Men’s Basketball

Northwestern showed some signs of post-Thanksgiving sluggishness in its matchup with Bryant on Friday.

But the Wildcats (4-2) did enough to hold on, withstanding a 21-4 run sandwiched around halftime before cruising to a 86-66 victory over the Bulldogs (2-4).

Following a late defeat Tuesday to Notre Dame in the final of the Legends Classic in Brooklyn, NU came out of the gate hot, jumping to a 17-5 lead in a little more than five minutes of game time. Sophomore forward Vic Law connected on a pair of 3s and an acrobatic layup in transition to help build the lead — accounting for 8 of his 22 points on the day.

Law put together another all-around masterpiece as he continues to establish himself as NU’s top player on both sides of the floor. He led the Cats in scoring with an efficient 9-of-16 shooting line, pulled down five boards and defended Bryant’s top scorer, Nisre Zouzoua, for large portions of the game on the other end.

“The ball’s just been finding its way in the basket,” Law, NU’s leading scorer to date, said. “I’m shooting when I’m open, and I’m just really happy everything seems to be going in right now.”

The Cats continued to expand their lead, opening up a 21-point edge at one point in the half. NU passed through Bryant’s 2-3 zone with ease to create shots, but a 5-for-17 mark from 3 in the first period prevented the Cats from blowing the doors off the game.

As NU’s offense slowed, the Bulldogs fought back and cut the lead to just 42-39 early in the second half. Zouzoua hit three 3s in that stretch and torched the Cats for 24 points to help tighten the game.

“The kid hit some really tough shots,” coach Chris Collins said of Zouzoua, who averaged 21.2 points per game before Friday. “He got loose a little bit, but of his nine (makes), I think five or six of those shots were really well-guarded.”

Struggling to score after a fast start, NU got a spark in transition after the under-16 timeout, converting turnovers by the Bulldogs into fast-break dunks by Law and junior guard Scottie Lindsey. Those plays helped the Cats’ offense find its groove again, and NU ended the day shooting a tidy 47.7 percent from the field.

The Cats survived struggles from junior point guard Bryant McIntosh, who hit just 3-of-11 shots from the field en route to 8 points. Making up for his struggles, Lindsey notched 20 points and junior forward Gavin Skelly provided a major spark off the bench with a career-high 15 of his own.

“Scottie coming back, Vic coming back, Bryant’s older, me being more of an option … I think it opens up more players to be able to score,” Skelly said.

Despite the lull in the middle of the game, NU ran away from Bryant late to seal the victory. The Cats will look to add another win at home on Monday as it takes on Wake Forest as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

It’s another quick turnaround for NU’s fourth game in a week, but Friday’s win showed the Cats’ ability to handle the challenges of a packed schedule.

“You get home at 3 o’clock in the morning on Tuesday night (from Brooklyn), you’ve got to rest up on Wednesday … and the one day you’re preparing is Thanksgiving day,” Collins said. “I was so proud of how we started the game.”

This article was updated at 4:20 p.m. with quotes.
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