Northwestern University Athletics
Sunday, December 11
Evanston, Ill.
6 p.m.
Northwestern
7-2
83
vs
49
New Orleans
4-4
1
2
F
New Orleans
22
27
49
Northwestern
43
40
83
Defensive Clinic Leads Northwestern Past New Orleans
12/11/2016 7:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Taphorn paces Wildcats with career-high 18 points
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern forced a season-high 21 turnovers and remained perfect at Welsh-Ryan Arena during the 2016-17 season by rolling to an 83-49 victory over New Orleans Sunday night.
Nathan Taphorn established a career high with 18 points off the bench while Scottie Lindsey scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half. Gavin Skelly (14) and Vic Law (11) also scored in double figures for NU.
The Wildcats got off to a solid start, jumping out to a 7-2 lead as Bryant McIntosh buried a 3-pointer before dishing out a pair of assists.
Northwestern was stout defensively to begin the contest, limiting the Privateers to only two field goals while forcing seven turnovers over the opening 10 minutes of the stanza.
Lindsey scored five points during an 11-2 run over a four-minute span that saw the 'Cats extend their advantage to 18-7.
The lead was 24-15 when Northwestern gave itself some breathing room with yet another 11-2 run. Skelly sparked the run by knocking down a pair of free throws prior to grabbing an offensive rebound and kicking it out to a wide-open Taphorn for a triple.
Following a New Orleans basket, Lindsey connected on three straight field goals, forcing the Privateers to burn a timeout as NU's lead grew to 37-18.
Northwestern eventually took a 43-22 advantage into the intermission behind 13 points from Lindsey, while McIntosh (5 assists) and Taphorn contributed 7 points apiece. The 'Cats limited UNO to 31.8 percent shooting over the opening 20 minutes of play while forcing 11 turnovers by the Privateers.
NU put the game away early on in the second half, out-scoring New Orleans 12-2 over the first four minutes of the stanza as the hosts stretched their lead to 31, 55-24.
The run to open the half eventually grew to 22-2 over the opening 7:30 of the period with the advantage ballooning to 41, 65-24, with just under 13 minutes remaining.
Northwestern cruised the rest of the way as it improved to 6-0 at home and 7-2 overall.
The Wildcats are back in action at home at 6 p.m. Wednesday against Chicago State. BUY TICKETS HERE!
Northwestern Notes vs. New Orleans
Dec. 11, 2016
• Nathan Taphorn recorded a career-high 18 points in the contest. His previous high of 16 came against Mississippi Valley State Dec. 14, 2014.
• Gavin Skelly recorded a career-high 9 rebounds. His previous was career high was 8 in last year's matchup against New Orleans on Nov. 28, 2015.
• Northwestern entered the game leading the Big Ten while ranking 10th nationally with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio and improved that mark by posting 19 assists with only 8 turnovers Sunday.
• Northwestern forced a season-high 21 turnovers. The previous season high was 19 by Wake Forest on Nov. 28.
• Vic Law's 8-for-8 effort from the free throw line represented the most makes without a miss by a Northwestern player this season.
• New Orleans' 49 points are a season low for a Northwestern opponent. The previous low was 58 by both Texas and Wake Forest.
• After scoring in double figures only once in his first 64 collegiate games, Gavin Skelly has recorded at least 10 points in each of his last four contests. His 14 points Sunday were one shy of his career high achieved twice this season.
• Northwestern recorded 7 blocked shots. The Wildcats came into Sunday's game ranked 12th nationally with an average of 6.5 blocks per game.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
Nathan Taphorn established a career high with 18 points off the bench while Scottie Lindsey scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half. Gavin Skelly (14) and Vic Law (11) also scored in double figures for NU.
The Wildcats got off to a solid start, jumping out to a 7-2 lead as Bryant McIntosh buried a 3-pointer before dishing out a pair of assists.
Northwestern was stout defensively to begin the contest, limiting the Privateers to only two field goals while forcing seven turnovers over the opening 10 minutes of the stanza.
Lindsey scored five points during an 11-2 run over a four-minute span that saw the 'Cats extend their advantage to 18-7.
The lead was 24-15 when Northwestern gave itself some breathing room with yet another 11-2 run. Skelly sparked the run by knocking down a pair of free throws prior to grabbing an offensive rebound and kicking it out to a wide-open Taphorn for a triple.
Following a New Orleans basket, Lindsey connected on three straight field goals, forcing the Privateers to burn a timeout as NU's lead grew to 37-18.
Northwestern eventually took a 43-22 advantage into the intermission behind 13 points from Lindsey, while McIntosh (5 assists) and Taphorn contributed 7 points apiece. The 'Cats limited UNO to 31.8 percent shooting over the opening 20 minutes of play while forcing 11 turnovers by the Privateers.
NU put the game away early on in the second half, out-scoring New Orleans 12-2 over the first four minutes of the stanza as the hosts stretched their lead to 31, 55-24.
The run to open the half eventually grew to 22-2 over the opening 7:30 of the period with the advantage ballooning to 41, 65-24, with just under 13 minutes remaining.
Northwestern cruised the rest of the way as it improved to 6-0 at home and 7-2 overall.
The Wildcats are back in action at home at 6 p.m. Wednesday against Chicago State. BUY TICKETS HERE!
Northwestern Notes vs. New Orleans
Dec. 11, 2016
• Nathan Taphorn recorded a career-high 18 points in the contest. His previous high of 16 came against Mississippi Valley State Dec. 14, 2014.
• Gavin Skelly recorded a career-high 9 rebounds. His previous was career high was 8 in last year's matchup against New Orleans on Nov. 28, 2015.
• Northwestern entered the game leading the Big Ten while ranking 10th nationally with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio and improved that mark by posting 19 assists with only 8 turnovers Sunday.
• Northwestern forced a season-high 21 turnovers. The previous season high was 19 by Wake Forest on Nov. 28.
• Vic Law's 8-for-8 effort from the free throw line represented the most makes without a miss by a Northwestern player this season.
• New Orleans' 49 points are a season low for a Northwestern opponent. The previous low was 58 by both Texas and Wake Forest.
• After scoring in double figures only once in his first 64 collegiate games, Gavin Skelly has recorded at least 10 points in each of his last four contests. His 14 points Sunday were one shy of his career high achieved twice this season.
• Northwestern recorded 7 blocked shots. The Wildcats came into Sunday's game ranked 12th nationally with an average of 6.5 blocks per game.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
Team Stats
UNO
NU
FG%
.367
.443
3FG%
.250
.360
FT%
.526
.833
RB
35
34
TO
21
8
STL
5
7
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
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