Northwestern nearly runs out of gas in win over Loyola (Md.)
Dating back to last season, the Northwestern basketball team has been basking in some positive firsts.
In 2016-17, the Wildcats won 24 games for the first time in school history.
They played in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.
Tipping off Friday night at its new temporary home - Allstate Arena - No. 19 NU was nationally ranked for the first time to open a season.
Unlike seasons past, when they were far from feared, the Wildcats are now a dangerous program under fifth-year coach Chris Collins.
Opposing teams are going to be motivated to beat NU, as Loyola (Md.) showed in the first game of the season.
Sprinting out to a 22-9 lead in the first half and leading by 17 (41-24) less than a minute into the second half, the Wildcats looked like they were going to waltz to their first win.
Instead, they had to hang on for a 79-75 decision over the Greyhounds.
"It's frustrating," senior guard Bryant McIntosh said. "We're up 17 and we never finished it. To their credit, they hit some shots and that's what basketball is, a game of runs. But we didn't have a lot of emotion. We looked lifeless and it starts with me. That's something we're going to have to change."
Senior forward Scottie Lindsey, who led all scorers with 26 points, agreed with McIntosh.
"Frustrating," Lindsey said. "It's something we have to work on, keeping our foot on the gas pedal and finishing teams off."
Loyola pulled in front 66-65 with 4:18 to play on an Isaiah Hart jumper, but Northwestern took the lead for good when Lindsey answered with a 3-pointer.
"We feel very fortunate to win the game," Wildcats coach Chris Collins said. "We had lot of game pressure on us. Give Loyola a lot of credit. Every time we had them kind of on the breaking point, they just kept fighting. They kept clawing their way back into the game. A team like Loyola, they get a lot of confidence, they get life and now the game becomes very tight."
While Welsh-Ryan Arena undergoes a $110 million renovation back in Evanston, NU is playing its home games at Allstate Arena this season.
A crowd of 6,013 turned out for the opener.
Collins admitted there is going to be an adjustment period early in the season, but the Wildcats weren't making excuses.
"It felt really good playing out here," Lindsey said. "I'm looking forward to playing here the rest of the year."