With 2:57 left in the first quarter, senior forward Caileigh Walsh converted an and-one layup to put Northwestern up 14-11 over DePaul Wednesday night.
The Wildcats (4-3, 0-0 Big Ten) kept that lead over the Blue Demons (3-6, 0-0 Big East) for the next 37 minutes and three seconds to seal a 64-56 victory, their third straight win. Walsh scored a team-high 14 points, while junior forward Grace Sullivan added 13 points and eight rebounds.
Senior guard Melannie Daley and graduate student forward Taylor Williams each ended the night with eight points. Junior guard Caroline Lau also played an integral role, putting up four points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. Defensively, Lau added three steals and a block.
Though the ’Cats controlled the pace for most of the game, a nearly-seven minute fourth quarter scoring drought turned a likely blowout into a hard-fought win.
“It’s good for us to go through that,” NU coach Joe McKeown said. “We can teach from it and see what we learned.”
Both teams started out relatively slow offensively, with DePaul going 2-of-7 and NU going 2-of-8 from the field through over three and a half minutes of game time, leaving the score tied at 4-4 with 6:20 left in the first quarter.
Sullivan was the first to catch a rhythm, going on a personal 6-0 run with a layup and two turnaround jumpers, giving the ’Cats a 10-6 lead with 4:16 left in the first.
Walsh followed suit, tacking on eight first-quarter points and, giving NU a 21-14 lead over DePaul heading into the second frame.
The Sparta, New Jersey, native also scored her 1000th career point as a ’Cat during the game’s opening stages. She attributed her historic mark to her coaches and teammates.
“It means a lot. It’s just thanks to my teammates – they give me the ball in the right spots, where I want it, when I want it,” Walsh said. “It’s not something that you can achieve alone.”
The ’Cats came out hot to start the second quarter, taking a definitive 28-18 lead over the Blue Demons and forcing a DePaul timeout just two and a half minutes into the period. The timeout didn’t change much. NU cruised to a 37-18 lead as it went on a 9-0 run midway through the quarter.
The Blue Demons managed to stop the bleeding, going on a 6-0 run of their own, but the ’Cats finished the half on a 4-0 run to lead 41-24 at the break.
After trading baskets to start the second half, countless NU turnovers paved the way for a 10-0 DePaul run, cutting NU’s lead down to 13. However, NU and the Blue Demons quickly reverted to their previous level of play. With the fourth quarter on the horizon, the ’Cats led 58-39.
DePaul started the final period with a 12-2 run spearheaded by guard Taylor Johnson-Matthews and forward Jorie Allen. In a game where NU had led by as many as 23, the Blue Demons cut the lead down to a mere nine points. The ’Cats led 60-51 with 4:20 left in the game.
A DePaul three-pointer and layup cut it to a four-point game with 1:12 remaining.
McKeown said the team’s “scattered” fourth-quarter play is space for improvement.
“I think DePaul really got into us. Their quickness, some of their traps started to bother us. … I thought we rushed a little bit (and) turned the ball over,” McKeown said. “We’ve got to be much more poised in those situations.”
Walsh was fouled with 55 seconds remaining in the game and hit both free throws. The Blue Demons opted to play the foul game. The ’Cats made free throws when it mattered and secured victory.
However, NU shot a combined 1-8 from the field in the final quarter.
“I’m happy that we won, it’s four out of the last five, but we got a lot of work to do,” McKeown said. “We got five buckets in the fourth quarter. … We got to make some shots. We got to make some plays.”
NU will travel to Ann Arbor, Michigan, this Sunday to take on the No. 23-ranked Wolverines.
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