Almost everything went right for Northwestern through the first three quarters against No. 24 Minnesota Sunday.
With 8:09 remaining in the game, the Wildcats (7-10, 0-6 Big Ten) had built a 16-point lead, playing efficiently on offense at all three levels and seemingly on their way toward a statement victory over the Golden Gophers (17-2, 5-2 Big Ten).
Then, the wheels came off.
Minnesota outscored the ’Cats 29-13 in the final period to hand them an 87-82 loss. The defeat is NU’s third Big Ten loss in which it had a fourth-quarter lead. The other losses were against Indiana and Michigan. NU’s overall conference record dropped to 0-6.
“We got to be better than that,” coach Joe McKeown said postgame. “We played a great game. Minnesota is one of the top teams in the country and the Big Ten.”
The ’Cats dominated from beyond the arc in the first half as they knocked down 62.5% of their long-distance attempts in the contest’s opening 20 minutes. However, they failed to replicate that success in the fourth quarter, making just one of their final eight shots from the floor, as they watched their lead disappear.
Junior guard Caroline Lau entered the game shooting just 21.7% from distance but drained a duo of first-half threes to help the team amass a 44-40 lead by the break. However, her hot streak dwindled in the second half when she went 0-of-2 from range.
Junior forward Grace Sullivan followed a similar trajectory. While she led all NU scorers with 18 points, she shot 0-for-2 from the floor in the final frame.
McKeown said Minnesota was physical late in the game, which disrupted NU’s frontcourt. The ’Cats struggled to convert in the paint as their shots stopped falling from range.
“The second half of the Big Ten, if we’re going to be a factor, we have to stretch the floor,” McKeown said. “We have big kids who can score inside, and [the paint has] got really crowded.”
NU had not played a game since Jan. 8 after their contests versus No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 USC were postponed as wildfires rage in Southern California. While McKeown was disappointed by the loss, he also said playing a close game against a ranked opponent like Minnesota demonstrates his group’s ability to compete with “anybody in the country.”
“I understand moral victories, but that’s not who Northwestern is,” McKeown said. “We built a national power for a long time, (with) Big Ten championships and first-round draft picks. We got to finish games.”
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