TEMPE, Ariz. -- Playing in its fourth game in seven days across three different time zones, Northwestern fell for the first time this season Sunday, losing to the Arizona State Sun Devils in the finale of the ASU Classic, 88-75.
The loss ended Northwestern's season-opening 10-game winning streak. Before Sunday, the Wildcats had won 10 games in a row for the first time since the 1989-90 season. It was just the sixth streak of 10-or-more consecutive wins in program history.
"[The nonconference season] was awesome," said Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown. "We asked a lot of our team, especially this week with four games in seven days. That might've showed a little bit today, but no excuses.
"I think this team has really great chemistry," added McKeown. "I love the attitude and energy that we play with."
Arizona State got off to an early 12-4 lead with 14:34 remaining when Promise Amukamara sank a layup. The 'Cats chipped away and eventually cut that deficit in half with baskets from Nia Coffey and Christen Inman. Nursing a 14-10 lead, the Sun Devils put together a 17-4 run over 4:57 to take a 31-15 lead, their largest of the half with 5:25 to go.
Northwestern couldn't get into any kind of offensive rhythm in the first half. The 'Cats were unable to convert from in close as they shot 33 percent (10-of-30) in the stanza, their second-lowest mark for any half this season. The team was also plagued by 10 turnovers in the first 20 minutes after committing only nine during the entire game against Eastern Illinois Saturday. Arizona State made the visitors pay by scoring 15 points off those miscues.
Junior Maggie Lyon was the lone member of Chicago's Big Ten Team that was able to score the ball with some regularity. The Wilmette, Ill., native poured in nine points for the Wildcats on 4-of-6 shooting.
"They shot it really well in the first half and we didn't do a very good job getting into our offense," said McKeown.
The Wildcats came out of the locker room with a renewed energy. Coffey, in particular, asserted herself on the offensive end. The sophomore scored nine of NU's first 12 points and her layup with 16:20 to go off a feed from Karly Roser pulled the team to within nine points.
The furious comeback continued and Northwestern found itself down by only six points with 6:40 remaining after Coffey drained a pair of free throws. Arizona responded and built a 16-point lead once again before the 'Cats tried to claw back in with about two minutes to go.
"We made a great run in the second half and got it down to six, but we couldn't get stops when we had to. They're a really good team and this was a great experience for us as we get ready for the Big Ten," said McKeown.
A pair of 3-pointers by Lauren Douglas sandwiched around one from Christen Inman put NU down by nine points with 48 seconds left, but the deficit was simply too great to overcome.
Coffey, who finished with 22 points, five rebounds, four steals, a block and an assist, was named to the ASU Classic All-Tournament Team. She averaged 18.5 points and 4.5 steals in Northwestern's two games.
"[Coffey] is a great player and she's certainly playing that way," said McKeown. "The great thing that we've seen against UNLV and Gonzaga, too, is that other people have stepped up. Nia is going to be the target of a lot of team's defenses, so it's really going to help us to have these other weapons."
Three other Wildcats were in double figures Sunday. Lyon tallied 18 points after being held to only three against Eastern Illinois, while Douglas netted 17 off the bench. Inman had 11 points and four assists for the Wildcats against the Sun Devils.
The Wildcats will take a week-long break before opening Big Ten play on Sunday, Dec. 28 against No. 18/21 Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich. Northwestern returns to Welsh-Ryan Arena on New Year's Day to host the Wisconsin Badgers at 1 p.m.
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