Northwestern
9-21,4-14Big Ten
Purdue
13-17,5-13Big Ten
Northwestern Falls to Purdue in First Round of Big Ten Tournament
3/6/2024 7:33:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn -- Caileigh Walsh scored 26 points and Melannie Daley added 21, but the Northwestern women's basketball team fell to the Purdue Boilermakers 78-72 at Target Center Wednesday.
The Wildcats (9-21) had three players score in double figures, led by Walsh, who had 26 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Daley tacked on 21 points and four assists and Caroline Lau chipped in as well with 10 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.
How It Happened
While Purdue struck first, Caileigh Walsh put the 'Cats on the board 43 seconds in, converting inside to knot the score up at 2-2. After seeing Purdue open up at 14-9 edge, back-to-back Melannie Daley buckets sparked an 8-0 Wildcat run, capped off by a Walsh jumper that staked Northwestern to a 17-14 lead. Walsh connected from beyond the three-point arc to stretch the gap to four, 20-16, before a Mary Ashley Stevenson bucket trimmed the Wildcats' lead to 20-18 at the end of the first quarter.
Daley drilled a mid-range jumper three-minutes into the second frame, snapping a near five-minute scoring drought for Northwestern as she tied the game at 22-22 with 6:57 remaining in the first half. She was back in the mix again two minutes later, scoring on the break to bring the 'Cats level again, 29-29. Maggie Pina and Caroline Lau dialed in from distance in the closing minutes, drilling threes on consecutive trips as Northwestern surged into the locker room with a 39-35 lead.
Northwestern stepped on the gas coming out of the break. Baskets inside from Walsh provided the bookends to an 8-0 spurt that gave the 'Cats their largest lead of the night, 49-37, just past the midway point of the third quarter. Purdue responded with 10 of the night's next 12 points, clawing back within four, 51-47, on an Abbey Ellis jumper. A conventional three-point play from Rashunda Jones with only 25 seconds remaining trimmed Northwestern's lead to 55-52 heading to the fourth quarter.
Purdue carried momentum into the final frame, opening the quarter on an 11-1 run to charge back in front, 63-56. Walsh looked to keep the Wildcats in striking distance, converting on an old-fashioned three-point play of her own to trim the gap to four, 65-61, at the 3:50 mark. Northwestern would again close the margin to four again with just 23 seconds remaining, but would get no closer as Purdue iced the game from the charity stripe to advance on.
Game Notes
» The Wildcats held the Boilermakers to only 35.9 percent shooting from the field.
» The Wildcats put on a passing clinic, recording an assist on 72 percent of made field goals.
» Caileigh Walsh, Melannie Daley, and Caroline Lau combined to account for 79 percent of the Wildcats points.
» The Wildcats were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording seven blocks as a team.
» Northwestern cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 12 offensive boards in the game.
» Caileigh Walsh had a game-high 26 points and Melannie Daley added 21. It was the second straight game to see both players in double digits before halftime and both players over the 20-point mark at the conclusion.
» Northwestern got eight rebounds from both Caileigh Walsh and Caroline Lau.
