Fridays with Bill and Jerry...and Illini/DePaul conjecture, too!

I could spend some time running down what I learned at Northwestern and DePaul today, but much of the Wildcats' stuff will be in the Saturday paper. I'd rather write Haikus about each team's weekend prospects.

But first, heck, I'll tell you some of the stuff I learned.

I learned that coach Bill Carmody -- who showed up for Friday morning's practice with some Einstein's coffee -- and veterans Kevin Coble and Craig Moore didn't come close to making it to midnight on New Year's Eve. That's partly because they had to be up at 6 a.m. that morning to be ready for their 11 a.m. loss at Penn State. Moore, at least, admitted he might have had a little more adrenalin to make it to midnight and beyond if the Cats had won.

I learned some Wildcats like to eat a full breakfast (eggs, pancakes, etc.) before an early game like that, while Moore prefers just to eat cereal and keep things light. Maybe those full breakfasts are what kept so many Wildcats anchored to the floor when shots went up at Penn State.

I learned the coaches aren't going to let NU slide and have another minus-22 rebounding-margin game like they did against Penn State. When one player during Friday's practice found himself far away from the offensive board, with no discernable desire to move in that direction to grab a rebound, a coach got in his face and "asked" who was going to rebound.

And for those who find Northwestern's Princeton-style offense dull because it usually leads to a slower pace of play, I say you're nuts. I also say I'm fascinated by watching the Wildcats run through their multiple sets, especially when Carmody can interrupt and offer helpful hints such as what to expect from Michigan State's defenders and things like that.

When NU and MSU face off Saturday night, I'll pay attention to see if the Spartans' defensive principles match up with what the Cats expected.

As for DePaul, I actually showed up a little late for interviews...and the Demons hit the floor a little early because they needed to catch their charter to Providence.

Nonetheless, I learned the Blue Demons will be without freshman forward Devin Hill again Saturday. Though he took the boot off his left foot, he has a high ankle sprain and those tend not to heal super-fast. Besides, better to lose Hill for a couple games now instead of for a month later. Not just because the Demons need him, particularly defensively and on the boards, but because he needs the playing time so he can become something special sooner.

Not saying Hill's going to be an all-American or even an all-Big East player (hard to do that in a 16-team league), but he projects as a guy you can win with.

I learned DePaul takes charter flights everywhere this season, which is a huge upgrade from the old days. I remember being on the same cramped commercial flight as the Demons nine or 10 years ago and, because it was cold and I didn't have a coat, had to wear an Illinois sweatshirt. Point guard-turned-Marmion coach Rashon Burno saw me and gave me some, uh, grief.

Dave Leitao, before he left, fought to get his team a few charter flights while they were still in Conference USA. Now they charter everywhere, except Marquette and Notre Dame of course. Even the women charter everywhere except Louisville.

The convenience is nice, but it's for a good cause: School. For example, DePaul starts winter quarter on Wednesday when the men's team will be playing in Syracuse. With a charter, the Demons can get back a little earlier in the wee hours, get a little more sleep before Thursday classes and their body clocks can feel a little closer normal.

"Winter quarter is real tough for us," said Jerry Wainwright. "It's a necessity for us. Some of the guys' classes, they can only have a few absences."

I learned the Demons will have a road game at Vanderbilt next season to repay the Commodores for their Allstate Arena visit last year. Wainwright also says he's wide-open toward playing local teams, both to build local interest and to save on costs.

"We're not against doing anything with anyone," Wainwright said.

He says he's friends with several coaches, including Illinois' Bruce Weber, and would like to get something going with the Illini, but the million-dollar question that gets in the way: Where do you play and who makes the money?

Illinois has hand in this situation because it doesn't need to play DePaul, unless it's really hurting to find a team for its annual United Center game in early December. But why would the Demons want to play at the UC when the Illini would have more fans and control the revenue?

If I was commissioner of Illinois College Basketball -- and I think I'll appoint myself to this bleeping golden position right now -- I'd decree a three-year series between the Illini and Demons that features games at the United Center, Allstate Arena and Assembly Hall.

Why? BECAUSE FANS WANT TO SEE IT!

Illinois had a terrible crowd for its United Center game with Georgia, partly because the Illini hadn't built any buzz by Dec. 6 and partly because the Bulldogs have no cachet here.

DePaul has drawn terribly for every home game this year. I know the DePaul/Notre Dame game started at 7 p.m. New Year's Eve, which contributed to the crowd being just 6-7,000, but people will make time to see such a game when there's a buzz to it.

Coaches and athletic directors, particularly as the economy debates whether to sink closer to the abyss, need to think salesmanship first and worry less about how a particular game affects their jobs. If programs don't draw, coaches get fired and ADs lose precious revenue. Or, if they don't get fired, the pay scale shrinks from its current incredible heights.

OK, I'm rambling here because it's 12:15 on a Friday night, but The Commish can ramble if he wants. And he can write Haikus if he wants, too. But he doesn't want to right now.

In a future installation somewhere in the next couple of days, we'll look at the week ahead for our state's teams using Haikus. Feel free to compose your own. We get some response, we'll move on to clean limericks and tone poems and goodness knows what else.

Now, go watch some hoops.

LW