Shooting struggles doomed the Wildcats as they fell on the road.
Riding the momentum of their first Big Ten win of the season — a hard-fought 69-63 victory over Penn State on Monday — Northwestern (8-15, 1-11 B1G) looked to build on that success Wednesday night at Mackey Arena. However, the Wildcats ran into a roadblock, falling 73-58 to Purdue (9-15, 2-11 B1G) in a tough conference battle.
Michigan transfer Taylor Williams once again made her presence felt, notching her ninth double-double of the season with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Purdue’s third-leading scorer, Rashunda Jones, was outstanding for the Boilermakers, extending her streak of 10+ point performances to four games—the longest of her career—as she recorded 14 points and 7 assists. Her counterpart, Ella Collier, dominated on the offensive end throughout the contest, finishing with 13 points.
At the start of the game, Northwestern struck first after winning the tip as Caroline Lau opened the scoring with a quick driving layup. Purdue responded immediately, with Jones adding a basket of her own. The Wildcats looked to regain momentum on the offensive end, but Caleigh Walsh missed back-to-back shots, including a three-point attempt. However, head coach Joe McKeown’s squad bounced back as Williams knocked down a jumper to give Northwestern a 4-2 lead.
After another missed shot from Walsh, continuing her rough first quarter, Purdue tied the game at 4-4. This briefly ignited a small run for the Wildcats, who built a 10-4 lead, but the Boilermakers responded swiftly. Sophie Swanson sparked Purdue’s comeback with a three-pointer, then capitalized on a Walsh turnover by converting a driving layup. Another Northwestern miscue followed as Lau lost control of the ball, leading to an easy bucket for Reagan Bass and Purdue’s first lead of the game, putting head coach Katie Gearlds’ team up 13-10.
The Boilermakers couldn’t hold their advantage for long. After McKeown made a series of substitutions, including Melanie Daley and Grace Sullivan, the Wildcats found their rhythm. Williams knocked down a free throw to trim Purdue’s lead to 13-11, setting the stage for a strong finish to the quarter. Sullivan followed with back-to-back jumpers to push Northwestern ahead, while Daley added a mid-range shot of her own. Sullivan then capped off the Wildcats’ late surge with another bucket, giving Northwestern a 19-15 edge heading into the second quarter.
At the start of the second quarter, Swanson misfired on an early attempt but quickly found her rhythm, converting an easy basket. After Lana McCarthy added a free throw, the Boilermakers regained the lead in what was shaping up to be a back-and-forth battle. Jones continued her strong start, giving Purdue the advantage at the 7:45 mark. However, Northwestern responded emphatically, as Lau drilled a three-pointer off a feed from Casey Harter, followed by another basket from Williams to add to her growing point total.
Northwestern’s lead was short-lived, as Kendall Puryear continued her solid start to the night, followed by McKenna Layden making her first impact of the game with a three-pointer that put Purdue ahead 28-26. That shot ignited a big Boilermakers run to close the quarter. After Collier capitalized on an and-one opportunity off a foul from Lau — the foul was Lau’s second, and she was forced to the bench because of it —Destini Lombard extended Purdue’s surge by converting a Jones turnover into points.
The Wildcats fought to slow Gearlds’s squad, with Harter knocking down a jumper and Williams adding a free throw to keep Northwestern within striking distance. In the closing seconds, Harter had a chance to beat the buzzer with a driving layup in the paint but couldn’t get it to fall, sending the Wildcats into halftime trailing 35-31.
The Wildcats struggled right out of the gates in the third quarter. Williams missed the first shot of the second half, followed by a missed attempt from Jones. Walsh managed to grab the offensive rebound but continued her sluggish night, misfiring once again. Purdue took advantage, as Bass converted on the other end for a basket. Moments later, a careless turnover from Harter led to a Collier layup in transition, extending the Boilermakers’ lead to 39-31.
As the Wildcats struggled to find their rhythm in the second half, McKeown’s squad appeared out of sync. Following yet another missed shot from Walsh—dropping her to a dismal 0-for-8 on the night—Collier drilled a three-pointer, extending Purdue’s lead to 43-31 and marking the game’s first double-digit advantage.
Just as McCarthy stretched Purdue’s lead to 45-31 at the 6:23 mark, Walsh, after what felt like an eternity of misfires, finally saw a shot drop — courtesy of a crisp dish from Sullivan. It was a moment of relief for the New Jersey native, but there was little time to savor it, as McKeown promptly sent her to the bench in favor of Williams.
Purdue maintained its stranglehold on the third quarter as Lombardi drilled a three off a crisp assist from Jones. But McKeown’s squad responded, with Williams knocking down a jumper to momentarily halt the Boilermakers’ surge. The Michigan transfer continued to be one of the Wildcats’ few bright spots, turning defense into offense by converting two fast-break points off a steal. Near the one-minute mark, Sullivan trimmed the deficit back to single digits, sinking a jumper off a sharp feed from Lau. However, Purdue wasted no time countering, as Collier buried a shot to push the Boilermakers’ lead to 50-39 heading into the final frame.
After a lackluster start to the fourth quarter from both teams, Walsh shook off her early-game rust, knocking down a shot off a feed from Harter. Moments later, the New Jersey native buried a three-pointer to trim Purdue’s lead to 50-44.
However, the Wildcats’ momentum was short-lived. Swanson continued her stellar night off the bench, draining her second three-pointer of the evening. A few plays later, she delivered a brilliant bounce pass to McCarthy in the post, setting up her teammate for a trip to the free-throw line. McCarthy calmly sank both shots to extend Purdue’s lead to 55-44. The double-digit advantage was short-lived, lasting less than fifteen seconds, as Sullivan responded with an easy layup. The Bucknell transfer trimmed the Boilermakers’ lead to 57-48 at the 6:46 mark, prompting McKeown to call a timeout.
Out of the timeout, the two Big Ten rivals exchanged three-pointers. Collier continued her sensational night by knocking down another triple, but Lau quickly answered with a deep three of her own to keep Northwestern within striking distance.
However, Jones sealed the victory for the Boilermakers, capping off her stellar night with an and-one after drawing a foul from Daley. Puryear followed with a jumper, extending Purdue’s control. A few plays later, Jones added the finishing touches with a pair of free throws. As McKeown’s squad attempted to play with urgency, Layden came up with a timely steal, leading to a fast-break layup from Swanson to put the game out of reach.
Despite holding a 19-15 lead after the first quarter, the Wildcats lost steam down the stretch and fell 75-60. Purdue scored 40 points in the second half on 52% shooting, while Northwestern managed just 29 points on 39% shooting in the same span.
The Wildcats will now travel to New Brunswick, New Jersey to face the Scarlet Knights on Monday night, as McKeown’s squad looks to defeat Rutgers for the second straight season.