of the Big Ten. Despite snapping its 10-game losing streak on Saturday against Penn State, Oregon still projects to be the easiest matchup Northwestern will face over the rest of the season. Center Nathan Bittle will likely give the Wildcats their fair share of problems, though.

Evanston, Ill. | Record: 10-15 (3-11 Big Ten)

The biggest fall-off in the Big Ten belongs to the Terrapins, who replaced head coach Kevin Willard (Villanova) with Buzz Williams (Texas A&M) after a trip to the Sweet 16. It's been a rocky season for the Terps, as all 11 of their Big Ten losses have come by double digits.

However, Maryland might have found something lately. Williams' Terrapins won back-to-back games against Minnesota and Iowa before falling to Rutgers on Sunday. Maryland allowed 62, 70 and 68 points in its last three contests, immediately following a four-game stretch in which it had previously surrendered at least 82 points in each outing.

Minneapolis, Minn. | Record: 11-14 (4-10 Big Ten)

Minnesota lost to Maryland just two games ago, but the fact that this game is on the road and comes just three days after facing No. 7 Purdue will make it a challenge for the Wildcats. Northwestern previously lost to the Gophers on Jan. 3, 84-78, even with strong offensive days from Nick Martinelli (26 points), Jayden Reid (19) and Arrinten Page (19). Only seven Minnesota players saw action in that game, but the Golden Gophers still managed to shoot 54.9% overall and 57.7% in the second half.

Bloomington, Ind. | Record: 17-9 (8-7 Big Ten)

Northwestern has won five consecutive games against the Hoosiers, though each of those came against a Mike Woodson-led team. Indiana is making a run at the NCAA Tournament in Darian DeVries' first year at the helm and is picking up steam as the regular season nears its end.

After not having a signature win for much of the year, Indiana has put together a strong resume with five victories in its last seven games. Those include a double-overtime win over UCLA (17-8, 9-5 B1G), a single-overtime win against white-hot Wisconsin (18-7, 10-4 B1G) and an upset of rival Purdue (21-4, 11-3 B1G).

Evanston, Ill. | Record: 21-4 (11-3 Big Ten)

Northwestern has defeated an AP Top-20 team in each of the past six seasons, dating back to 2019-20. Barring a shocking run by Indiana, No. 7 Purdue will be the Wildcats' last chance to extend that streak. Interestingly enough, two of those wins (2023 and 2024) came when unranked Northwestern upset No. 1 Purdue at Welsh-Ryan Arena.

The Boilermakers have been dominant once again this season, with their only major slip-up being a three-game January skid in which they lost to UCLA, No. 11 Illinois and Indiana. Purdue has otherwise managed to take down teams like Alabama, Texas Tech, Auburn, Wisconsin and Nebraska. Matt Painter's group is currently slated to be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN's Joe Lunardi.