Northwestern's NCAA Tournament hopes were dealt a setback in an 85-69 loss at St. John's. The first half went as you'd expect--the Wildcats hit 50 percent of their threes and scored 1.21 points per possession, while St. John's stayed close with a 1.12 efficiency of their own. Standard Northwestern basketball, right? This is how they would have to win with such a weak defense.

In the second half, however, the Red Storm usurped Northwestern's shooting ability--St. John's posted a crazy 85.0 effective field goal percentage while the Wildcats lost the touch they've displayed all season. The result was a 1.38 PPP half for St. John's, and the Wildcats found themselves down double digits and forced to foul in the waning minutes. For the game, St. John's scored 1.25 points per possession, matching their best output of the season, while Northwestern's juggernaut offense was held to a season low (1.01 PPP).

John Shurna scored 28 points on 17 shots, and Michael Thompson dished 8 assists to just 1 turnover. Drew Crawford had a rough night, turning it over 5 times and needing 18 shots to score 17 points.

This loss isn't a crippling blow to Northwestern's tourney hopes, but it certainly doesn't help. St. John's, while a pretty decent team by Pomeroy rating (56th), has already lost to teams like St. Bonaventure and Fordham, and the Red Storm figure to finish below .500 in the sprawling Big East. The Wildcats still have a shot at an at-large bid if they do well in Big Ten play, but the margin for error just got even smaller with a thoroughly unimpressive nonconference resume.

Another Big Ten team suffered a setback last night, this time of a more unexpected and embarrassing variety: Penn State lost at home to lowly Maine by a 74-64 margin. The teams traded misses and turnovers for the first 13 minutes; after that, it was all Maine, as the Black Bears would push their lead to 15 points on multiple occasions. Penn State allowed a season-worst 67.1 effective field goal percentage (with most of the damage done from three), enabling Maine to score 1.15 points per possession despite a terrible turnover rate.

Jeff Brooks had his second straight bad game with 2 points on 5 shots and 3 turnovers. Talor Battle played well with 26 points on 13 shots and 7 rebounds. It looks like these two players are going to endure yet another rough season at Penn State, which is a shame for two talented guys.

The rest of the conference had a much happier night:

• Ohio State rolled over UNC-Asheville 96-49. The Bulldogs posted--by far--their worst efficiencies of the season at both ends, and they've played some good teams in Georgetown and North Carolina. David Lighty was enfuego, hitting 7 of 10 from three to score 29 points. Jared Sullinger settled for 9 points, 16 boards, and 5 assists.

• Purdue did what they do best--grinding down an inferior opponent with stifling defense. This time, it was IPFW bested by a 77-52 score. To go along with the defense, the Boilermakers posted their best shooting night of the season, hitting 58 percent on twos and 46 percent on threes. JaJuan Johnson took care of the former (24 points, 13 rebounds), while D.J. Byrd handled the latter (5 of 7 from three, 15 points). Lewis Jackson distributed beautifully to the tune of 8 assists and no turnovers. 

• Iowa used a great second half to pull away from Louisiana Tech in a 77-58 win. At the break, both teams were hovering around 0.90 points per possession, but the Hawkeyes turned it on at both ends after intermission to break it open. For the game, the 1.09 efficiency posted by Iowa was their second-best of the season, behind only the shellacking of SIU-Edwardsville. The Iowa defense continues to impress--only Texas has held Louisiana Tech to a lower output than the Hawkeyes just did. Matt Gatens was hot from outside, scoring 22 points on just 10 shots. Bryce Cartwright dominated the ball on offense, needing 19 shots to get his 19 points but also dishing 7 assists (2 turnovers). 

Tonight's slate is very attractive from a national standpoint, with a mini Big Ten/Big 12 challenge occuring on ESPN2. At 6pm CT, Michigan State hosts Texas, followed by Illinois and Missouri in the annual Braggin' Rights game in St. Louis (8pm CT). Each of these games features two ranked teams, so this is one last chance for the conference to impress a national audience before Big Ten play begins.

Indiana also plays an important game tonight in Las Vegas, facing Northern Iowa at 6:30pm CT on CBS College Sports. The Hoosiers have played well enough that a run to the NCAA Tournament isn't completely out of the realm of possibility, but it would seem that two wins in Vegas would be a prerequisite for an at-large bid. New Mexico (with coach Steve Alford!) and Colorado await on the other side of the bracket.

- Posted by Mike Portscheller