Men’s Basketball

The challenge was one-sided for most of Wednesday’s Big Ten/ACC Challenge game between Northwestern (5-2) and Georgia Tech (6-1).

After trailing by double digits for most of the game, the Wildcats made a late run. Their execution on the final few possessions was poor, but ultimately a slow start doomed them in a 66-58 loss.

“We’ve now started a number of games poorly,” coach Chris Collins said. “For whatever reason, we just came out really flat.”

NU had a chance late in the game, trailing by only three points in the final minute. Freshman point guard Bryant McIntosh jacked up an ill-advised 3-pointer early in the shot clock that barely drew the rim. Georgia Tech guard Chris Bolden grabbed the rebound, and the Yellow Jackets salted the game away at the foul line.

Georgia Tech rocketed to a 20-2 lead just more than six minutes into the game, scoring 1.92 points per possession during that stretch.

“Every mistake they made, we scored on,” Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory said. “We got a couple of fast breaks and plus we were able to get into our offense maybe before their defense was locked in.”

The Yellow Jackets came down to earth during the final 13:50 of the half and finished the period with just 31 points.

But their size clogged the lane and forced the Cats to shoot — and miss — perimeter shots. NU shot 1-for-12 from 3-point range and 27.6 percent from the field in the first half, taking a 13-point deficit into halftime.

“They absolutely hit us in the mouth,” said sophomore forward Sanjay Lumpkin, who finished with 12 points. “My feeling is we would’ve won the game if we started off better.”

Defensively, NU recovered for the final 34 minutes of the game. After Georgia Tech’s hot start, the Cats allowed just 0.82 points per possession the rest of the game.

NU’s offense improved in the second half.

The Cats found some life, getting a defensive stop after junior guard Tre Demps cut their deficit to 44-35. But senior guard JerShon Cobb threw the ball away, and the Yellow Jackets bumped their lead back to double figures.

NU trailed by 11 points with 5:20 remaining. The Cats finally strung together some offensive success and defensive stops to cling within one point of the Yellow Jackets in the final two minutes.

Demps sparked a 12-2 run with five straight points, and junior center Alex Olah capped it off with an open 3-pointer. But NU never got over the hump.​

Even after McIntosh’s missed trey, the Cats were not finished, down five points with 37 seconds to go. But Demps also rushed a shot, this one a contested layup that missed.

“We spot them a 20-2 lead, we shoot 4-for-23 from three, we miss a lot of free throws, and with a minute to go it’s a one-point game,” Collins said. “There some positive things. Hopefully we’ll build on those things we did in the second half to fight our way back in the game.”

Collins said one bright spot in the loss was Olah’s performance. Olah has struggled early this season, and he had a rough first half Wednesday with four points on 2-for-6 shooting.

But in the second stanza he shot 6-for-6 from the field, including that key 3-pointer, and finished with 19 points and 10 boards, both game-highs.

“Hopefully that will be a springboard of what’s to come with him,” Collins said. “He went into his moves strong and played with passion.”

Despite personal successes, Olah was disappointed with his and the team’s sluggish play out of the gate. If the Cats are going to be successful the rest of the season, he said he thinks that they have to be the ones throwing the first punch.

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Twitter: @Jesse_Kramer