It feels like Northwestern plays this type of game all the time. Hang around with a better team for the first half, escape from the fringe of a blowout early in the second, make a push to get a late lead, and then blow said lead for a crushing loss.
That’s what happened to the Wildcats (3-2) on Tuesday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn in the championship of the Legends Classic. Northwestern fell 70-66 to Notre Dame (5-0) in a game in which the Wildcats held a six-point lead with just a few minutes left.
A late turnover by Nathan Taphorn and a 3-of-18 shooting performance from Bryant McIntosh were too much for Northwestern to overcome in a game that featured plenty of positives.