Fresh off a competitive loss to Penn State, Northwestern headed east for a Sunday showdown against Indiana, aiming to break a three-game losing streak.
The Wildcats began the game with a turnover on the first possession, setting the tone for what would become their sixth 30-plus point loss of the season.
When the buzzer signifying the end of the first quarter erupted, NU trailed by 19 points and had recorded an equal number of points as it had turnovers.
Coach Joe McKeown’s group trailed by double digits for most of the second frame, but in the final 90 seconds before intermission it went on a six-point scoring run of its own to cut the deficit to just six points. At that point, Indiana led 32-26.
After the break, any semblance of NU momentum had evaporated. Following just 10 more minutes of play, the ‘Cats trailed by 45 points, cementing a loss that seemed predictable from the contest’s opening minutes.
Tacking on another defeat to its already lackluster record, NU now stands alone in second to last place in the Big Ten, while the Hoosiers (16-2, 8-1 Big Ten) are tied for first with Iowa.
Here are three takeaways from NU’s loss to Indiana
Takeaways
1. The ‘Cats can’t keep up offensively
NU’s 41% shooting on a 22-of-54 clip, couldn’t compare to the Hoosiers, who sport the best field goal percentage in the Big Ten.
After 15 minutes of play, the Hoosiers had already amassed over forty points, while NU struggled to reach double digits, taking 13 minutes to breach that threshold.
The Hoosiers’ tight defense inside the paint posed challenges for the ‘Cats early on. Junior forward Caileigh Walsh struggled to find a path inside, attempting only five shots in the first half. Walsh leads the team in scoring for the season, but fell short of her average of 13.1 points per game in Sunday’s contest.
The ‘Cats converted only 6 of their 13 attempted layups, underscoring Indiana’s success in crowding the basket.
The Hoosiers, on the other hand, dominated in the paint, scoring 50 points off layups alone. An expert inside, three-time All-American forward MacKenzie Holmes led the way for the hosts with 27 points. While NU failed to take advantage of easy scoring chances, Holmes consistently finished at the rim to make game aspects that plagued NU look easy.
2. Melannie Daley’s impressive performance isn’t enough to make a dent
In the opening 20 minutes, Melannie Daley tallied half of NU’s point total.
After falling in to early foul trouble in NU’s tilt with Penn State last week, Daley cleaned things up against Indiana. Demonstrating her poise and prowess on both sides of the court, Daley committed zero fouls and scored 16 points on a 6-of-11 shooting clip.
But with almost all of her teammates struggling to produce offensively, Daley’s hot streak wasn’t enough to make a difference.
3. NU returns home for sold out Iowa matchup
Following their fourth consecutive loss, the road does not relent for NU.
The ‘Cats are set to return home for a historic contest at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Wednesday, facing the reigning national player of the year Caitlin Clark and No. 5 Iowa. It marks the first-ever sold-out women’s basketball matchup at the arena.
The Hawkeyes secured a bounceback victory against Nebraska on Saturday, recovering from their upset loss to No. 12 Ohio State last week.
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Twitter: @AudreyPachuta
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— Rapid Recap: Penn State 76, Northwestern 65
— Women’s Basketball: Northwestern falls to Penn State, extends losing streak to three
— Women’s Basketball: Northwestern finds production from unlikely players in loss to Penn State
