Demons hope they're prepared for the challenge

Last year, Draelon Burns was the antidote to angst, a player whose intrepid style and infectious smile gave DePaul a boost every time out.

But in his debut as DePaul's featured scorer, the seemingly unflappable Burns tensed up. The senior hit just 3 of 16 shots during a joyless jaunt to Creighton that ended with a 74-62 loss.

"I don't know if I saw Draelon, at any point in time, smile in Omaha," coach Jerry Wainwright said. "He came off the court several times and said to me, 'My fault.' I (had) never said anything to him."

Burns was equally apologetic after the game.

"The first thing he said when he came in the locker room was, 'Fellas, it's my fault,' " Wainwright said.

"I was taking it real, real bad," Burns said.

Burns' smile was back Wednesday after practice, and the senior said he has moved past the Creighton game. There are more pressing matters, namely winning today's home opener against Northwestern.

Having some fun would also be nice for Burns, though he doesn't expect Northwestern to play along. Last year DePaul slept-walked through a nightmarish game in Evanston, shooting 34 percent in a 49-39 loss.

"I don't really want to say it's fun to play this team," Burns said. "It's a lot of defense. Then, if they get an offensive rebound, you've got to go for a whole other 35 (seconds)."

Wainwright calls both Creighton and Northwestern "preparation teams" because they force opponents to plan for unique systems. The difference is that Creighton allowed DePaul to run the floor, which didn't always help the Demons.

"We took the bait," Wainwright said. "We never earned a basket. That was kind of a pinball game. Now we're going into a root canal.

"You are not going to change how Northwestern plays, so we have to be much more efficient."

DePaul has had eight days to prepare, while Northwestern makes a quick turnaround after Thursday's season-opening loss to No. 20 Stanford. The Wildcats received balanced scoring, with five players tallying 8 or more points, but they couldn't overcome a size mismatch and endured typical struggles from both the free-throw line (56.3 percent) and the 3-point line (31.8 percent).

NU coach Bill Carmody hinted at tailoring the Princeton offense more around freshman guard Michael "Juice" Thompson, who scored all 16 of his points in the second half Thursday. Thompson, who attended high school less than a mile from DePaul's campus, is hoping for another big game.

"I know a lot of people on the team, so it means a lot to play against those guys," Thompson said. "It's kind of like for bragging rights with all of us being from the city."

DePaul couldn't exploit its size advantage in last year's game but will try to do so today with freshman forward Mac Koshwal, who grabbed 11 rebounds against Creighton but attempted only 4 shots.

"We have to be an inside-out team," Wainwright said.

NU will try to seal the lane with its 1-3-1 zone and force DePaul into perimeter shots. Burns and Jabari Currie must find their shooting rhythm and sophomore Will Walker, who is practicing more on the wing, could see more time.

"I hear a lot of people kicking a lot of dirt on us right now," Burns said. "We're just anxious to prove everybody wrong."

Northwestern (0-1) at DePaul (0-1)

When: 1 p.m. at the Allstate Arena

Radio: Available at www.depaulbluedemons.com

The skinny: Last year's loss in Evanston still gnaws at a DePaul team that finished a win or two shy of an NCAA Tournament bid. The Demons' scored fewer than 40 points for the first time since 1998. "We felt we really should have won that game," sophomore guard Will Walker said. "We played at the tempo that they wanted." Demons sophomore forward Thijin Moses remains suspended indefinitely, and freshmen Mario Stula and Kene Obi are still awaiting word from the NCAA regarding their amateur status. NU coach Bill Carmody is 2-3 all time against DePaul. The Demons have won 16 of their last 18 home games.

-- Adam Rittenberg