BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Just over a year ago, graduate student guard Ryan Langborg garnered national attention after leading Princeton to a historic Sweet Sixteen appearance.
Now, back on college basketball’s biggest stage, Langborg once again answered the bell when No. 9 Northwestern needed an offensive spark in its matchup against No. 8 Florida Atlantic.
“We felt (Langborg) was immediately a seamless fit,” coach Chris Collins said. “(Based) on who he was as a player, his character and his skillset. We thought it would complement the guys that we had. We were one of the first (teams) to call him. It’s a testament to him coming in and being a part of what we’re doing and performing on the big stage like he did today.”
During the first half, the Wildcats and Owls were in the middle of a defensive dogfight where neither team could find any semblance of offense.
NU’s offense looked reminiscent of its Big Ten quarterfinal loss to Wisconsin last week, where players outside of graduate student guard Boo Buie shot a combined 11-of-38 from the field. Except, now Buie couldn’t find his touch.
Entering halftime, the ‘Cats shot at a measly 7-of-33 clip from the field — including 2-of-12 from deep. Outside of junior guard Brooks Barnhizer’s three first half field goals, no Wildcat player had recorded more than one field goal.
“The toughless level and heart of this team is like nothing I’ve ever been a part of,” Collins said. “Even though we struggled offensively in the first half, I felt really good. I knew we would settle in. In the second half, we saw the ball go in.”
But, as they potentially faced their final 20 minutes of collegiate play, both Buie and Langborg responded when it mattered the most.
Behind the graduate student duo, NU’s offense was revitalized out of the locker room. The ‘Cats’ backcourt duo tallied the team’s first seven points and 19 of its first 24.
Over this stretch, NU continued to create separation from the Owls, who faced difficulties overcoming the ‘Cats’ offensive blows. In a game separated by a few possessions throughout, NU built an eight point lead five minutes into the second half.
“(Florida Atlantic) threw some different defenses at me in the first half,” Buie said. “My teammates did a great job of picking me up. Once we got to the second half and overtime, we were able to run what we wanted to (offensively) and get some good shots and makes.”
As FAU continued exchanging baskets with NU over the ensuing minutes, Buie and Langborg continued to respond with timely baskets. Over the second half, the duo combined to tally 28 of NU’s 39 second half points — including canning all four of the team’s threes over the frame.
“When we play great defense like we did in the first half, the offense will take care of itself,” Langborg said. “Shots were bound to fall at some point. We knew we had to keep guarding because we didn’t know if we were going to make shots (in the second half). Coach drew up a lot of great plays that got me and others open, and (Buie) had everyone surrounding him on defense which opened up everything for us.”
While Langborg’s jumper and Buie’s driving layup helped the ‘Cats hold a 56-50 lead with less than five minutes remaining, the offense went on a near-five minute scoring drought.
And, while Barnhizer’s game-tying layup toward the end of regulation sent the game into overtime, momentum was firmly fixed to Florida Atlantic’s side through their late comeback quest.
As the Owls double-teamed Buie in the extra period in attempts to keep the ball out of the ‘Cats leading scorer’s hands, Langborg capitalized on the extra looks at the basket.
“I emptied out my Langborg package (in the second half),” Collins said. “We ran a lot of stuff for him to get shots, and we found we were having success coming off screens with their five man. When you see a guy get it going, you’re going to ride the hot hand, especially when you’ve got to win when your season is on the line.”
Immediately at the beginning of overtime, the Princeton transfer went on an unconscious run, canning NU’s first seven points and building a six point ‘Cats’ lead with a little over three minutes remaining.
Langborg became just the second player to tally 25-plus points for two different teams in the NCAA Tournament.
Minutes later, Langborg’s third trey of the afternoon gave the ‘Cats their first double-digit lead of the afternoon and cemented the team’s thrilling 77-65 overtime victory.
Behind a perfect 4-of-4 shooting from the field, Langborg tallied 12 overtime points and ensured the offense did not remain solely dependent on Buie. By game’s end, the guard’s 27 points on 11-of-19 shooting was both a career-high and program high for points in the NCAA Tournament.
As the ‘Cats set their sights toward defending national champions No. 1 Connecticut and a first-ever appearance in the Sweet Sixteen, Collins reflected on what it took to get the program’s current state.
“I want to enjoy this game before I start talking about that juggernaut,” Collins said. “We’ve now come to the NCAA Tournament and advanced in consecutive seasons. We’re trying to build something that is sustainable. We play with a fun style (and) we win. All of these things matter so much to me because there’s been so much work by so many people over 11 years to get to this point.”
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