EVANSTON-Northwestern avoided a catastrophic season opener with an 72-61 win over Binghamton.

Preseason All-American Boo Buie led all scorers with 27 points, Brooks Barnhizer chipped in 18 points and 13 rebounds, and the Wildcats rediscovered their defensive intensity to erase an 11-point deficit in the first half and defend their home court.

It was an even-handed assault from Binghamton as four different players scored more than 10, but none cracked 15. The high scorer for the Bearcats was Tymu Chenery, who fouled out with 13.

Here are our takeaways from Northwestern's nerve-wracking season debut:

Intensity increased in the second half: The Wildcats looked adrift in the first half, falling behind 11 at one point and going into the break down three, before they locked in and ran away with it late.

The key to Northwestern's defensive renaissance has been turnovers, and after losing the battle eight to six in the first half, they turned up the heat and won 13 to 4 in the second half.

After a 39-point first half, the Bearcats were held to just 22 in the final 20 minutes. The Wildcats recaptured the defensive integrity that powered their postseason push last season, and it led them to yet another win.

Head coach Chris Collins broke down what clicked at after the halfway mark.

"First and foremost, we got back in transition," he said. "They really had us on our heels. They were getting the ball out fast, and we were getting cross-matched in transition...

"I thought we slowed them down [in the second half]. I thought we got better at our gap help, we weren't as spread out on dribble penetration."

Collins said that by slowing Binghamton down, they were able to get more to their preferred pace. They got into their sets and were able to get the looks they wanted offensively, and take the wind out of the Bearcats' sails on defense.

Thanks to the change of pace, the Wildcats outscored Binghamton 36-22 in the second half.

Guard play is the name of the game: The Wildcats are overflowing with guards this season. They start four of them and bring another two off the bench, making six of their nine-man rotation ball handlers.

There were three players of interest on minutes alone: Ty Berry, Justin Mullins and Jordan Clayton.

Berry got into early foul trouble and finished with just 18 minutes, highly uncharacteristic for a player who has lasting trust from Collins and was third on the team in minutes last season. Collins chalked this up to Berry never gelling with the game and signaled this would be a season low, or close to it, should Berry stay healthy and avoid similar foul issues.

"Ty got out of sorts with foul trouble early," he said. "We never could kind of get him in a rhythm. He's a guy that we expect, [along with Buie, Barnhizer and Langborg], we want those four guys to be the focus of what we're doing."

Mullins, an athletic transfer from Denver, was the first man off the bench but finished with just eight minutes. Collins explained the sharp change was due to his read on the game and that Mullins could expect a bigger role going forward.

"He's an athlete," Collins said. "He's a wing and a young player. He and Jordan are two guys that we're counting on, absolutley."

Clayton played 17 minutes, including a crucial stretch in the final minutes where Buie picked up his third and fourth fouls, and finished the game with zero turnovers.

"Tonight, I thought Jordan's defense was solid," Collins said. "He was guarding the ball and keeping it in front of him, he was playing tough. He wasn't turning the ball over and I thought we needed him on the floor. Again, Ty's going to have many nights where he plays a lot more than 18 minutes."

Barnhizer crashed the glass, struggled with shot creation: Barnhizer's line leaps off the page with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Barnhizer didn't address the media after the game, but Buie was there to sing his praises.

"Brooks is a walking mismatch at the point forward position," Buie said. "If you put someone on him too small, he'll take you to the post and abuse you. If you put someone on him that's too big, he can shift and get downhill."

Barnhizer struggled to find his shooting touch and finished 4-for-14 from the floor, but he made up for it with perfect 10-for-10 free-throw shooting.

Buie said Barnhizer's progression has been exciting to watch come to fruition.

"He's never stopped working since he stepped on campus and I'm super proud of where his career is going," Buie added. "He's definitely counted on."

Barnhizer's team-leading 13 rebounds were more than double the next most, from Matt Nicholson, who had six. Collins said that Barnhizer's performance was impressive, but explained it was a product of the team's collective focus and ideology on the boards.

"We call it a gang rebound," he said. "The whole gang has to get in there and rebound. It was great to see him have that kind of production on the glass. He's such a good player. I mean, four steals, 13 rebounds and he had some finishes where he very easily could have had 25 points."

Barnhizer has looked as advertised in the exhibition and now the season opener as the team's second scorer behind Buie. If he can find a rhythm on his jumper and execute some of those tough shots around the rim, he can elevate this team to another level offensively.

Crowd and culture made the difference: While the lower bowl was about 50% full with fans, the student sections were closer to 85% full and raucous. In a season opener against an American East team, the crowd was ready to push and motivate the Wildcats.

"Down the stretch when we started making that run, I started firing the crowd up and it got real loud in here," Buie said. "It's just awesome that they're able to come out and support us in our first game. Most people don't want to go to these games; they're expecting us to win. Without them there tonight, that game could go differently."

Collins pointed towards the team's culture that has been instilled over the past year as the difference maker.

"We would not have won if we weren't about the right things tonight," he said. "If we didn't have a strong culture of grit and toughness, we probably wouldn't have won tonight."

Collins was quick to credit the culture, but also to dispel any early comparisons to last season's team in press conferences or conversations with his team.

"I'll talk about last year when we have reunions," he said. "When we bring them back in 10 years and I'm an old man, and we come out on the floor and hug, and hopefully we can see a banner up.

"I haven't talked about that one time with this group. It's all about this group, we know we have to get better. We're integrating a whole new team with all new roles. Every team is different."

All of that brought Collins' focus to the next opponent, Dayton, and back to the crowd he'll need to support his team.

"I'm encouraging our students, our fans, we need you Friday night," he said. "I know how Dayton rolls, they're going to try and bring the red into our building... It starts with our students to make sure this is an electric atmosphere."