MINNEAPOLIS -- Northwestern knocked down a season-high 15 threes to earn its second-straight win Wednesday night, taking down Big Ten foe Minnesota inside Williams Arena, 72-66.
Five different players knocked down at least two triples in the win, led by freshman Bryant McIntosh who went 4-for-7 from behind the arc and finished with a team-high 17 points.
The Wildcats finished the night with 18 assists on 24 made field goals while shooting 46.9 percent (15-for-32) from deep. Junior Tre Demps led the 'Cats with seven, while McIntosh had six.
Sophomore Nathan Taphorn and freshman Vic Law came off the bench to score 11 and nine points respectively, each hitting a trio of three-pointers.
Both teams came out firing from behind the arch to open the contest as Northwestern hit four three-pointers and Minnesota had three over the opening six minutes of play. Freshman Scottie Lindsey had the hot hand, scoring eight quick points as the Wildcats used a 10-3 run to take a 16-13 lead.
NU eventually cooled off from the field making just one of 10 field goal attempts over an eight-minute span as the Gophers surged in front 28-21 with 6:50 remaining in the opening half.
However, the 'Cats got things going from distance again as a triple by McIntosh and then a pair by Taphorn put the visitors back in front 30-28 with a little over four minutes left in the period.
Yet another triple by McIntosh made it a 12-0 run as Northwestern started 8-of-14 from three-point range.
The teams eventually went into halftime tied 36-36 as the Wildcats finished the opening 20 minutes of play with nine three-point field goals. NU turned seven offensive rebounds into a 14-5 edge in second-chance points.
Joey King scored the first six points of the second half for Minnesota before Law led the 'Cats back. The freshman caught fire from distance, nailing three straight triples as Northwestern surged in front 47-42 with 14:35 to go.
Alex Olah's jumper off the glass and Demps' second make from beyond the arch made it a 16-0 run for the Wildcats as they went up 52-42 with 13 minutes left.
Minnesota crept back within five, but NU was able to push it back to nine with baskets by Demps and Taphorn. The lead was six when Taphorn nailed a top-of-the-key triple with 4:18 remaining to make it 63-54.
A triple by Andre Hollins on the Gophers' next possession cut the lead to six, 63-57. However, Taphorn set a screen at midcourt that gave the 'Cats a 5-on-4 advantage that led to a McIntosh triple from the corner to extend it back to nine with with 2:42 to play.
Minnesota continued to battle and went on a quick 5-0 run capped by another Hollins three, but Law came up with a huge offensive rebound with 40 ticks remaining that forced the Gophers to foul.
Similar to their win over Iowa on Sunday, the 'Cats were able to ice the game at the free throw line. NU went 6-for-8 over the final 40 seconds to close the game.
Six players finished the night in double figures for the purple and white as Demps and Olah had 11 apiece and Lindsey finished with 10.
Freshman Gavin Skelly also continued to provide key minutes off the bench, matching his season high with three blocks.
Northwestern returns to action at 2 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Penn State at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Tickets are available at NUsports.com or by calling 888-GO-PURPLE.
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