Crusaders Fall to Northwestern Thursday Night
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Northwestern hit its first six 3-pointers on Thursday evening at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., as the Valparaiso University men’s basketball team found itself in an early hole en route to a 84-50 defeat.
How It Happened
–         Valpo was the team which was hot from deep early on, as sophomore Markus Golder (Portland, Ore./Clackamas [North Idaho]) and junior Joe Burton (Porter, Texas/Atascocita [Oklahoma State]) connected on 3-pointers on each of the Crusaders’ first two possessions for an early 6-2 lead.
–         Northwestern would go on a long-range barrage over the first quarter of the game, however. The Wildcats hit their first six from deep – four of which came from Vic Law – and totaled seven triples in the first 10 minutes.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Valpo was within 13-10 five minutes into the game before Northwestern went on a 14-0 run over a span of two and a half minutes to pull out to a 27-10 advantage at the 12:39 mark.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The Crusaders played the Wildcats even from there into the locker room for halftime, as Northwestern held a 43-26 lead at the break.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The Wildcats started the second half on a 19-2 run over the opening six-plus minutes to put the game away.
Inside the Game
–         Thursday’s defeat marks the first time Valpo has lost three straight regular season games since November of 2013.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Valpo hit 7-of-17 3-pointers (41.2%) on the offensive end, but was just 8-for-22 inside the arc and 13-of-23 from the foul line.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The Crusaders also committed 21 turnovers which Northwestern turned into 30 points.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Burton led the Crusaders in scoring for the third straight game, knocking down three 3-pointers in a 16-point effort.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Golder added 10 points and six rebounds, while sophomore Micah Bradford (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) chipped in nine points, four rebounds and three assists without committing a turnover.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sophomore John Kiser (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) made his first start of the season and tied for team-high honors with six rebounds.
–Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Law led all players with 18 points. Northwestern finished the night hitting 12-for-22 from behind the 3-point line against a Valpo team which entered the game among the top-10 teams nationally in defensive 3-point percentage.
Next Up
Valpo (8-3) heads to the West Coast to close out the non-conference slate, starting with a Monday night game at Santa Clara. The game is scheduled for a 9 p.m. CT tip, and links for live coverage will be available via ValpoAthletics.com.