There May Not Be a Way, But There is Still a Will for Northwestern

This season has long been over for Northwestern. The early string of late-game stumbles against Virginia, Oklahoma State, Ohio State and Butler cast doubt that this Wildcats team could contend for an NCAA Tournament spot like years past, and a five-game skid during January Big Ten play put the nail in the coffin.

The 2025-26 Northwestern Wildcats have struggled to find the balance between developing their young players and remaining competitive against the grueling schedule. Senior forward Nick Martinelli is the last remnant from the winningest stretch in NU's history, and it's clear Chris Collins wants to send the Big Ten's leading scorer out the right way.

But the truth is, Northwestern's roster just isn't built that way. The five-man recruiting class that ranked in the top 20 in the nation is exciting, of course, but freshmen still make freshmen mistakes. And what veteran presences do those newcomers have to prop them up?

Transfers Arrinten Page and Jayden Reid have had their moments, but largely haven't lived up to expectations. Senior Justin Mullins and junior Jordan Clayton have been inconsistent at best. Everyone else who plays is a freshman or sophomore.

The season has been disappointing; there's no doubt about that. Any time that a team has a player as talented as Martinelli, yet seems to find a way to lose in a new, excruciating way over and over again, it's fair to be frustrated with how the year has gone. But the sky is not falling. Bad years happen.

Northwestern wouldn't have had the 2022-23 or 2023-24 March Madness runs without suffering through the two seasons prior. The 'Cats lost 13 consecutive games in 2020-21 and were dealt painful loss after painful loss in 2021-22, despite having a talent like Pete Nance and future cornerstones Boo Buie and Chase Audige.

NU is at that building stage now. It's unfortunate that Nick Martinelli was caught in the middle between these two timelines, but Northwestern is showing all the necessary signs that it still has a bright future. Tre Singleton, Jake West and Tyler Kropp have made massive leaps over the course of their true freshmen seasons, while Angelo Ciaravino has made himself indispensable as well.

On Feb. 4, Northwestern suffered a devastating blowout loss in Champaign to its in-state rival. The Wildcats scored fewer points in the entire game (44) than No. 5 Illinois did in the first half alone (47) on the way to a dominant Fighting Illini win.

Just one week later, Northwestern matched its scoring total from that game in the first half, as the 'Cats jumped out to a 44-35 lead against No. 2 Michigan. Although the Wolverines eventually rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit and reminded everyone why they are true title contenders, Northwestern showed as much fight as it has all season.

The Wildcats were playing faster and more physically than the No. 2 team in the nation for much of the game. Despite being 2-11 in conference play and 10-14 overall, they still showed that they believe this team has enough talent to compete in the Big Ten on any given day.

Collins has the building blocks in place to establish the next era of Northwestern basketball, and the 2025-26 season should serve as a reminder that progress isn't always linear. Oregon went from 12-8 in Big Ten play a season ago to 1-12 and last place this year. Nebraska was 7-13 and is now 10-3 and the No. 7 team in the nation.

Even teams that have experienced historical success suffer down years. Wisconsin finished 9-11 and 12th out of 14 Big Ten teams in 2023, and Tom Izzo's Spartans were 10-10 a year later. Both have bounced back because the programs have strong foundations.

Whether Northwestern has that foundation or not will likely be determined by its response next season, but the stepping stones are being set now. That starts with development, retaining young players from entering the transfer portal and playing games like the Wildcats did against Michigan, when they showed a refusal to throw in the towel.

That may not show up on the win-loss column now, but it could very well pay dividends next winter.