Radford uses early 17-0 run to stun Northwestern 67-56

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Carlik Jones scored 20 points, Travis Fields, Jr. added 15 and Radford used a 17-0 first-half run to stun Northwestern and then defeat the cold-shooting Wildcats 67-56 on Tuesday night.
The Highlanders (2-2) shot 41.8% from the floor and outrebounded Northwestern 36-30 in the second meeting ever between two teams. The Wildcats shot just 33%.
Pete Nance led Northwestern (1-2) with 16 points and Miller Kopp had 13, but the Wildcats offense went dormant too long after coming out strong. Northwestern put together an 11-0 run of its own late in the game and narrowed Radford’s advantage to 58-50 before late free throws by Jones and Fields sealed it.
Northwestern looked sharp in pulling ahead 12-4 just under four minutes in. Then Radford took charge with its 17-0 spurt en route to building a 31-17 halftime advantage.
The Highlanders managed the lead well in the second half until the very end. Jones’ third 3-pointer of the game, 8:41 into the second, gave Radford a 21-point lead.
But this one was decided early.
Jones hit consecutive 3-pointers midway through the first half to give Radford a 14-12 lead and spark its momentum. But the Highlanders’ run resulted from a balanced attack, tight defense and 23.1 percent Northwestern shooting in the first half.
The Highlanders’ 44.4 percent shooting in the opening 20 minutes was more than enough against the frustrated Wildcats.
Northwestern missed 13 straight field-goal attempts during stretch of over 12 minutes before Kopp connected on a 3-pointer with 3:25 remaining in the half.
BIG PICTURE
Radford: The Highlanders got an impressive win against a Big Ten foe as they look for a third straight 20-plus win season under coach Mike Jones, who’s in his ninth year at the Big South school. Radford was 22-11 last season and 23-13 in 2017-18.
Northwestern: The Wildcats have four more nonconference games to shore up their shooting and build poise before opening their Big Ten schedule on Dec. 8 at Purdue
UP NEXT
Radford plays at Bradley on Friday night.
Northwestern hosts Norfolk State on Friday night.
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