Northwestern drains 3s, ends 3-game skid

EVANSTON – Drew Crawford hopes an ugly trend of losing close games changed Thursday night.

John Shurna scored 28 points and Crawford added 21 to lead Northwestern to an 84-74 win against Nebraska.

Northwestern (13-8 overall, 3-6 Big Ten) dominated the game behind the arc, making 14 three-pointers to end a three-game losing streak.

After Brandon Richardson’s steal and layup cut Northwestern’s lead to 54-53 with 10:36 left, Northwestern responded with nine unanswered points on three consecutive threes by Crawford, Shurna and Reggie Hearn.

Northwestern finally closed out a game after losing three of its Big Ten games by a combined five points, including a two-point home loss to Purdue on Saturday.

“It felt really good to get this win, especially considering that we had some tough games this season [when] we weren’t able to close out the game. I think it was real important for us to show ourselves that we can finish games like this and come out with a victory,” said Crawford.

It appeared Northwestern had control of the game with under three minutes to play and a 75-66 lead, but Dylan Talley hit a three-pointer and Spencer made another to get the Cornhuskers within 75-72 with 1:34 left. Shurna answered with a driving layup and Dave Sobolewski made three free throws in the final minute to secure the win.

“I think that really showed that we were able to handle adversity, because in basketball it’s always a game of runs,” said Crawford. “They were knocking down shots and we were able to stay composed and get through it and continue to run our offense and play tough defense that got us back in the game.”

Bo Spencer led Nebraska (11-10, 3-7) with 24 points and Toney McCray finished with 16.

“We didn’t defend nobody,” said Nebraska coach Doc Sadler. “We did not guard the ball screens correctly, and give them credit, they attacked it.”