ROSEMONT, Ill. — The Big Ten Conference has declared that Northwestern University will receive two forfeits due to their absence in scheduled January road basketball games against the top-ranked UCLA Bruins and fourth-ranked Southern California Trojans. This decision was publicized by the conference on Wednesday.
Northwestern had already declared on January 10 their decision not to travel to Los Angeles for matches against UCLA on January 12 and USC on January 15. The university cited concerns about the ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area as their reason for opting out. In response, UCLA had suggested hosting the game at an alternate off-campus venue.
As a result of the forfeitures, UCLA and USC have each been awarded a victory in the conference standings, thereby boosting their records to 26-1 and 15-1 for the Bruins, and 25-2 and 16-1 for the Trojans, respectively. Meanwhile, Northwestern’s performance now stands at 9-17 overall and 2-15 in conference play due to the two losses.
These forfeits have jeopardized Northwestern’s slim chances of securing a place in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, set to include 15 teams. The Wildcats currently share the 16th spot with Rutgers, trailing Purdue by half a game. Despite tying with Rutgers, Northwestern holds an advantage in a tiebreaker due to a previous victory against the Scarlet Knights on February 17. However, Purdue similarly holds a tiebreaker advantage over Northwestern, having defeated them on February 12.
Northwestern will face Nebraska at home this Sunday for their final game of the regular season, where they’ll attempt to improve their standing.
In response to the fire situation, UCLA relocated its January 15 game against Penn State to Long Beach State’s arena. However, the USC Trojans did not move any of their scheduled home games.
