It seems that since Northwestern forward John Shurna has fallen (literally) on some hard luck these past few weeks, it would be the perfect storm for him to get down on himself. But Wildcat center Luka Mirkovic thinks differently and said Friday before practice that Shurna is one tough Cat. Shurna had to have six stitches after colliding with the basket's padded post in the Wildcats' loss at Minnesota Wednesday and later was diagnosed with a concussion.

"Johnny is a tough guy and he'll be fine and I'm sure he'll have something to cover up his stitches [if he plays Saturday]," Mirkovic said. "The guy got hit in the head and he was a little bit out of it, but its normal."

Also on Friday Michael "Juice" Thompson said he has been having issues finding his shot this week. Coach Bill Carmody offered Thompson Thursday off, but Thompson worked out instead on shooting drills.

"[Thursday] was a light practice after playing at Minnesota, and I'm not feeling good with my shot right now and I missed too many shots [5 of 16 from the field] than I normally make," Thompson said. "I just look at it like a shooting slump."