# 2021–22 Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball team represented Northwestern University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by ninth-year head coach Chris Collins. The Wildcats played their home games at Welsh–Ryan Arena in Evanston, Illinois as members of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 15–16, 7–13 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for 10th place. As the No. 12 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they defeated Nebraska in the first round before losing to Iowa in the second round.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Wildcats finished the 2020–21 season 9–15, 6–13 to finish in 12th place in Big Ten play. They lost in the first round of the Big Ten tournament to Minnesota.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Miller Kopp | 10 | F | 6'7" | 215 | Junior | Houston, TX | Transferred to Indiana |
| Anthony Gaines | 11 | G | 6'4" | 210 | RS Junior | Kingston, NY | Transferred to Siena |
| Dom Martinelli | 50 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Freshman | Glenview, IL | Walk-on; transferred to St. Thomas (MN) |
| Eric Zalewski | 55 | G | 6'0" | 185 | RS Junior | Buffalo Grove, IL | Walk-on; didn't return |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous college |
| Elyjah Williams | 21 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Graduate Student | Evanston, IL | Fairleigh Dickinson |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2021 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Casey Simmons #21 SF | Milton, MA | Milton Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Jun 27, 2020 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 ||||||
| Julian Roper #35 SG | Orchard Lake, MI | Saint Mary's Preparatory School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | May 4, 2020 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Brooks Barnhizer #52 SF | Lafayette, IN | Lafayette Jefferson High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jun 21, 2020 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 75 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 Northwestern Commits". Rivals.com. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

#### 2022 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2022 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Rowan Brumbaugh #18 PG | Northfield, MA | Northfield-Mt. Hermon School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Aug 30, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2022 Northwestern Commits". Rivals.com. "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 4, 2021* 7:00 p.m., BTN+ | | Lindenwood | W 85–40 | 0–0 | 17 – Berry | 10 – Williams | 40 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,563) Evanston, IL |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., BTN+ | | Eastern Illinois | W 80–56 | 1–0 | 17 – Buie | 7 – Young | 6 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,753) Evanston, IL |
| November 12, 2021* 7:00 p.m., BTN+ | | High Point | W 95–60 | 2–0 | 22 – Nance | 10 – Nance | 7 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (3,074) Evanston, IL |
| November 16, 2021* 7:00 p.m., BTN+ | | New Orleans | W 83–67 | 3–0 | 18 – Nance | 8 – Nance | 9 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,593) Evanston, IL |
| November 18, 2021* 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Fairleigh Dickinson | W 82–46 | 4–0 | 20 – Young | 11 – Nance | 5 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,854) Evanston, IL |
| November 22, 2021* 8:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | vs. Providence Legends Classic semifinals | L 72–77 | 4–1 | 23 – Buie | 5 – Nance | 5 – Nance | Prudential Center (3,719) Newark, NJ |
| November 23, 2021* 4:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Georgia Legends Classic | W 78–62 | 5–1 | 22 – Buie | 9 – Nance | 6 – Buie | Prudential Center (0) Newark, NJ |
| November 30, 2021* 8:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Wake Forest ACC–Big Ten Challenge | L 73–77 $^{OT}$ | 5–2 | 15 – Nance | 7 – Nance | 7 – Buie | LJVM Coliseum (3,711) Winston-Salem, NC |
| December 5, 2021 11:00 a.m., BTN | | at Maryland | W 67–61 | 6–2 (1–0) | 17 – Nance | 10 – Nance | 4 – Buie | Xfinity Center (13,958) College Park, MD |
| December 12, 2021* 3:00 p.m., ESPNU | | NJIT | W 70–52 | 7–2 | 13 – Young | 9 – Young | 7 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (3,392) Evanston, IL |
| December 18, 2021* 2:00 p.m., BTN | | DePaul | Canceled due to COVID issues at DePaul | Canceled due to COVID issues at DePaul | Canceled due to COVID issues at DePaul | Canceled due to COVID issues at DePaul | Canceled due to COVID issues at DePaul | Welsh–Ryan Arena Evanston, IL |
| December 20, 2021* 6:00 p.m., BTN+ | | Illinois–Springfield | W 90–50 | 8–2 | 15 – Nance | 8 – Tied | 5 – Greer | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,996) Evanston, IL |
| December 30, 2021* 4:00 p.m., BTN | | Prairie View A&M | Canceled due to COVID issues at Prairie View A&M | Canceled due to COVID issues at Prairie View A&M | Canceled due to COVID issues at Prairie View A&M | Canceled due to COVID issues at Prairie View A&M | Canceled due to COVID issues at Prairie View A&M | Welsh–Ryan Arena Evanston, IL |
| January 2, 2022 1:00 p.m., BTN | | No. 10 Michigan State | L 67–73 | 8–3 (1–1) | 13 – Nance | 8 – Young | 4 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (4,716) Evanston, IL |
| January 5, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Penn State | L 70–74 | 8–4 (1–2) | 22 – Buie | 7 – Audige | 8 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,764) Evanston, IL |
| January 9, 2022 4:30 p.m., BTN | | at No. 13 Ohio State | L 87–95 | 8–5 (1–3) | 23 – Berry | 6 – Tied | 8 – Buie | Value City Arena (10,620) Columbus, OH |
| January 12, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Maryland | L 87–94 $^{2OT}$ | 8–6 (1–4) | 28 – Nance | 14 – Nance | 4 – Tied | Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,886) Evanston, IL |
| January 15, 2022 11:00 a.m., BTN | | at No. 10 Michigan State | W 64–62 | 9–6 (2–4) | 18 – Young | 8 – Young | 4 – Buie | Breslin Center (14,797) East Lansing, MI |
| January 18, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | No. 8 Wisconsin | L 76–82 | 9–7 (2–5) | 23 – Audige | 6 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Welsh–Ryan Arena (5,251) Evanston, IL |
| January 23, 2022 12:00 p.m., BTN | | at No. 4 Purdue | L 60–80 | 9–8 (2–6) | 17 – Buie | 4 – Tied | 3 – Buie | Mackey Arena (14,804) West Lafayette, IN |
| January 26, 2022 5:30 p.m., BTN | | at Michigan | L 70–72 | 9–9 (2–7) | 14 – Nance | 6 – Nance | 4 – Nance | Crisler Center (11,240) Ann Arbor, MI |
| January 29, 2022 3:30 p.m., BTN | | No. 24 Illinois Rivalry | L 56–59 | 9–10 (2–8) | 21 – Nance | 5 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039) Evanston, IL |
| February 1, 2022 6:00 p.m., BTN | | Rutgers | W 79–78 $^{OT}$ | 10–10 (3–8) | 18 – Buie | 7 – Audige | 5 – Roper II | Welsh–Ryan Arena (3,079) Evanston, IL |
| February 5, 2022 12:00 p.m., BTN | | at Nebraska | W 87–63 | 11–10 (4–8) | 27 – Buie | 6 – Tied | 4 – Greer | Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,609) Lincoln, NE |
| February 8, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | Indiana | W 59–51 | 12–10 (5–8) | 18 – Buie | 11 – Nance | 3 – Greer | Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039) Evanston, IL |
| February 13, 2022 1:00 p.m., BTN | | at No. 13 Illinois Rivalry | L 66–73 | 12–11 (5–9) | 16 – Berry | 7 – Audige | 3 – Audige | State Farm Center (15,544) Champaign, IL |
| February 16, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | No. 5 Purdue | L 64–70 | 12–12 (5–10) | 13 – Beran | 6 – Beran | 4 – Greer | Welsh–Ryan Arena (7,039) Evanston, IL |
| February 19, 2022 3:00 p.m., BTN | | at Minnesota | L 60–77 | 12–13 (5–11) | 18 – Nance | 5 – Roper II | 3 – Audige | Williams Arena (10,570) Minneapolis, MN |
| February 22, 2022 7:00 p.m., BTN | | Nebraska | W 77–65 | 13–13 (6–11) | 20 – Nance | 5 – Nance | 5 – Nance | Welsh–Ryan Arena (3,487) Evanston, IL |
| February 25, 2022 6:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Penn State | L 60–67 | 13–14 (6–12) | 12 – Nance | 6 – Young | 7 – Buie | Bryce Jordan Center (10,280) University Park, PA |
| February 28, 2022 8:00 p.m., BTN | | at No. 24 Iowa | L 61–82 | 13–15 (6–13) | 19 – Berry | 8 – Nance | 3 – Audige | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (13,231) Iowa City, IA |
| March 6, 2022 6:30 p.m., BTN | | Minnesota | W 75–62 | 14–15 (7–13) | 19 – Nance | 13 – Nance | 8 – Buie | Welsh–Ryan Arena (4,551) Evanston, IL |
| Big Ten tournament |||||||||
| March 9, 2022 5:00 p.m., BTN | (12) | vs. (13) Nebraska First Round | W 71–69 | 15–15 | 16 – Buie | 8 – Nance | 8 – Nance | Gainbridge Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| March 10, 2022 1:00 p.m., BTN | (12) | vs. (5) No. 24 Iowa Second Round | L 76–112 | 15–16 | 14 – Young | 2 – Tied | 4 – Greer | Gainbridge Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: — = Not ranked :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | — | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Not released |
| Coaches | — | —^ | — | — | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings. ^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.