PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- The Wildcats wrapped up their 2023-24 regular season with a win on Sunday as they took down the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 72-61 on the road. Boosted by 8-15 shooting from deep, Northwestern locked up a season sweep over Rutgers.
The Wildcats (9-20, 4-14) had three players score in double figures, led by Caileigh Walsh, who had 22 points and six rebounds. Melannie Daley added 20 points and four assists and Caroline Lau chipped in as well with 16 points, five assists and two steals.
Northwestern utilized great ball movement in Sunday's game, piling up 20 assists on 29 made field goals. Individually, Paige Mott was on top of the distribution list for the Wildcats with five assists, which tied her career high.
On the defensive end, Northwestern forced 13 Rutgers turnovers. The Wildcats turned those takeaways into 15 points on the other end of the floor. Lau's two steals led the way for Northwestern.
How It Happened
After Rutgers scored the game's first points, Northwestern responded with an 11-0 run, culminating in a three from Lau, to take an 11-2 lead. The Wildcats maintained that lead throughout the period, entering the first break with a 22-13 advantage. Northwestern relied on its three-point shooting in the first, knocking down four shots to account for 12 of its 22 points.
Northwestern kept its first quarter lead intact before going on a 6-0 run starting at the 5:45 mark in the second period, highlighted by another three from Lau, to increase its lead to 32-21. The Scarlet Knights cut into that lead, but the Wildcats still enjoyed a 36-28 advantage heading into halftime.
The 'Cats came out of the break ready, running off another 6-0 run early in the third to expand their lead to 48-35 halfway through the quarter. Before the third period was over, the Wildcats added two points to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 59-44 edge. Northwestern played well near the basket, scoring 12 of its 23 third-quarter points in the paint.
In the final quarter, the Scarlet Knights managed to narrow the margin, but the Wildcats still cruised the rest of the way to a 72-61 win.
Game Notes
» The Wildcats made over half of their attempts from three point range, knocking down eight of 15 shots. That 53.3 three-point percentage ties for their second best single-game mark this season.
» Caroline Lau went a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc for the second time this season. It is the 13th time in program history that a Wildcat has shot 100 percent on four or more three-point attempts.
» The Wildcats held the Scarlet Knights to only 37 percent shooting from the field.
» The Wildcats never trailed after taking a 22-13 first quarter lead.
» Northwestern tallied 20 total assists in the game.
» Caileigh Walsh, Melannie Daley, and Caroline Lau combined to account for 81 percent of the Wildcats points.
» The Northwestern defense forced 13 turnovers.
» The Wildcats were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording seven blocks as a team, including a career-high five from Paige Mott alone.
» Caileigh Walsh had a game-high 22 points and Melannie Daley added 20. It is the second time this season that both Daley and Walsh hit the 20-point mark in the same game, with the first being their first meeting with Rutgers on Dec. 30.
» Northwestern got a team-high six rebounds from Caileigh Walsh.
This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.