Norfolk State raced out to an early 10-point lead, but Northwestern came back to top the Spartan men’s basketball team by a 70-59 score on Friday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Part of the Fort Myers Tip-Off Tournament, the game ultimately featured a 29-point swing between the first and second halves. NSU was up by 10 seven minutes into the game, but the Wildcats clawed back to go up by 12 at the break. Their lead reached as much as 19 in the second before NSU closed the game on a late run.
Senior Jermaine Bishop played a solid game for the Spartans, scoring 24 points on 7-of-12 shooting, 5-of-9 from deep, with four rebounds and four assists. He finished three points off his career high set while with Saint Louis. Junior Devante Carter finished in double figures as well for NSU with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting and a team-high six boards.
Northwestern got 19 points and 12 rebounds from Ryan Young, who shot 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Pete Nance added 17 points and six boards as well as NU improved to 2-2 on the year. NSU fell to 3-3.
The Wildcats won despite hitting just 34 percent from the floor. NSU shot 41 percent overall, but NU was 27-of-30 from the free throw line and +12 on the glass. The Spartans sank 10-of-20 from the charity stripe.
All five starters for NSU had a field goal in the early part of the game. Bishop’s second trey of the evening gave the Spartans an 18-8 edge at the 13:12 mark. But it took almost seven minutes until NSU’s next field goal, another 3-pointer from Bishop. That gave NSU its last lead of the game at 21-20.
Northwestern outscored the Spartans 29-7 over the last 12 and a half minutes of the first stanza, getting to the charity stripe again and again. The Wildcats entered halftime up 37-25 after Nance’s trey right before the buzzer. They were also 16-of-18 from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes of play.
Bishop hit three free throws early in the second half, and Carter scored 10 straight points for the Spartans during another stretch. He helped NSU get as close as 11 approximately six minutes into the second stanza. But it took until there was slightly less than seven minutes left in the game before someone else for the Spartans scored in the half besides those two.
By that point, Northwestern had opened up a 19-point edge. Down 66-47 with four minutes to go, NSU scored 12 of the game’s last 16 points to get to within 11 by the end. Freshman Yoro Sidibe scored six points during that time, part of a nine-point, five-rebound effort.
The Spartans finished with 25 personal fouls compared to 16 for NU. Northwestern outrebounded NSU 44-32, including 16-9 on the offense glass. That led to a 14-7 edge in second-chance points.
NSU will head to Monmouth to play Caldwell College and then the host Hawks next Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
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