The National Team of Holland sent the Northwestern women’s basketball team a rude wake-up call last week in its 68-62 overtime victory over the Cats.
But NU did not hit the snooze button and instead responded to the alarm by making a huge statement in its season opener Friday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Cats (1-1) demolished Creighton (0-1) 59-41 to begin their season on a positive note.
Although Kentucky (2-0) downed NU 67-60 two nights later, opening the season with a bang on their home floor might set the Cats on an early winning track.
“This is the start of a new team,” NU junior center Sarah Kwasinski said. “There is a lot of confidence on this team, but we feel we need to prove ourselves to other people.”
The Cats were also helped by a poor Creighton performance in the first half. The Bluejays, who were without two of their top players due to a suspension from the NCAA for a rules infraction, took 31 shots in the first half but were unable to convert on easy layups and open looks. A 3-pointer and a layup proved to be their only two buckets in the first 11:32 of play, and they managed only eight more points the rest of the half.
Coming off the disappointing exhibition loss on Nov. 11, NU made 67 percent of its shots from the field and executed the Princeton offense for numerous open-look baskets.
“I credit that to my assistants and the players,” coach June Olkowski said. “This week in practice, they understood what we needed to get done.”
Kwasinski, who struggled in the exhibition game against Holland with only four points, scored more points in the first half than the entire Bluejays roster. Out to prove last week was just a fluke, Kwasinski made 6-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 at the charity stripe to contribute 16 points, 14 of which came in the first half.
“Sarah was pivotal for us,” junior guard Samantha McComb said. “When she touches the ball, it opens us up on the outside, which is a pivotal part of our offense.”
Creighton often looked lost without their two suspended players, junior Laura Spanheimer and senior Dayna Finch. Spanheimer was the 2002-03 Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year, and Finch was named to the all-MVC team in 2001-2002.
Both were suspended for one game each for participating in an unsanctioned game.
“We knew going into the game it would be tough without those two players,” Creighton coach Jim Flanery said. “We missed their leadership more than anything.”
The Cats’ defense also came out with a vigor missing from last week’s game. NU held the Creighton offense to 5 for 31 (16 percent) shooting from the field in the first half. The greatest testament to this was the 32-13 NU lead at halftime, which was the largest lead an NU team has had at the break since Feb. 9, 2003 when the Cats led Michigan 40-12 after one half.
In Sunday’s contest at Kentucky, the Cats let an early 21-8 lead slip through the cracks before falling to the Wildcats.
Sophomore forward Ifeoma Okonkwo and junior guard Samantha McComb led the Cats with 16 and 14 points, respectively.
“We fought back in the second half but couldn’t make the shots we’re used to making, and that also affected our defense,” Olkowski said.
