NCAAB Game Preview - Hartford at Northwestern

Sun Dec 29, 2019 4:00 PM EST

Hunter Marks sank a 10-foot jumper with 1.4 seconds left Sunday to lead Hartford to a 67-66 upset over Northwestern at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill.

After a turnover gave the Hawks (7-7) the ball with 13.3 seconds remaining, the Wildcats gave a foul above the 3-point line with 10.1 ticks on the clock. Marks then got the ball at the top of the key, pulled up into the lane and got the bounce on a soft shot. It capped a string of six straight points by Hartford to finish the game.

Following a timeout, Northwestern (5-7) got a final crack at the win, but a 3-point attempt by Ryan Young was blocked by Marks as the final horn blared.

Malik Ellison paced Hartford with 16 points on 8-of-10 shooting, while Miroslav Stafl chipped in 15 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Marks scored 10 as the Hawks finished the day making 27 of 48 shots from the field.

Miller Kopp pumped in a game-high 24 points for the Wildcats on 9-of-15 shooting. His last two points came on a back cut for a layup that gave them a 66-61 lead with 1:55 left, but Northwestern didn't score again.

Young and Boo Buie each scored 14 for the Wildcats.

Hartford carved out a narrow lead in the first half as it shot the ball well, a 180-degree contrast from a Northwestern team that struggled to convert shots.

The Hawks took their first lead less than three minutes into the game on a transition layup by Stafl and pushed it to 16-11 at the 11:04 mark when Marks canned a foul shot. Northwestern answered back with a 13-3 run, taking a 24-19 advantage on Kopp's 3-point play with 6:41 left.

However, Hartford wound up with the final say in the half. With the score tied at 28 after Young connected on a layup with 3:05 remaining, the Hawks used a 9-3 burst to take a 37-31 lead at the break. They ended the half converting 60.9 percent from the field, as opposed to the Wildcats' 35.7 percent shooting.

--Field Level Media