Defense helps send Northwestern to win

Northwestern held TCU to 13-of-49 shooting, as defense led the Wildcats to a 55-31 victory on Friday at South Padre Island Convention Center in South Padre Island in the South Padre Island Invitational.

Northwestern (5-0) held TCU (4-2) to 27 percent shooting from the field. The Wildcats went into the locker room with the momentum and came out of the second half flying as well.

Northwestern led 11-10 in the first before it widened the margin to 14 points with a 19-6 run that ended with 16:56 in the game. Jared Swopshire gave the Wildcats a boost, thanks to 15 points. Northwestern had trouble finding its touch, shooting just 38 percent (18-of-47) from the field. Other Northwestern scorers in double figures included Reggie Hearn and Drew Crawford, who each scored 12.

Devonta Abron contributed 12 points and shot 5-of-8 from the field for the Horned Frogs in the loss. The Wildcats never trailed in the game. Northwestern's largest lead was 25, which came with 6:25 to go. The Wildcats won the free throw battle, shooting 93 percent (13-of-14) from the charity stripe, compared to 42 percent (5-of-12) for TCU.

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HALFTIME: There were no free points for TCU, as Northwestern clamped down defensively to hold the Horned Frogs to 27 percent shooting in the first half and has a 24-14 lead going into the break. The Wildcats didn't trail once in the first half and they also led by as many as 12 points. Leading 11-10, Northwestern went on an 11-0 run to open up a 12-point advantage.

The Wildcats have been able to keep TCU's leading scorer, Jarvis Ray, under control thus far. With zero points, the junior will need a strong second half to get to his usual level of production (10.2 points per game). The Horned Frogs' Devonta Abron had a big first half, with six points. Jared Swopshire is putting together a nice game so far for Northwestern. The senior has 10 points.