Saturday, January 18
Champaign, Ill.
4 P.M.
Northwestern
6-11,1-6Big Ten
71
at
75
#24 Illinois
13-5,5-2Big Ten
1
2
F
Northwestern
34
37
71
Illinois
38
37
75
Northwestern Falls to No. 24 Illinois in Close Contest, 75-71
1/18/2020 6:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Northwestern dropped a tight contest in Champaign on Saturday evening, falling to No. 24 Illinois, 75-71.
The past four matchups between the two teams had been decided by an average of four points, and this game was no different as Chicago's Big Ten Team only lost by four points.
It was a balanced scoring effort for the Wildcats, with four players in double-figures. First-year Robbie Beran led all scorers with a career-high 17 points to go along with five boards. Miller Kopp continued his offensive tear, dropping 16 points marking his 13th game this season with 10+ points, which leads all Northwestern scorers.
Pat Spencer added 14 points and dished out a team high five assists. Spencer scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half. Ryan Young also put up 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting, the 11th game this season in which he has finished with a field goal percentage of at least 50%.
First-year Jared Jones put in quality minutes off the bench, scoring two points and corralling a career-high three boards in just seven minutes.
The Wildcats' offense was very efficient in the first half, hitting 46.4% of their shots from the floor on 13-of-28 shooting.
The game came down to the wire with Northwestern only trailing by two with only seven seconds after a triple from Kopp. After a near steal by A.J. Turner off the inbound, the 'Cats were forced to foul and send Illinois to the charity stripe where they were able to seal the game.
The #B1GCats will return to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 21 against currently ranked No. 17 Maryland at 7 p.m CT.
••••••
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!
The past four matchups between the two teams had been decided by an average of four points, and this game was no different as Chicago's Big Ten Team only lost by four points.
It was a balanced scoring effort for the Wildcats, with four players in double-figures. First-year Robbie Beran led all scorers with a career-high 17 points to go along with five boards. Miller Kopp continued his offensive tear, dropping 16 points marking his 13th game this season with 10+ points, which leads all Northwestern scorers.
Pat Spencer added 14 points and dished out a team high five assists. Spencer scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half. Ryan Young also put up 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting, the 11th game this season in which he has finished with a field goal percentage of at least 50%.
First-year Jared Jones put in quality minutes off the bench, scoring two points and corralling a career-high three boards in just seven minutes.
The Wildcats' offense was very efficient in the first half, hitting 46.4% of their shots from the floor on 13-of-28 shooting.
The game came down to the wire with Northwestern only trailing by two with only seven seconds after a triple from Kopp. After a near steal by A.J. Turner off the inbound, the 'Cats were forced to foul and send Illinois to the charity stripe where they were able to seal the game.
The #B1GCats will return to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 21 against currently ranked No. 17 Maryland at 7 p.m CT.
••••••
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
NU
Illini
FG%
.450
.500
3FG%
.421
.375
FT%
.750
.800
RB
30
32
TO
5
8
STL
3
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
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