Jan. 30, 2005

Box Score

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Behind 17-point performances by Katie Gearlds and Erin Lawless, the Purdue women's basketball team held on to beat the Northwestern Wildcats 68-65 Sunday at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill.

A last-second three-point attempt by Melissa Culver that would have tied the game bounced off the front of the rim.

The win puts Purdue at 12-8 overall and 5-4 in conference play. Northwestern drops to 5-17 and 2-7.

"We want to finish strong in the conference race," said assistant coach Jannon Roland after the game.

The Boilermakers have now won the last 14 in a row in the series with the Wildcats and lead the overall series 33-17.

Purdue jumped out to an early 13-4 lead on 6-of-7 shooting. Northwestern quickly came back within three points, and the back-and-forth first half ended in a 29-29 tie.

There were 10 ties and 10 lead changes in the game.

Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton turned in a strong defensive performance, with three blocks and two steals. With 13 points, she was one of three Boilermakers in double figures.

Roland credited Northwestern with a strong performance.

"They are a physical team, and late in the game we had to go to a zone defense," she said.

The zone kept Northwestern's shooters from getting off a good shot in the final seconds.

"They can really shoot the ball, and we didn't want to let them get a good look," Roland said.

Purdue faces Illinois at Mackey Arena Thursday. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

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