First-Place Boilermakers Nip 'Cats, 63-52
Feb. 3, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern gave first-place Purdue all it could handle, but came up short, dropping a 63-52 decision Sunday afternoon at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Freshman Amy Jaeschke (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) and senior Nadia Bibbs (Chicago, Ill./Hillcrest) led the Wildcats with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Jaeschke also pulled down 10 rebounds, marking the third time this season she has recorded a double-double. "This was the best complete game we've played all season," head coach Beth Combs said. "But the little things come back to bite us and today it was offensive rebounds. But I'm proud of our effort. There is a reason Purdue is in first place and I thought we came out and played with a lot of heart." Purdue found the scoring column first, jumping out to an early 9-2 lead in the opening five minutes. Two minutes later, a bucket by Jaeschke pulled Northwestern to within 9-6 with 13:14 remaining and Erin Dickerson (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young) tied the game at nine with a fast-break trey from deep. The triple put an exclamation point a 7-0 Northwestern run. The Wildcats battled hard over the next three minutes and took a 14-13 advantage on a lay-in by Ellen Jaeschke (Cary, Ill./Cary-Grove/Air Force) courtesy of a sneaky no-look pass from Bibbs. Purdue answered with a 7-0 run of its own to take a 21-14 lead with six minutes left in the half. A pair of free throws by Savannah Stedman (Ortonville, Mich./Brandon) capped off a 9-2 Wildcat run. But the Boilermakers added two layups before the break to pull the halftime score to 27-23 in their favor.
The two teams continued to keep the score close until Purdue found itself with a seven-point advantage with 14:01 left to play. A three-pointer from Dickerson and a layup by Bibbs cut the difference to just a bucket with 12:36 remaining.
Every time Purdue appeared on the brink of putting the game away, Northwestern spurted to cut the margin to two possessions. Freshman Shantina Boyd (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) hit a jumper with 5:05 remaining to make it a five-point game. That was as close as the 'Cats would come, mustering only six points over the remaining five minutes, compared to Purdue's 10. Jaeschke's double-figure performance marks the fifth time in the last six games she has registered double-digits. Sophomore Jenny Eckhart (Libertyville, Ill./Carmel/Syracuse) turned in a solid performance, dishing out a game-high six assists while adding five points and four rebounds The Wildcats are next in action on Thursday, Feb. 7 when they travel to Bloomington, Ind. to face the Hoosiers in a 6 p.m. CT showdown. |
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