Mirkovic fitting in fine with Wildcats
Long before Luka Mirkovic heard of Northwestern, he knew the Wildcats' offense would be perfect for him.
Growing up in Belgrade, Serbia, the 6-foot-11 freshman center made sure to watch every Sacramento Kings game he could.
"I was a big fan of Vlade Divac," Mirkovic said. "He's my role model. At that time, Sacramento was running the Princeton offense."
That's because Pete Carril, Bill Carmody's former boss at Princeton, was a Kings assistant during those years.
"That was the first time I was introduced to that and I really liked it and the way everyone was playing," Mirkovic said. "I figured I would be a good fit for that, too."
So when it came time for Mirkovic, who spent one year at La Lumiere Academy in LaPorte, Ind., to pick a college, he shocked everyone in April when he selected Northwestern over Louisville, Marquette and DePaul.
"The vast majority of people around me said, 'Why Northwestern?' Mirkovic said. "Some people don't realize how good of an environment this is."
In addition to the academic environment (he's thinking about majoring in Economics or Political Science), Northwestern had the advantage of being the closest to providing a family environment.
His aunt, Boba Jerotic, lives in Schaumburg and frequently attends Northwestern's games.
She and everyone else finally got to see everything Luka can do in Thursday night's 60-59 loss to No. 22 Illinois.
Making his first start, Mirkovic piled up career highs in points (14), rebounds (12), assists (4) and 3-pointers (2) as he provided everything a center should in the Princeton offense.
After a slow start in nonconference play, Markovic averages 5.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 20 minutes per game in Big Ten play.
"When he first got here, he did a lot of unorthodox things in terms of his shots and getting them off," said NU junior forward Kevin Coble. "He was having a little trouble in the post at first and guys weren't going for fakes.
"He's done a good job of quickening things. He's playing faster, doing little half-second things that are the difference between scoring or not."
Mirkovic drilled 2 early 3-pointers to stake Northwestern to the lead Thursday, but he also hit the defensive boards and found the right teammates for open shots.
"He's getting better all the time," Carmody said. "If he can facilitate-because we have some other guys who can score, but they need help.
"Craig (Moore) needs a little help, Kevin (Coble) needs a little help, Mike (Thompson) needs a little help. So with his passing and his screens and stuff, everything makes the offense run well."
What about the defensive end? For a Divac fan, Mirkovic's defensive arsenal has been remarkably flop-free.
Perhaps in Sunday's home game against Michigan?
"I haven't brought it out yet," Mirkovic said with a big smile. "That's my secret weapon."