Northwestern (16-9 overall, 4-8 Big Ten) looks to keep its postseason hopes alive when it hosts in-state rival Illinois (11-13, 3-8) Saturday night.
With just six regular season games remaining the Wildcats are running out of chances to impress the NIT Selection Committee. A win over the 12th-place team in the Big Ten wouldn't strongly impact Northwestern's NIT chances, but a loss certainly would. Decimated by injuries, John Groce's bunch has largely disappointed this season.
Since losing to Iowa on Feb. 7, the Fighting Illini have essentially been on a "bye week", which has given battered starters Kendrick Nunn and Michael Finke time to recover from nagging injuries.