NU fumbles away chance at upset victory
INDIANAPOLIS -- With one chance left at knocking off Minnesota and becoming just the second No. 11 seed to win a Big Ten tournament game, Northwestern wasn't able to find its primary option.
Or second.
Or third.
Reserve Sterling Williams lost the ball on the baseline with 3.9 seconds left. After 2 Minnesota free throws, Craig Moore's half-court shot came up short, ending the Wildcats' season with a 55-52 loss in front of an announced 13,852 Thursday at Conseco Fieldhouse.
No. 6 seed Minnesota (19-12) will play No. 3 Indiana at 8 p.m. today in the final quarterfinal.
For most of the 40 minutes, it looked like it would be the Wildcats (8-22) in that game. Moore, Kevin Coble and Michael Thompson took turns carrying the offense while combining for 41 of the Wildcats' 52 points and all but 8 of their field-goal attempts.
None of them were able to get a shot off on the Wildcats' most important possession, when they were trailing 53-52 with 30 seconds left. The ball eventually landed in Williams' hands, and he drove baseline instead of finding Thompson, who was open off a back screen.
"I think Mike was wide open," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said. "Sterling decided to drive baseline, but that's what happens."
After Minnesota scored the game's first basket, Northwestern led the rest of the half, taking a 34-21 lead at the break. The Wildcats hit 11 of 17 shots and 5 of 9 3-pointers.
Minnesota switched to a zone at halftime, and Northwestern made just 6 of 22 in the second half. Thompson and Moore were the only Wildcats to score, with Moore getting their final 10 points.
"We didn't adjust as well and went away from what we were trying to do," Coble said.
After a 7-0 Minnesota run opened the second half, Thompson answered with a pair of 3-pointers for a 40-33 NU lead.
The Gophers made another spurt to tie the game at 42-42. Again, Northwestern struck back. This time it was Moore's turn, first on an off-balance 17-footer to beat the shot clock, then a 3 for a 47-42 lead.
The lead changed hands five times in the final four minutes, with Moore twice putting the Wildcats in front with 2 free throws and then a 3 from the top of the key.
But Coble's missed free throw and Williams' turnover ended the season.
"This game was typical of a lot of our games this year," Carmody said. "In the last eight, nine or 10 games, we had leads and couldn't end up with a win for different reasons. Tonight just seemed like it typified the whole season for us."