A familiar feeling was setting in as Ohio State's Kelsey Mitchell stepped up to the line with less than a minute to go. Despite a combined 41 points from Nia Coffey and Christen Inman, Northwestern women's basketball was staring at a fourth consecutive loss in the Big Ten and yet another major setback to its NCAA Tournament hopes.
Mitchell calmly hit both free throws to put Ohio State up 6. For the fourth time in Big Ten play, Northwestern had blown a fourth quarter lead. In short, Northwestern’s fall from being a secure tournament-bound team at the end of December to an NIT team has been absolutely stunning.