EVANSTON, Ill. — When Chris Collins walked into an empty Welsh-Ryan Arena in mid-October, he let his mind wander. There’s something about the freedom of an empty court at night that takes his thoughts to imaginative places. In an empty gym, Collins becomes a dreamer.
When Collins first took the Northwestern men’s head coaching job in March of 2013, he walked onto the court at an empty Welsh-Ryan Arena with his family, and he thought of his final high school game, when his Glenbrook North team lost a triple overtime playoff game in front of a capacity crowd.