Cats fall short in first test of season

ROSEMONT, Ill.-Northwestern faced its first real test of the season against No. 22 Creighton on Wednesday night at Allstate Arena.

And while the Wildcats fell short, 92-88, and weren’t happy with their defensive effort, they still rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to take a couple leads in the second half before finally bowing down the stretch of a game that wasn’t short on thrills.

“We're a hard team to guard, they're a hard team to guard,” said Creighton coach Greg McDermott matter-of-factly. “That's why it was such an entertaining game to watch.”

Yes, it was. Not bad for a November non-conference matchup for the Gavitt Games.

Vic Law and Bryant McIntosh carried the load for the Wildcats, scoring 54 points as Scottie Lindsey battled foul trouble and scored just 10. McIntosh wound up with 24 points and a game-high nine assists, while Law scored 23 of his game-high 30 points in the second half.

Creighton, which looked on the verge of running away with the game in the first half, got 24 points from Khyri Thomas and 17 from Martin Krampelj.

Here are our three pointers on a loss that drops Northwestern’s record to 2-1:

Creighton blitzed NU in the first half: Northwestern was fortunate to be down just eight points after the Blue Jays scored 51 points on 56 percent shooting in the first half. Marcus Foster is Creighton’s leading scorer, but he scored just six points over 20 minutes and was a non-factor. Freshman Ty-Shon Alexander was the real assassin, scoring 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.

The Blue Jays got layups and easy shots whenever they wanted, blowing past Northwestern defenders and scoring 28 points in the paint, even without big man Toby Hegner who suffered an apparent high ankle sprain early in the game and didn’t return. NU head coach Chris Collins blamed the defensive lapses on communication problems on switches, which were magnified by Creighton’s frenetic pace. McIntosh kept NU in the game with 14 points and five assists in the opening half. Scottie Lindsey played just 10 minutes while ringing up three fouls.

“The story was really the first half,” said Collins, “our inability to defend them.”

Vic Law took over early in the second half: It didn’t take long for Northwestern to get back in the game, however, and they have Law largely to thank for it. The junior wing scored 12 points in the first 3:33 of the half to turn Northwestern’s 51-43 halftime deficit into a 59-57 lead. After a layup by Gavin Skelly, who finished with 14 points and six rebounds, and a jumper by McIntosh, Law went on a personal scoring spree.

He drained a 3-pointer after a block by Dererk Pardon, and then hit an acrobatic reverse layup on a baseline drive. He was fouled on another triple and hit the free throw, and then hit yet another 3 from the wing to give the Wildcats a 59-57 lead with 16:27 left. So in 2:05, Law scored 12 straight NU point on three 3s, a layup and a free throw that completed a four-point play. “You have to pick your poison,” said McDermott after the game. He put Thomas, his best defender on Lindsey, but then had to switch him to Law once he heated up. “We can’t guard everybody.”

The numbers told the story: Collins looked over the stat sheet after the game and listed numbers that would normally lead to a victory. After averaging 16 turnovers in their first two games, the Wildcats had just six against Creighton, against 16 assists. They shot 47.8 percent for the game (32 of 67) and held the dangerous Foster to 3-for-11 shooting – though he did hit two big 3s down the stretch. But then Collins looked at some statistics that paint a picture of defeat: Creighton outscored Northwestern 48-26 in the paint and the Blue Jays’ bench outscored the Wildcats’ depleted reserves 33-4. That bench scoring disparity will soon be remedied by the return of Aaron Falzon, who should be back in action soon and will probably start at the 4, as well as Rapolas Ivanauskas. Barret Benson had 3 points off the bench, while freshman Anthony Gaines tallied just 1, along with four rebounds and four assists.

With Lindsey and Pardon on the bench with four fouls each for stretches of the second half, Collins felt compelled to play McIntosh 40 minutes and Law 39. Those heavy minutes may have come back to bite them in the end. “I pride myself in my defense and I gave up the last eight points of the game,” saw Law. He did an impressive job on Foster most of the night, but the star guard shook free for a pair of 3s late, and Martin Krampelj scored off of an offensive rebound he corralled over Law.