Northwestern's next challenge: Bring it without Boo Buie

This time last year, Boo Buie appeared to have accepted the end of his career at Northwestern when he declared for the NBA Draft.

A month later, in a social media post announcing he’d be returning for his fifth year of eligibility, he withdrew that declaration and replaced it with another: “I’m not done yet.”

There’s a sense of completion for him now. After the Wildcats’ 75-58 loss to No. 1-seeded Connecticut on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the senior point guard sounded like a player who’d met the goals he set out to achieve when he came to NU from Albany, New York, five years ago.

“Coach [Chris Collins] and I have really been building this since I was a freshman,” Buie said, holding back tears. “Looking back on this year and all the adversity we got through, and to still persevere and make it to the NCAA Tournament and get past the first round and play No. 1 UConn, I mean, I’ve just got to have a lot of gratitude, you know, despite the loss.”

NU’s men’s program had just one NCAA tournament appearance in its history when Buie arrived on campus in 2019. Collins sold him on the idea that together, they could make those appearances the standard.

But his first two years couldn’t have gone much worse. The Wildcats finished 8-23 in Buie’s freshman season and 9-15 in his sophomore one. When Collins wrapped up his fifth straight losing season in 2022, athletic director Derrick Gragg made it clear his job was in jeopardy if “necessary changes” to establish a winning culture weren’t made.

In 2023, behind Buie’s team-high 17.3 points and 4.3 assists per game, NU was back dancing. Collins inked a three-year contract extension last May after the Wildcats lost to UCLA in the second round.

It was evident just how indebted Collins feels to Buie as he spoke with reporters in Brooklyn on Sunday night.

“It’s been a special journey,” Collins said. “He mentioned it, just he and I, the bond you have with your point guard, the ups, the downs, the frustrations, the joys. We have become very close through all that, and you know, I’m just thankful for him.”

Now it’s Collins’ task to preserve the standard after he loses the program’s all-time leading scorer, as well as grad transfers Ryan Langborg and Blake Peterson and possibly seniors Matthew Nicholson and Ty Berry, both of whom suffered season-ending injuries (meniscus and foot, respectively) and have one more year of eligibility. Nicholson said last weekend that his recovery will play a role in whether he comes back.

Junior guard Brooks Barnhizer is expected to return if he doesn’t transfer. He’d be Collins’ only returning upperclassman if Berry and Nicholson opt not to use a fifth year of eligibility. The roster right now has five sophomores — including forward Nick Martinelli, who stepped into a starting role when Berry was injured — and three freshmen.

After the Wildcats’ elimination Sunday, their locker room remained closed for well past the standard 10-minute postgame cool-down period. When the doors finally opened, the tears were still fresh on many faces.

Barnhizer would be the one to lead them in the post-Buie era.

“Without Boo, I don’t become the player I am,” he said. “I didn’t play my freshman year, and he saw something in me. I’m forever indebted to Boo.”