Men’s Basketball

JerShon Cobb rolled around a screen from sophomore forward Sanjay Lumpkin and caught a pass from freshman forward Vic Law right in the chest before stepping into a deep, open three. The senior’s jumper flew through the net and gave the Wildcats a 48-30 lead over Brown Monday night.

Northwestern (2-0) went on to knock off Brown (1-1) by a final score of 69-56 at the Pizzitola Sports Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

Coming off an uneven season opening victory over Houston Baptist at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Friday night, the Cats found smoother waters in their early-week foray into East Coast basketball territory.

NU never trailed Brown, a rising program that nearly beat the Cats last year in Evanston and made a postseason trip to the CIT tournament.

NU came out of the gate playing fierce defense, holding the Bears scoreless for the first two minutes and 55 seconds. A deep two by freshman Bryant McIntosh and a smooth three by Cobb gave the Cats a quick 5-0 lead.

By the 12 minute media timeout, that lead ballooned to 19-9. NU kept its foot on the pedal and held a 10 point lead going into halftime.

Things got out of hand for the host Bears in the second half, as Cobb’s rainbow three behind the Lumpkin screen concluded a 12-2 NU run with 16:29 left in the second.

The Cats cruised the rest of the way. The Bears never got closer than 13 and trailed by as many as 21.

JerShon Cobb’s play was essential in the building of the lead.

“I thought Cobb played tremendous,” coach Chris Collins said after the game.

He led the Cats with 16 loud points on just seven shots and went 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. The performance represented a bounce back outing after Cobb finished with just 5 points in the opener Friday against Houston Baptist.

“I missed some easy shots Friday, and I thought just by playing, I’d make them this game,” Cobb said. “I just shot my shot.”

Sanjay Lumpkin contributed 15 points on six shots and snared 12 rebounds.

Freshman Scottie Lindsey provided pop off the bench, scoring 10 efficient points on four shots. He nailed a pair of threes.

As a team, the Cats shot 57 percent from three-point land and finished an impressive 17-for-21 at the charity stripe.

They also held Brown to just 36 percent shooting. Junior forward Cedric Kuakumensah, who scored 15 points in the Bears’ season opener against St. Peter’s, finished with just 2 points.

Cobb credited the coaching staff for the strong defensive performance.

“We knew everything they were running,” Cobb said. “We were prepared.”

Brown coach Mike Martin appeared impressed with the Cats’ performance.

“Collins has done a great job recruiting in a short amount of time,” Martin said, “but he’s also gotten great buy-in from his older guys. He’s really got those guys believing in what they’re doing.”

NU now holds a 7-2 lead in its all-time series with Brown. The Cats will next take the floor at home against North Florida on Thursday.

“We’ve got to get home, and we’re right back at it on Thursday night,” Collins said. “I’m really excited about this win. It was a good one.”

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