With Ohio State hunting for a ticket to March Madness and Northwestern at risk of missing out on the Big Ten Tournament, the latter travelled to Columbus, Ohio in hopes of snapping a three-game losing streak.
Stacked up against a Buckeye (15-12, 7-9 Big Ten) starting five that averages 19.5 more points per game than the Wildcats’ (14-13, 5-11 Big Ten) limited production in a world without senior guard Brooks Barnhizer and graduate student guard Jalen Leach, NU faced a steep challenge.
But as freshman guard K.J. Windham drilled a 3-pointer to extend what had been a seven-point NU lead at intermission to 20 with 13:58 left to play, the ’Cats 70-49 victory — their first on the road in the Big Ten — seemed all but inevitable.
In a night marked by multiple extended scoring droughts for the Buckeyes, coach Chris Collins’ squad found its form, rallying around contributions from its both its seasoned veterans and emerging talent to secure the win.
The ’Cats executed on both ends, controlling the game from start to finish and dominating the paint with a 40-22 edge over the Buckeyes.
Here are three takeaways from NU’s blowout victory at Ohio State Thursday:
1. Creating first-half opportunities
Without the combined 31.4 points of what had been two of its three leading scorers, the ’Cats have leaned on defensive pressure to create scoring opportunities. By the first-half 12-minute media timeout, NU had already forced six turnovers, sparking an 8-0 run and building an early lead off Ohio State’s sloppy ball-handling.
By halftime, the Buckeyes had committed 11 turnovers, compared to just four by the ’Cats, who led 31-24. With a minute left, graduate student guard Ty Berry missed a 3-pointer that bounced off the rim and off junior guard Justin Mullins, whose layup attempt was off. Freshman guard Angelo Ciarvino followed with a miss before Mullins finally converted the put-back.
The first half was marked by relentless defensive pressure from NU, as coach Chris Collins’ group focused on controlling the controllables, with everything else falling into place.
2. Balancing the stat sheet
In NU’s first three games playing with an injury-induced shifted lineup, the ’Cats struggled to find consistent production from multiple players seeing increased minutes.
In the team’s Feb. 11 loss to Washington, Mullins stepped up with his second-straight double-digit performance. But, three days later against Oregon, he managed just two points, while freshman guard K.J. Windham had a career-high 20-point night.
Then, in Sunday’s loss to Nebraska, neither player found their rhythm, leaving graduate student guard Ty Berry and junior forward Nick Martinelli to carry the load with 23 points each.
In a first half that saw just three different Buckeyes find the basket, the ’Cats spread the wealth as seven unique players notched a bucket, with no one scoring more than six points.
Four players finished with double-digit scoring outputs for NU, with Windham’s 12 second-half points pitching in to seal the blowout. Graduate student center Matthew Nicholson recorded his fourth 10-plus point scoring night of the season.
Other contributors like Mullins and Ciaravino slowed down in the second half and sophomore guard Jordan Clayton posted his second consecutive scoreless game in just 11 minutes of game play.
3. Late game execution
In NU’s most recent loss to Nebraska, it saw what had once been a 20-point lead dissipate in the second half. It’s been a familiar woe for the ’Cats who have managed to lose lofty advantages on multiple occasions this season.
But against Ohio State Thursday, the visitors never faltered, launching a prolific second-half in which they outscored their opponents 39-25.
The Buckeyes finished the game shooting just 33% from the field.
Email: audreypachuta2027@u.northwestern.edu
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