The first two minutes of Saturday’s second half pointed directly at one result: another Northwestern loss.
In defeats this season against Penn State and Michigan, the Wildcats (9-15, 1-10 Big Ten) have led at the half only to find a key player in foul trouble and lose the lead.
Against Iowa, it happened to three players.
With 18:35 left to play during NU’s 69-61 win over Iowa (17-6, 6-4) on Saturday, freshman guard Jitim Young – who was leading NU with nine points – collected his third foul. Seventeen seconds later, he was tagged with his fourth.
As a result, Collier Drayton moved over to play point guard, and Young sat on the bench. But 23 seconds after that, Drayton picked up foul No. 4 on an out-of-control charging foul.
“There were a couple of calls that could have gone either way,” Drayton said of the early whistles. “The calls just happened to go against us.”
So with his two best point guards one mistake away from the end of the bench – and with almost 18 minutes left in a one-point game – NU coach Bill Carmody had a decision to make. With the game on the line, he opted to roll the dice, leaving Drayton in for all but the final 50 seconds and reinserting Young for the last 13:38.
“I just thought we’d take a shot and try to win this game,” Carmody said. “My assistant coach (Mitch) Henderson was just saying, ‘Let’s get (Young) out.’ But it was just a hunch, the guys have to play smart, and I thought it was the right combination.”
His two court generals remained in the game – neither one fouled out – and also made key plays that propelled the Cats to victory.
Drayton and Young – joined by center Tavaras Hardy, who got his fourth foul with six minutes left and still played almost the entire half – both nailed some of NU’s most pivotal shots during the 13-2 run that helped seal the game midway through the second half.
Young hit a layup to break a 41-41 tie and give NU a lead it didn’t relinquish. He drilled a three-pointer from the right corner moments later to extend the lead to five.
After Young’s five-point burst, it was his teammate’s turn to take over. On Iowa’s next possession, power forward Reggie Evans attacked the basket from the right baseline. Drayton, risking his fifth foul, stepped in Evans’ path.
The referee called a charging foul on Evans, giving the Cats possession.
“I’ve taken plenty of charges in my career,” Drayton said with a sly smile. “I got me a little Oscar on that one. But I wasn’t nervous. That’s where aggressiveness comes in – when to try something and when not to.”
And just moments later, it was Drayton dishing the ball to unsung hero Jason Burke for another three that silenced the Hawkeyes’ fans.
Drayton’s and Young’s ability to make a difference despite foul trouble encapsulated the effort that brought NU its first Big Ten win in more than two years.
“We got some key guys in foul trouble,” Iowa coach Steve Alford said. “But they were tough-minded, and, as normally happens, tough-minded teams win.”
