DePaul University Athletics
DePaul University
Northwestern
Blue Demons Drop Heartbreaker to Northwestern
12/16/2017 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
CHICAGO - The Blue Demons put themselves in a position to win Saturday afternoon against Chicagoland rival Northwestern behind a career-high 33 points from Max Strus, but DePaul came up just short in a 62-60 defeat at Wintrust Arena.
Trailing by two on Northwestern's final possession, Peter Ryckbosch blocked a shot attempt by Dererk Pardon to force a shot clock violation and return the ball to the Blue Demons with 5.4 seconds left. On the game's final possession, Eli Cain's buzzer-beating layup could not get over the rim as the final horn sounded.
In addition to 33 points and three rebounds from Strus, Brandon Cyrus added seven points, six rebounds and five assists while Tre'Darius McCallum contributed six points and 11 boards. Strus was named the winner of the Waldo Fisher-Frank McGrath Award that recognizes the MVP of each DePaul-Northwestern game.
Northwestern (8-4) was led by 25 points from Scottie Lindsey that included a long three-pointer in the final moments of the game that would end up being the deciding shot for the Wildcats.
DePaul (6-5) went ahead in the first couple minutes of game action that started with a Cyrus three in the corner followed by a driving layup by Strus. With 15:40 left in the first half a media timeout stopped play on the floor with DePaul leading by a score of 11-9.
The game unfolded like a boxing match in the first 10 minutes with one team delivering a blow only to see the opponent bounce back with a strong move of their own. Trailing 16-14 with 12:30 left on the first half clock, Strus made one of his six three's to push DePaul ahead by a point. Then, over the next minute, four more unanswered Blue Demons points pushed the DePaul run to 7-0, giving the host a 21-16 advantage.
With 5:23 to go until the intermission Strus caught fire from behind the arc. After hitting his second three of the game on a deep try atop the arc, Strus came right back down the court and buried his third triple of the game, giving him a game high 13 and DePaul its' largest lead of the game at nine points.
The Wildcats closed the first half on a 7-3 spurt, pulling within five at 33-28 as the buzzer sounded.
Fresh off his hot shooting first half, Strus began the second half scoring with his fourth and fifth threes of the afternoon, pushing the DePaul lead to eight.
However, with 14 minutes left in the game, the Wildcats made their move. Eight straight points, capped by a three-pointer from Isiah Brown, catapulted Northwestern into the lead at 44-43. Then, with 7:41 to go in the game a Scottie Lindsey three made the score 51-47 Wildcats.
With their back against the wall, Strus and the Blue Demons would not go quietly. At the 5:17 mark Strus broke a 5 minute and 17 second scoreless stretch for the team on a free throw, pulling the host within three. Then, with 3:44 to go, Strus pump faked as his defender flew by and hit a huge three to send Wintrust Arena into bedlam.
A media timeout stopped play on the court with 3:11 to go and the Blue Demons trailing 55-54.
The Blue Demons pulled to within two in the final 90 seconds before Lindsey's NBA-range three gave the Wildcats a 62-57 lead with 55 seconds on the clock.
Non-conference play pulls to a close Thursday for the Blue Demons as Miami (Ohio) travels to the Wintrust Arena for an 8 p.m. tip. Television coverage can be seen on FS1 and heard in the Chicago area on WSCR 670 AM.
Postgame Notes
- The loss ended a five-game win streak for the Blue Demons... DePaul is 5-2 at Wintrust Arena.
- Brandon Cyrus' three to start the scoring for the Blue Demons extended DePaul's streak to 750 consecutive games with a three-pointer.
- Max Strus scored at least 20 points for the fourth time in the last five games... his 33 points are the most in a game by a DePaul player since Brandon Young scored 35 at Connecticut on Jan. 8, 2013... his six three's matched his career high originally set against Portland earlier this season on Nov. 26.
- DePaul has committed less turnovers than the opponent in all 11 games this season.
- Since the start of 2010-11 season DePaul is 17-5 against Chicagoland opponents... the Blue Demons went 1-1 this season.
- DePaul is 84-81 all-time against the current membership of the Big Ten Conference.
- DePaul leads the all-time series with the Wildcats 20-13... Northwestern has won three straight in the series.
