Men’s Basketball

It took a back-and-forth game with numerous lead changes and shooting slumps from both sides, but Northwestern won in Columbus for the first time since 1977, taking down Ohio State 74-72 on Sunday.

Junior guard Scottie Lindsey led the Wildcats (16-4, 5-2 Big Ten) with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, junior guard Bryant McIntosh added 17 points and senior forward Sanjay Lumpkin pulled down 11 rebounds as NU survived a last-minute push by the Buckeyes (12-8, 2-5).

After struggling offensively out of the gate, NU rallied from an early 17-11 deficit to lead 36-31 at halftime, taking advantage of eight first-half turnovers by Ohio State. McIntosh continued his efficiency from the Iowa game by shooting 3-for-5 in the first half, and Lindsey went 4-for-7 to lead the team with 10 points.

The Cats weren’t able to maintain that offensive rhythm after the break, missing 23 of their first 28 second-half field goal attempts and trailing 55-54 with under six minutes left.

But a Lindsey 3-pointer gave the visitors the lead back with four and a half minutes remaining, and freshman guard Isiah Brown converted back-to-back baskets to extend the advantage. As the Buckeyes looked for a miracle, NU made 11 free throws in the final 1:19 to overcome several late 3-point plays by the hosts and escape with the 2-point win.

Takeaways

1. Wildcats pull out another close win on the road.
After trailing at halftime in previous road victories against Nebraska and Rutgers, NU trailed deep into the second half Sunday. But behind a late run, the Cats improved to 5-2 in the conference season, sliding into a tie with Purdue for third place in the Big Ten standings.

2. Fouls plague Northwestern in second half.
NU ranks an unflattering 231st in the country in fouls per game this season, and Sunday’s outing didn’t help. The Buckeyes got into the bonus early in the second half — at one point going to the free throw line on five straight trips down the floor — and sophomores Vic Law and Dererk Pardon were forced to sit down the stretch with four fouls apiece.

3. Pardon struggles in return home.
The center from Cleveland not only picked up four fouls but also wasn’t able to find his shooting rhythm in his return from his home state. He went 1-for-7 from the field, including a few uncharacteristic shots from outside the paint, and committed two turnovers.

Stats

– Lindsey has now scored in double figures in all 20 games this season
– After posting 29 team assists against Iowa, NU managed just 13 on Sunday
– Lumpkin tallied double-digit rebounds for the first time since doing so four times in five games in December

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Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the final score. It was 74-72.