When Northwestern guard Samantha McComb hit a three-pointer to cut Michigan State’s lead to four points midway through the second half Sunday, it looked like the Wildcats’ first Big Ten victory of the year was finally within reach.
But the Spartans countered with a three-pointer of their own, sparking a 14-5 run over the next six minutes. Michigan State (13-7, 3-6 Big Ten) proceeded to close out the Cats (4-16, 0-9) 75-58, extending NU’s regular-season Big Ten losing streak to 35 games.
“Coach (June Olkowski) made the comment after the game that it’s not even about basketball anymore,” junior forward Natalie Will said of the Cats’ inability to win games. “It’s mental breakdowns. There’s always that crucial moment and we can’t capitalize.”
The game opened with an abundance of turnovers, which caused both teams to get off to a slow start – the contest remained scoreless until 4:34 into the first half, when Michigan State made a field goal. The Spartans did not relinquish the lead for the rest of the game.
Michigan State knew how to hit the Cats where it hurt. The Spartans played especially tough defense on NU’s post players, whom the Cats rely upon heavily for points in the paint – center Sarah Kwasinski is NU’s leading scorer and Leslie Dolland, a power forward, is right behind her – and the Cats failed to handle the early pressure.
Most of NU’s 18 first-half turnovers were forced by Michigan State’s suffocating defense on the blocks.
“Their whole concept was to pack it in, collapsing on the post players” Will said. “We didn’t read it right – we were forcing things inside that weren’t there. When we did get the ball into the post there was a huge collapse inside, like three people on them instantly.”
NU head coach June Olkowski said her team’s inability to get the ball into the post hurt them in more ways than one, because it kept them off the charity stripe – the Cats scored only five points in four trips to the line.
“Because we weren’t getting the ball inside, we weren’t getting to the foul line,” Olkowski said. “That really hurts us – (free throws) are points we need.”
To make up for some of the problems inside, freshman guard Samantha McComb was forced to put it up from long range, which led to a career-high 15 points in front of a hometown crowd.
Spending some time at the point, McComb was successful in breaking Michigan State’s press and penetrating on the perimeter. The Michigan native was 5-for-10 from the field and 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.
“I just felt really comfortable out there,” McComb said. “Being home in Michigan and having some fans there helped.”
NU struggled to beat the Spartans’ press in the first half, trailing by as many as 11 points. But the Cats trimmed the deficit to eight heading into the locker room.
The Cats took better care of the ball in the second half, reducing their turnovers from 18 to seven by not forcing the ball inside. Five second-half steals from Will helped keep the game close, and the Cats managed to cut the lead to four twice. But then Michigan State , led by junior Syreeta Bromfield, ran away with the game around the 10 minute mark.
Bromfield, who averages 16.3 points per game, scored 22, grabbed six rebounds and had four steals. Among her 22 points was the three-pointer that countered McComb’s run in the second half.
“In the first half (Bromfield) was pretty low key,” Will said. “In the second half she really turned it on offensively, and we struggled to guard her.”
Bromfield was a huge part of the Michigan State bench’s 48-point effort. NU’s bench produced just 14 points, led by sophomore Michelle Zylstra’s 10.
The Cats struggled on the boards – no NU player had more than four rebounds and the Cats were outrebounded 38-24 on the afternoon. The Spartans scored 11 second-chance points on 17 offensive rebounds.
NU gets another chance to record its first Big Ten victory in more than two years Thursday against Penn State at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
