Northwestern Rallies Past Virginia 69-60 in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

12/1/2016 10:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Post-Game Notes Post-Game Interviews Highlights Gameday Sights

EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern staged a massive comeback in the second half to erase an 18-point deficit and defeat Virginia 69-60 Wednesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

The Wildcats went on a 19-0 run over the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarters to build a lead they would not relinquish.

Nia Coffey was a big part of that run, scoring 12 in a row at one point as part of her game-high 29, the 55th consecutive time she has scored in double figures. Coffey also added 14 rebounds for her 44th career double-double and chipped in four assists, three steals and two blocks.

Christen Inman (12) and Ashley Deary (11) joined Coffey in double figures, with Deary adding seven assists and five steals from her point guard position.

Northwestern shot 57 percent from the field in the second half and 51 percent overall for the game and made 73 percent of its free throws in the come-from-behind win. All 16 made free throws came in the final 20 minutes.

The Wildcats came out on fire from the opening tip, shooting 62 percent in the first quarter. The 'Cats led 18-17 after the first quarter with good starts from both teams. Virginia pushed the pace in the second quarter and went into halftime with 39-26 lead.

Northwestern turned the game around in the third, outscoring Virginia 23-10. The 'Cats battled back to a 10-point, 49-39 deficit before Lydia Rohde kicked off a 19-0 run with her second three-pointer of the game.

Coffey took over the game at that point and dominated the Cavaliers inside with her own 12-0 run to give Northwestern a 55-49 lead with just over seven minutes left to play in the game. Virginia closed the gap to four points and then freshman Abi Scheid scored four straight points to help close things out.

By the time the Wildcats secured their 69-60 victory, Coffey had almost outscored the entire Virginia team in the second half.

The Northwestern defense did not allow a Virginia field goal from the 4:17 mark in the third quarter until 2:17 left in the game, a stretch of 12 minutes. The 'Cats also limited the Cavaliers to just 20 percent shooting in the second half.

Chicago's Big Ten Team is back in action on Sunday when it welcomes Chicago State to Welsh-Ryan Arena for a 1 p.m. tip-off for Autism Awareness Day.