Holy. Bleeping. Bleep.
It was retro night in Welsh-Ryan Arena, and the Wildcats put on their best rendition of Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing.”
In a back-and-forth game that featured 15 lead changes and 16 ties, the instant classic came down to the final shot of overtime as Nick Martinelli sunk a heroic buzzer-beater to breathe life back into Northwestern’s faltering season and snap a three-game skid.
Northwestern (11-6, 2-4 B1G) out-dueled Maryland (13-5, 3-4 B1G) in NU’s first win on a buzzer-beater since the famous Dererk Pardon layup to beat Michigan in March 2017.
The man of the hour was Martinelli, who not only hit the game-winner but led the way for the Wildcats with 22 points. Brooks Barnhizer reignited his double-double streak with a 20-point, 10-rebound, performance and Ty Berry got back on track, adding 15 points in a game where the Wildcats needed each one.
For Maryland, Julian Reese’s 23 points led all scorers, including 13 makes at the free throw line. Despite getting outshout on free throws, Northwestern’s offense responded in a major way after two disappointing performances, shooting 48% from the field to Maryland’s 38%.
With a new look starting lineup as Angelo Ciaravino replaced Berry, Northwestern looked to avoid its recent trend of slow starts. The teams traded baskets in the opening possessions including a Ciaravino dish that led to an easy Nicholson make and a Martinelli floater.
After a few minutes of sloppy play, Selton Miguel evened things up at four, but the tie didn’t last long as Martinelli hit another floater. Maryland responded with a Ja’Kobi Gillespie three which was quickly topped by Barnhizer’s first bucket of the evening, giving Northwestern an 8-7 lead at the game’s first stoppage.
Berry checked in off the bench after the break and immediately made his presence felt on the defensive end, helping force a shot-clock violation on a Terrapin airball. But after a Tafara Gapare three, it took a twisting Martinelli floater to even the score once again.
Early on, many of the same issues that had plagued the team all season long continued to pop up: shooting struggles from deep and a deficit in the free throw department. Four Maryland free throws and an 0-of-3 mark from deep for the Wildcats allowed Maryland to surge to a 12-10 lead by the under-12 timeout.
A Derik Queen layup and steal-and-bucket (via goaltend) quickly extended the Terps’ lead to six out of the break, so Barnhizer took matters into his hands, barreling through a defender to earn a trip to the line — something Coach Collins mentioned has been an emphasis for Northwestern’s star as of late. A Martinelli to Nicholson alley-oop cut the lead back to two, but a wide-open Gapare sunk a three to regain the cushion on the scoreboard.
Needing a spark, Nicholson dove for a careening loose ball under the Maryland basket and set up a fastbreak opportunity, where Barnhizer fed Ciaravino for a beautiful basket and a foul. The freshman sunk the ensuing free attempt to tie the bout at 19, but the tie didn’t last long as Gillespie drained yet another Maryland three. Northwestern jolted the crowd’s energy thanks to a Martinelli charge, but the home team still trailed 22-19 at the media timeout.
Nicholson split a pair of free throws after the break, but Northwestern retained possession off the miss, allowing Ty Berry to break his dry spell and get on the board with a layup under the basket. Feeling some confidence, Berry stepped into a three on the very next possession to ignite the crowd and steal the lead right back. But in a half of short-lived leads, this one was the shortest as it only took a handful of seconds for a Julian Reese make to tilt things from purple back to red.
But the suddenly white-hot Berry wasn’t done there as the recently-benched fifth-year drained yet another shot from deep, looking like his pre-injury self for the first time in several games. Reese converted another layup, but NU continued to keep the pressure on with a second-chance bucket from Jalen Leach.
Tied at 30, Berry’s heat check continued, driving to the cup for a crafty make off the backboard. Three consecutive trips to the charity stripe led to six points for the Terps and kept the away team ahead on the scoreboard despite the Wildcats surpassing them in field goal percentage. But once again, the seesaw tipped the other way as K.J. Windham joined in on the fun, splashing in a three to take a 35-34 advantage.
With under 90 seconds remaining, Barnhizer’s aggressiveness in the paint was handsomely rewarded as he snagged his own miss and took a trip to the free throw line, where he split his attempts. After Northwestern forced the ninth Terrapin turnover of the first half, Berry’s NBA Jam-style fire ran out as he finally missed a three. On the other end, a Ciaravino foul on a Gapare make allowed Maryland to steal the lead once again on a three-point play. Just before the buzzer, Northwestern laid one final punch in what was a true boxing match of the first half. The Martinelli layup to close the frame marked the 11th lead change of the half (to go along with nine times when the score was tied) and put Northwestern up 38-37 at the break.
At the break, Berry’s 10 points were only topped by Julian Reese’s 12. Martinelli had eight of his own and, while he only took two shots, Barnhizer stuffed the stat sheet with five points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. Despite shooting 56% as a team, Maryland was still in the thick of it in large part to an 11-of-11 mark at the free throw line.
Out of the locker room, the seesaw continued to do its thing as Reese made his ninth and tenth free throws of the evening, sustaining Maryland’s perfection at the line. After an and-one for the Terps, Northwestern found itself in a four-point hole. But, once again, no team was able to pull away as a Leach layup, forced turnover and Martinelli bank shot evened the score in one fell swoop. Unsurprisingly, Maryland responded with a mini-run of its own to take a 46-43 lead at the media timeout.
Needing a jolt, Martinelli stepped up to the plate and buried a three-pointer to tie things up. On the very next possession, his co-star took a turn and made a tough layup to flip the score in Northwestern’s favor. With Maryland on a scoring drought of over three minutes, a Barnhizer steal and slam gave the Wildcats a 50-46 advantage, their largest lead of the night. Searching for answers, Kevin Willard called a timeout.
After a Maryland miss, Ty Berry did what Ty Berry does best: drain threes. His third make from deep extended Northwestern’s scoring run to 10 points. Even after the media timeout, Maryland couldn’t get anything going offensively as its drought pushed to five minutes. Meanwhile, the ‘Cats found their groove from beyond the arc, with Barnhizer sinking a dagger to extend the lead to 10. Finally, Rodney Rice hit a three to stop the bleeding just before the 10-minute mark of the second half.
But the story of the game remained consistent as Maryland clawed back on the back of its defense which threw cold water on the Wildcats and prevented them from running away with the game. With just over seven minutes remaining, Maryland had cut the margin back to three.
Northwestern then opted to go small, playing both Berry and Ciaravino without a true big man on the floor. Immediately, Maryland attacked the paint and earned a trip to the line, where a split finally ended the Terps’ free throw perfection. Up just two, Martinelli made a jumper and drew an offensive foul to reclaim both momentum and the ball. A pair of Martinelli free throws and a Barnhizer fadeaway jumper brought the lead back to eight with under five to go.
After a Maryland free throw, Reese made the crucial error of fouling Leach on a three-point attempt, and Northwestern’s point guard was able to bury two of three to stretch the margin to nine. Rodney Rice quickly cut the deficit back to six with a long-ball. After Martinelli couldn’t get a foul call, the Terps secured crucial offensive rebounds to eventually hit a jumper and shrink the margin to four. Barnhizer did his best effort to keep the opposition at bay, hitting a tough jumper in the lane, but two Rice free throws kept the lead at four. A poorly timed turnover gave Maryland the chance to cut it to a one-score game, which it did on a Reese jumper.
Berry missed a potential dagger corner three but Northwestern’s defense stood tall, forcing an empty possession with under 90 seconds to go. But once again, the Wildcats couldn’t capitalize as Barnhizer couldn’t convert. Maryland called a timeout trailing 66-68 with 35 seconds remaining.
In the biggest moment, Northwestern called upon its defense. And the defense stood tall. Leach jammed the lane on Gillespie allowing Berry to corral the ball. Maryland had no choice but to foul, sending Brooks Barnhizer to the line. Stunningly, the usually-clutch Barnhizer missed the first of his one-and-one, and Gillespie glided down the court for a layup to even the score at 68 with six seconds left.
Chris Collins opted not to call a timeout, but Barnhizer’s acrobatic attempt at a game-winner rimmed out, sending the game to overtime. A hobbled Barnhizer spent a few extra counts on the hardwood as the teams prepared for an extra five minutes.
Maryland won the opening tip of overtime and immediately retook the lead for the first time since early in the second half. A loose ball scrum ended in a Maryland foul that sent Berry to the line, where he calmly drained both free throws to stay on pace. But Julian Reese continued to plow through defenders and earn chances at the charity stripe. His 21st and 22nd points gave Maryland a 72-70 advantage.
With Barnhizer settling for an unsuccessful corner three, Northwestern caught a break on a 10-second violation that returned the ball to the home team. In the waning seconds of the shot clock, Martinelli heaved up a patented floater to knot what was quickly morphing into an instant classic.
Leach collected a strong rebound off a Miguel missed three, but Berry was rejected under the basket on the other end. Another Maryland miss gave Northwestern a chance to snag a lead with under a minute, but Martinelli lost the handle setting up a transition opportunity for the Terps. But Berry rushed back on defense to force a miss without fouling, keeping the score at 72 apiece. Chris Collins called timeout with 30 ticks on the clock.
With the ball in his hands, Barnhizer drove right and shook off his defender for an easy lay-in at the cup. Willard responded with a timeout with 13 seconds left and a Welsh-Ryan crowd ready to burst with nervous energy.
Trailing by two, the ball ended up in the hands of Gillespie, who got to his left and converted a strong finish at the cup, tying the game for the 16th time.
But 6.9 seconds remained on the clock. And Chris Collins had the chance to draw up his best play.
Inbounding it under the far basket, Berry got the ball but coughed it up. But the refs ruled Maryland had touched the ball last before it scattered out of bounds and awarded the ball back to the ‘Cats with 0.7 seconds on the clock.
With a chance to win, Leach tossed the ball into Martinelli, who faded away from the right side and heaved up a toss as the clock hit zero. The Welsh-Ryan crowd watched as Martinelli’s teardrop perfectly fell into the bucket, hitting nothing but net. His teammates immediately mobbed him under the basket as Northwestern secured a much-needed 76-74 win.
Northwestern will look to build on the positive momentum as they travel to Ann Arbor on Sunday afternoon to take on No. 20 Michigan in another crucial Quad-1 matchup.