It wasn't too long ago that Dererk Pardon watched every game stuck in his Under Armour warmups, cheering on the team, learning from veteran big men Alex Olah and Joey van Zegeren, and preparing to play a major role next season.
Then, two weeks ago, out of nowhere, he became Northwestern's best offensive big man as soon as he stepped in, a force on the boards, and a guy that single-handedly carried his team to its first Big Ten win of the season in his first Big Ten game of his career. And if Northwestern wants to stay afloat for the next few games sans Alex Olah, and then wants to make the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament, it'll need Pardon to continue to play at a high level.