Northwestern University Athletics

'Cats Open Welsh-Ryan Arena with 82-52 Win Over New Orleans
11/8/2018 9:33:00β―PM | Men's Basketball
EVANSTON, Ill. β Forward Vic Law etched his name in the Northwestern record books on Thursday night, becoming the 36th player in program history to record 1,000 career points. The fifth-year senior finished with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists as the Wildcats cruised to an 82-52 victory over New Orleans in the first regular season game at the new Welsh-Ryan Arena.
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Thursday's victory marked Northwestern's first win at Welsh-Ryan Arena since their dramatic 67-65 win over Michigan on March 1, 2017. The Wildcats have now won 11-straight season openers and are a perfect 6-0 in the contests under Chris Collins.
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In his first regular-season game with Northwestern, guard Ryan Taylor scored a game-high 20 points on 7-of-15 shooting while hitting a career-high six threes. His six triples are the most by an NU player in an opener since John Shurna hit seven on November 11, 2010 at Northern Illinois.
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Joining Law and Taylor in double figures was senior center Dererk Pardon, who finished with 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for his 10th-career double-double and junior A.J. Turner who finished with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists while sinking a career-high nine free throws.
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The #B1GCats started the game on an 8-0 run, forcing the Privateers to take their first timeout with 17:52 left in the first half. First-year Miller Kopp made his first-ever start and scored the opening basket in the new Welsh-Ryan Arena, marking his first-career points. Kopp finished the night with nine points, three rebounds and three assists.
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The Wildcats were hot from behind the arc early as Taylor sunk back-to-back threes midway through the first half to extend Northwestern's lead to double digits. Taylor finished the half with nine points, all coming off threes.
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Law led all players with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting (3-of-5 from behind the arc) as Northwestern entered the half with a 36-28 lead. The 'Cats buried six threes in the half, while holding New Orleans to zero three pointers on five attempts from deep.
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New Orleans cut into their deficit to begin the second half, however the Wildcats mounted a 10-0 run beginning with 10:17 remaining in the second half. The hot shooting continued for the Wildcats for the rest of the game, as they ended the game on a 32-11 run.
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Chicago's Big Ten team will be back in action on Monday night as they host American at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Buy tickets here!
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Thursday's victory marked Northwestern's first win at Welsh-Ryan Arena since their dramatic 67-65 win over Michigan on March 1, 2017. The Wildcats have now won 11-straight season openers and are a perfect 6-0 in the contests under Chris Collins.
Β
In his first regular-season game with Northwestern, guard Ryan Taylor scored a game-high 20 points on 7-of-15 shooting while hitting a career-high six threes. His six triples are the most by an NU player in an opener since John Shurna hit seven on November 11, 2010 at Northern Illinois.
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Joining Law and Taylor in double figures was senior center Dererk Pardon, who finished with 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for his 10th-career double-double and junior A.J. Turner who finished with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists while sinking a career-high nine free throws.
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The #B1GCats started the game on an 8-0 run, forcing the Privateers to take their first timeout with 17:52 left in the first half. First-year Miller Kopp made his first-ever start and scored the opening basket in the new Welsh-Ryan Arena, marking his first-career points. Kopp finished the night with nine points, three rebounds and three assists.
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The Wildcats were hot from behind the arc early as Taylor sunk back-to-back threes midway through the first half to extend Northwestern's lead to double digits. Taylor finished the half with nine points, all coming off threes.
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Law led all players with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting (3-of-5 from behind the arc) as Northwestern entered the half with a 36-28 lead. The 'Cats buried six threes in the half, while holding New Orleans to zero three pointers on five attempts from deep.
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New Orleans cut into their deficit to begin the second half, however the Wildcats mounted a 10-0 run beginning with 10:17 remaining in the second half. The hot shooting continued for the Wildcats for the rest of the game, as they ended the game on a 32-11 run.
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Chicago's Big Ten team will be back in action on Monday night as they host American at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Buy tickets here!
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Team Stats
M-474
M-509
FG%
.408
.417
3FG%
.200
.367
FT%
.455
.808
RB
32
39
TO
15
9
STL
4
7
Game Leaders
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