As opportunities go, they don’t come much riper than this.
After defeating Michigan State last Thursday to earn its first Big Ten victory in almost three years, the Northwestern women’s basketball team found itself in position to win back-to-back conference games, leading Indiana at halftime 30-23.
But for Indiana, halftime was just what the doctor ordered. The Hoosiers began the second half with an 18-4 run en route to a 62-52 victory over the Wildcats in Bloomington, Ind.
“We just didn’t respond at the beginning of the (second) half,” NU head coach June Olkowski said. “We took a lot of quick shots and we turned the ball over at crucial times.”
NU had an outstanding first half on both sides of the court. While putting up 30 points, the Cats also limited the Hoosiers to 9 of 28 shooting.
The Cats also limited their turnovers in the first half and won the overall turnover battle, something that has been happening a lot in recent games. NU committed only 13 give-aways to Indiana’s 14.
But Indiana’s second-half outburst did in the Cats.
After the Hoosiers staked themselves to a 41-34 lead, the Cats tried to mount a comeback. Sophomore center Sarah Kwasinski made several big baskets to lead NU back to within two points with just over six minutes remaining.
But NU was never able to regain the lead as the shots refused to go down. The Cats shot just under 30 percent from the field in the second half and hit only 2 of 10 three-pointers.
The Cats eventually ran out of time and were forced to foul the Hoosiers, who sank their free throws to seal the victory.
“Tonight was a battle of halfs, where we won the first one and they won the second,” Olkowski said. “And the second one was the one that mattered. We played 30 minutes when we should have played 40.”
NU relied heavily on Kwasinski, who led the team with 17 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots.
Sophomore point guard Samantha McComb was the only other player in double-digits, adding 10 points, while freshman forward Ifeoma Okonkwo was excellent on the glass. Okonkwo was tied for the overall lead in rebounds with 11.
But the team, as a whole, was ineffective for much of the game.
“We didn’t get much scoring or defense from anyone else,” Olkowski said. “We just couldn’t match their intensity in the second half.”
On the other side of the court, Indiana made up for a lackluster first half with a strong performance from forward Jenny DeMuth, who led all Hoosiers with 17 points.
Indiana center Angela Hawkins had a double-double, netting 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Although the Cats fell short in their bid for consecutive Big Ten wins, they did manage to limit sloppy play while forcing Indiana into poor shot selection in an impressive first half.
But one good half ultimately wasn’t enough.
“This was an opportunity that we should have capitalized on and we lost it,” Olkowski said. “We are really mad and upset about it but our confidence has not been hurt.”
NU 52
INDIANA 62
