Women’s Basketball

Late in the second quarter, Nia Coffey missed a layup from close range. Pallas Kunaiyi-Akpanah was right there, however, to grab the offensive rebound. She put the ball back up and sunk the shot to extend the Wildcats’ lead to 5.

Northwestern’s starting frontcourt — junior forward Coffey and freshman forward Kunaiyi-Akpanah — shined for much of Thursday night, finishing with a combined 29 points and 25 rebounds, but it was ultimately in vain as the No. 7 Buckeyes (16-4, 8-1 Big Ten) defeated the Wildcats (13-8, 2-7) 76-73 in Columbus.

Coffey led NU with 23 points on 8-of-21 shooting and added a trio of 3-pointers. Kunaiyi-Akpanah, meanwhile, recorded a career-high 16 rebounds, 14 of which came on the defensive end.

“It was a hard-fought game, we played really well, we were determined,” coach Joe McKeown said.

Coffey, who scored at least 20 points for the 12th time this season, was an authoritative presence on the offensive end. Beyond sinking the 3s, she showed her versatility by making a selection of layups and midrange jumpers.

The junior added nine rebounds, though it was Kunaiyi-Akpanah who made the biggest mark on the boards. Her 16 rebounds led all players, and she was the only double digit rebounder for the Cats.

Kunaiyi-Akpanah was strong on the glass, frequently boxing out opponents and grabbing rebounds forcefully out of the air. She also added 6 points on 3-of-4 shooting.

“They’re not an easy team to rebound against,” Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said of the Cats.

Kunaiyi-Akpanah’s rebounding performance was a positive for an NU team that has, on average, been outrebounded by opponents this year. Thursday marked her third game with at least 10 rebounds; senior forward Christen Johnson, who started 14 games this season, has not recorded more than five rebounds in a single game.

But for all of their strong play, Coffey and Kunaiyi-Akpanah largely disappeared in crunch time. Kunaiyi-Akpanah neither scored nor corralled a rebound in the fourth quarter, and after the Buckeyes took the lead for good with 1:47 to play, Coffey split a pair of free throws and had a crucial turnover before sinking a mostly meaningless 3-pointer in the final seconds.

“We were able to get shots, get the ball inside-out, attack them a little bit,” McKeown said. “But we just didn’t finish the game, so I’m really disappointed in that.”

Similarly strong performances from the frontcourt players could be critical in Sunday’s game against Iowa. The Hawkeyes outrebound opponents and allow just 69.4 points per game. Iowa’s frontcourt starters average 18.6 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.

On Thursday, however, Coffey and Kunaiyi-Akpanah were both successful. It wasn’t, however, enough to propel the Cats to a victory.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @ckpaxton