Nov. 18, 2009
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EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern junior point guard Michael Thompson scored a game-high 16 points and sophomore John Shurna added 14 but No. 11/10 Butler made four of its first six 3-point attempts in the second half to pull away and win 67-54 Wednesday at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
The loss snapped a 13-game home winning streak against nonconference opponents for Northwestern (1-1).
Thompson sparked the Wildcats' offense in the first half by connecting on his first three 3-point shots in the opening nine minutes of the game. Kyle Rowley followed Thompson's lead, scoring four straight points on two free throws and a jump hook to pull Northwestern even at 15 at the 10-minute mark.
Shortly after, however, the Bulldogs (2-0) managed to go on a 10-2 run capped by a Zach Hahn 3-pointer that lifted Butler's lead to 27-19. Northwestern did not go away, using a trey by Shurna to cut the deficit to three and eventually went into halftime trailing 30-24.
Butler used its hot shooting coming out of the locker room to score 14 of the game's next 16 points and build a 44-26 cushion with 14 minutes to go in the game. Shurna and Rowley ended NU's drought by converting back-to-back buckets in the paint, where both teams scored 24 points on the night.
Following a breakaway dunk by Butler's Willie Veasley that gave the Bulldogs an 18-point lead, Northwestern rattled off an 11-1 run to pull within 11 points with 3:45 remaining. Shurna scored off a backdoor cut before Thompson capped off the spurt with an old-fashioned 3-point play on a layup under the basket, making the score 58-47.
That was as close as Northwestern could get, however, as Butler's 54 percent shooting from the field in the second half and nine total 3-pointers on the game proved too much to overcome.
NU freshman guard Alex Marcotullio chipped in eight points for the Wildcats -- all in the second half -- and hit a pair of 3-pointers in the loss. Shurna pulled down a team-best nine rebounds to go along with his 14 points.
Northwestern continues its three-game homestand when it hosts Tennessee State on Sunday. Tip time is slated for 1 p.m.