The ‘Cats remain in search for their first Big Ten win.
The winless conference season continues.
Northwestern (7-14, 0-10 B1G) fell 73-60 against Illinois (18-5, 8-4 B1G) in Champaign.
The ‘Cats showed some fight after trailing by 20 at halftime, outscoring the Illini 35-28 in the second half. However, but the deficit proved to be too large for Northwestern.
Caileigh Walsh led the way for Northwestern with 17 points, and Melannie Daley contributed 15 points and seven rebounds. The team shot 40.3% from the field and only 9.1% from three. There was also a big free throw differential as a result of Northwestern’s foul trouble — Illinois got 28 attempts compared to Northwestern’s 14.
For the Illini, Genesis Bryant, Kendall Bostic and Berry Wallace each had double figures with 20, 15 and 14 respectively. Illinois’ balanced offensive effort proved too much for the ‘Cats to handle.
After NU won the jump, both teams struggled offensively until Adalia McKenzie knocked down a midrange jumper for Illinois. Walsh quickly responded with one of her own. Free throws from McKenzie and Taylor Williams followed before Bostic drained a corner jumper. Five minutes in, the ’Cats remained within striking distance, trailing 8-5.
Out of the stoppage, Wallace and Bryant nailed deep threes, leading to a quick timeout. Daley stemmed the tide with a floater, but Brynn Shoup-Hill made a layup on the other end. Grace Sullivan swished a step-back jumper, only for Bryant to stay hot with another deep three. Sullivan responded once again with a midrange jumper. Mercy Ademusayo converted a hook, but NU trailed by a score of 25-13 after the first frame.
To open the second quarter, McKenzie found Bostic for a cutting layup, and Jasmine Brown-Hagger drilled a jumper. Caroline Lau briefly halted the run with a layup, but Brown-Hagger answered with a three-pointer. Both teams then struggled to score until Wallace extended the Illini lead to 34-17. It was shaping up to be a long night for Northwestern.
Out of the timeout, the teams traded buckets, with Daley hitting two jumpers and Bostic adding a midrange shot. The Illini held their ground, with Wallace converting a layup. After more scores from Bostic and Daley, Illinois closed the half with a Wallace three-pointer. The Illini led 45-25 after a dominant first half.
There weren’t many bright spots for Northwestern in the opening half, but Daley was one of them, contributing 10 of the team’s 25 points and staying active offensively. The ’Cats struggled from beyond the arc, failing to hit a three-pointer and committing seven turnovers.
Bostic led the Illini with 14 points, with Wallace adding 10, and Bryant contributing eight, including two three-pointers. Illinois shot an impressive 63% from the field and 50% from three. To have any chance in the second half, the ’Cats needed to lock in defensively and keep the game within reach.
Following the halftime stoppage, both teams struggled with turnovers and fouls before each side hit a few free throws. Walsh finally broke the field goal drought with a layup.
After a quick timeout, Walsh sank two free throws and followed with a hook shot, trimming the lead to 15. Illinois’ Hayven Smith halted the run with two free throws of her own, but Williams responded immediately with an and-one. Bryant then slithered through the lane, pushing the lead back to 52-35.
Casey Harter knocked down two free throws and almost hit a three that rattled in and out, trimming the lead to 12. Undeterred, she quickly followed with a layup, and Walsh added a hook shot to keep the pressure on. However, Bryant halted the run with a deep three-pointer. The teams exchanged baskets, and Lau flipped in a floater on a fast break, cutting Illinois’ lead to 15 after three quarters.
Williams opened the fourth quarter with a driving layup, and Brown-Hagger committed an offensive foul, giving the ‘Cats a promising start to the frame. Back-to-back buckets from Brown-Hagger and Wallace pushed the Illini’s lead to 17. Northwestern then went cold, enduring a five-minute scoring drought and fell behind by 18 with 4:47 remaining.
Coming out of the timeout, Daley and Williams each drove to the basket for layups, with a Brown-Hagger free throw in between. Daley then stole the inbounds pass and converted an and-one, cutting the lead to 66-54. After a free throw from Bryant, Williams made one of her own. The ‘Cats then capitalized on a steal, with Walsh draining their first three of the game.
Following a missed three from Bryant, Illinois grabbed the offensive rebound, and Bryant made two free throws to extend the lead back to 11. She then sealed the game with a layup, giving Illinois a 13-point victory.
The ’Cats will return home Sunday to face Penn State at 1 p.m. CST, with the game streaming on B1G+.