Jan. 4, 2005

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EVANSTON, Ill. - As the calendar turns to 2005, Northwestern head coach Bill Carmody hopes that his team is ready to turn over a new leaf.

Truthfully, he thinks they are ready to make that change.

Northwestern vs. Indiana
Wednesday, Jan. 5 * 6 p.m. Central
Welsh-Ryan Arena (Evanston, Ill.)
TV: ESPN Plus Local (Wayne Larrivee, play-by-play; Shon Morris, analyst); this game can be seen in Chicago on WYIN
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Dave Eanet, play-by-play; David Kaplan, analyst)

"I feel good," he said after a spirited practice leading up to Wednesday's Big Ten opener with Indiana. "I have been happy with our practices the last few days, the guys seem energized knowing that they are getting into Big Ten play. They are excited, and they should be."

On paper, the Wildcats come into Wednesday's contest a hot team -- after a 1-4 start, they have won six out of their last seven, with the lone loss coming on the road to an 11-2 Arizona State team. The last three outings have all resulted in wins; however, Carmody himself has been the first to admit the victories have hardly been the type to draw optimism and inspiration from.

Carmody, however, also is optimistic that what is past is past, and his players are anxiously looking forward.

"This is a big game for us, and the guys know it," he said. "This is a fresh start, not just for us but for everyone -- the teams that have been playing badly have a chance to right the ship now. For us, we have to show that we can play well and do it consistently. It is good to have the first game at home, and hopefully that will set the tone for the rest of the way."

Home has been a cure for what ails the 'Cats in recent years. NU is 36-14 at home the last three-plus years, including a 14-10 against Big Ten teams.

"Last year we went 6-2 in Big Ten home games," said Carmody, "and I feel it is important that we protect our home court."

Did You Know?
For the third time in head coach Bill Carmody's five years, Northwestern heads into Big Ten play with a three-game winning streak -- a seemingly innocuous stat, until you realize that before Carmody came on board only one Wildcat team did it from 1984-85 to 1999-2000. The 1993-94 team went into Big Ten play with a 9-0 record, and parlayed that start into an NIT bid at the end of the season.

The Series with Indiana
• Tonight marks the 145th meeting between the Wildcats and the Hoosiers in men's basketball; Indiana leads the series, 103-41.

• Northwestern has won the last two games played here at Welsh-Ryan, 74-61 in 2003 and 63-59 last year. The 'Cats have not defeated Indiana at home three years in a row since 1968-70.

• After losing the first four times his NU teams played IU, head coach Bill Carmody has seen his 'Cats win two of the last three.