After 12 lead changes in the second half, the Northwestern women’s basketball team needed only one basket with 22 seconds left to beat Northern Illinois in the team’s season opener.
However, the 13th lead change never occurred. The Wildcats (0-1) missed two shots to win and two shots to tie in the last 40 seconds of their 68-63 loss at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sunday.
“We had three shots at the end, but they just didn’t go in,” NU coach June Olkowski said. “To improve, we just need the learning curve to get shorter at both ends of the court.”
After freshman Suzanne Morrison missed an open jumper in the closing seconds, a tenacious hustle play by junior Natalie Will gave the Cats a second chance. She chased after the rebound from Morrison’s shot, knocked it out of Northern Illinois’ hands, picked up the loose ball, and bounced it out of bounds off a Huskies player as she dove out of play.
But NU center Sarah Kwasinski missed a turn-around shot for the lead, and junior transfer Anya Walker missed two three-pointers for the tie after a pair of Northern Illinois free throws.
“This was a team we should have beat,” junior Emily Butler said. “We had a better week of practice and everyone was prepared for the game.”
NU came out of the locker room hot, jumping out to a 12-2 lead in the first five minutes.
However, a media timeout halted the Cats’ momentum as Northern Illinois (1-1), which lost on Friday, went on a 13-1 run. Four NU turnovers helped Northern Illinois gain a 15-13 lead.
“We turned the ball over way too much,” Olkowski said. “There was no reason for the turnovers.”
At the end of the first half, NU captured a 35-31 lead. Two Butler steals led to five consecutive points by Leslie Dolland. Butler closed the half with a layup.
NU played tight perimeter defense throughout the game as Butler had five steals and fellow guard Walker tallied four.
“I was really focused on playing defense,” Butler said. “After I shot poorly in our last exhibition game, today I put an emphasis on good defense.”
The Cats played well on the perimeter, but they failed to slow the Huskies’ frontcourt. Northern Illinois scored 38 points in the paint.
NU’s post problems could be attributed to the fact that starting center Michele Zylstra only played nine minutes because of foul trouble.
“Our problems in the post come down to common errors,” Kwasinki said. “We just need to work on learning the basic rules of post play.”
Kwasinki provided the Cats with a threat down low as she scored 13 points in her first college game. From the outside, Butler powered the Cats’ offense. She finished with 18 points on an impressive 7-for-11 shooting night, including 2 of 3 from behind the arc.
Butler’s offensive production was critical — NU’s other three guards combined to score only 10 points in 67 combined minutes of play.
In the second half, the game went back-and-forth as neither team enjoyed a big lead.
“We lost our composure in small moments, and we need to take it one possession at a time,” Olkowski said. “Being young is no excuse — we have played lots of basketball.”
The Cats, who used 10 players, received significant contributions from freshmen Melissa Culver, Kwasinski and Morrison. Culver had five assists playing point guard, and Morrison added five points and five rebounds.
“This is not their first game, they are seasoned players,” Olkowski said, referring to the three freshman. “Until all this talk stops, this just gives them an excuse.”
