Joe McKeown and the Wildcats were unable to break their losing streak, dropping their seventh and eighth straight, respectively, as the team went westward ho for matchups against the Washington Huskies and Oregon Ducks. The ‘Cats dropped to 6-8 on the year after two losses by 20-plus points.
There’s a lot to make of the team’s collapse after a 6-0 start, and in many ways this road trip perfectly encapsulates what has become a dangerous slide with so much season left. Here’s what issues the trip brought
to light and what they mean with Big Ten play only just getting underway.
Grace Sullivan has proved herself elite — but the offensive burden is too heavy
As she has throughout conference play, Grace Sullivan delivered two all-conference performances on the trip, scoring 30 on 11-of-18 shooting at Washington and adding 23 at Oregon and averaging 57.6% from the field. Sullivan’s efficiency is enough to keep the team afloat early, but both games showed the offense around the forward isn’t enough to keep the ’Cats competitive for the long haul. Combined, NU made only nine three-pointers and gave up turnovers in clusters — 16 in Seattle and 22 in Eugene — which completely stalled any momentum the team was able to muster.
In order to support Sullivan, the Wildcats need additional scoring from another player or players to not only widen the space where she can operate, but to challenge the possession math. Right now, the team’s other top scorers are Tayla Thomas at 11.4 points per game, Casey Harter at 9.7 and Xamiya Walton at 7.5. When the second and third options can’t reliably reach double figures, Northwestern’s offense defaults to just Sullivan, leading to a much too predictable approach that opposing defenses can exploit.
The complement is simple: find more reliable scoring, and fast. Another source of production is exactly what the ’Cats need to turn Sullivan’s efficiency into teams runs, not just a lifeline when all else has failed.
Inability to defend and make three-pointers fuels Washington’s avalanche
The main reason behind Washington’s win Monday was the gap in the math battle from the perimeter. The Huskies hit 16-of-36 from deep (44%), more than the Wildcats have had over their last three games combined (15 total made threes).
Many of NU’s pushes were met by timely buckets from the Washington trio of Avery Howell, Elle Ladine and Sayvia Sellers, who nearly outscored Northwestern with a combined 65 points and 13 made threes. The margin from deep — 36 points — was the nail in the coffin that led to the Wildcats allowing a season-high 94 points.
The lesson from Seattle isn’t as much schematic as it is timing and pressure on shooters. NU has to do a better job contesting earlier in the action and not allow nearly as many clean catch-and-shoot opportunities if it continues to rely on midrange and rim attempts on the offensive end.
Possession deficit leads to a beatdown in Eugene
Oregon dictated every aspect of the game by owning the ’Cats in the possession battle. The Ducks forced 22 Northwestern turnovers and turned them into 29 points, pushed the pace with 24 fast-break points and led for 36 of the game’s 40 minutes. Northwestern’s reckless turnovers finally caught up against Oregon, leading to numerous empty trips that snowballed into the 30-plus-point margin on the scoreboard.
The Wildcats need to figure out this glaring turnover problem, and that starts with staying composed in transition. Caroline Lau does an excellent job pushing the pace — something you want from your point guard — but she tends to get too aggressive with her playmaking, leading to many missed opportunities.
Cleaning up mistakes in transition will do wonders for keeping the ’Cats within games and preventing huge, unstoppable momentum swings like we saw in the second and third quarters Thursday.
