Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Mississippi Valley State (at SunClassic)
Wildcats Tipped by Mississippi Valley State, 49-47
12/28/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec 28, 2003
EL PASO, Texas - Willie Neal rebounded Attarruis Norwood's jumper and put it in with 00.4 left on the clock to give Mississippi Valley State a stunning 49-47 victory over Northwestern in the consolation game of the Sierra Providence SunClassic Tournament on Sunday night.
Neal scored only six points in the game, but four of those came in the final 1:23. He also led Mississippi Valley State (6-4) with a game-high 10 rebounds.
Down 47-45, the Delta Devils got two free throws from Neal with 1:23 left to tie the score.
Northwestern (5-6) had a chance to take the lead with 50 seconds left, but Evan Seacat (season-high 14 points) missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Wildcats had taken their 47-45 lead on two Seacat free throws but failed to score in the last 3:19 of the game.
Following Seacat's miss, MVSU missed a three-point attempt with 20 seconds left, but Neal tied up Vedran Vukusic after Vukusic snared the rebound to force a jump ball which went to the Delta Devils. That set the stage for the final play.
Norwood led the Delta Devils in scoring with 17 points. Edward Mack added 15 points.
Jitim Young led Northwestern with 18 points and added eight boards in earning all-tournament honors. Vukusic scored nine points and had nine rebounds; however, T.J. Parker and Mohamed Hachad each went scoreless against Mississippi Valley State's active 2-3 zone defense.
Northwestern outrebounded Mississippi Valley State 36-22, but shot just 6-of-26 from three-point land and committed 18 turnovers.
The Wildcats led 29-22 at the half, but the Delta Devils got back into the game with a 10-0 run, paced by two Norwood 3-pointers, to turn a 40-33 deficit into a 43-40 lead with 6:41 left in the game.
Northwestern is off until the Big Ten opener, which occurs a week from Wednesday at Michigan.
