Rebounding problems sink Northwestern basketball in tough loss to Virginia

It was a rough finish for the ‘Cats in a game where they had the lead late Friday night.

After Jayden Reid converted an and-one layup with eight minutes left to push the lead to 66-63, Northwestern made only one more field goal. The offense stalled, the pace slowed and the scoring dried up. NU ended with 78 points but managed only 12 in the final eight minutes, nine of which came at the free throw line.

Advertisement

Rebounding told the real story. The concerns were already there at DePaul when the ‘Cats were outrebounded by nine and gave up 16 offensive boards. Facing Virginia only magnified the problem. The Cavaliers entered ranked ninth in the country with 46 rebounds per game and fourth with 15.3 offensive rebounds. They also held the second-best offensive rebounding rate in the nation at 46.4%. Northwestern, by comparison, came in at 188th in total rebounds with 35 per game and 194th in offensive rebounds with nine.

Those worries became reality as Virginia outrebounded Northwestern 49 to 25 and grabbed an absurd 21 offensive boards. Six Cavaliers had at least two offensive rebounds, led by Thijs De Ridder with five. Northwestern as a whole had only six. Arrinten Page led NU with six rebounds, but 25 total for a game is far too few for a team trying to win at this level.

De Ridder, the 22-year-old first-year who played four seasons of professional basketball before entering the college game, dominated with 26 points and eight rebounds. He was everywhere and had a clear physical edge over the ‘Cats. Johann Grunloh, a 20-year-old first-year with two years of pro experience, also imposed his size. He finished with seven rebounds, three on the offensive end, along with two blocks. The 7’0 center entered the night leading the country in blocks per game at 4.3 and showed why, including a huge rejection on Page when he tried to tie the game from three.

Most teams Northwestern faces will not be as overpowering on the glass as Virginia’s front line, but matchups like…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/rebounding-problems-sink-northwestern-basketball-153352775.html

Author :

Publish date : 2025-11-22 15:33:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.