Field Level Media
Jan 3, 2018
Palmer's big second half leads Nebraska to 70-55 comeback win over Northwestern
Glynn Watson Jr. scored 19 points to go with six rebounds and six assists, as Nebraska knocked off Northwestern 70-55 Tuesday night at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill..
James Palmer Jr. added 18 points, including 15 in the second half, and Isaac Copeland had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Cornhuskers, who snapped a four-game losing streak against the Wildcats.
Nebraska (11-5, 2-1 Big Ten) shot 59.3 after halftime while holding Northwestern to 29.2 percent from the field. The Cornhuskers outscored the Wildcats 34-22 in the paint despite losing the rebounding battle 42-36.
Palmer shot 6-of-7 from the field in the second half while the rest of the Cornhuskers shot 50 percent, outscoring the Wildcats 45-25 after halftime.
Northwestern (10-6, 1-2) got 17 points and 15 rebounds from Dererk Pardon, who grabbed a career-high 11 offensive rebounds, but played without starting point guard Byrant McIntosh, who strained his knee in Saturday's 95-73 win over Brown.
Jordan Ash started in place of the injured McIntosh, who averages 13.3 points per game and a team-best 5.5 assists per game, but was ineffective, finishing with just two points and one assist in 28 minutes.
The Wildcats led 30-25 at halftime thanks to 10-2 run to close the first half. Aaron Falzon hit a 3-pointer with 43 seconds remaining, and Scottie Lindsey followed by hitting his first 3-pointer of the game with five seconds left, giving the Wildcats their largest lead of the half.
Lindsey finished with 12 points and a team-high four assists, but shot just 4-of-14 from the field. Falzon added 11 points while shooting 3-of-5 from 3-point range, but fouled out with 2:48 remaining.
Nebraska turned up its defensive intensity in the second half, and Northwestern looked out of sync offensively without McIntosh. The Wildcats shot 3-of-17 to start the second half and could not shake the slump, shooting 26.9 percent for the half.
Both teams struggled with foul trouble and entered the bonus with 8:35 remaining. Free throws helped Nebraska seal it down the stretch, as the Cornhuskers finished 15-of-17 from the foul line while Northwestern made 11-of-16 attempts.
--Field Level Media