'Cats Top La Salle in Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament Semifinals, 82-74

11/18/2017 3:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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Lindsey and McIntosh combined for 41 points

UNCASVILLE, Conn. --- Seniors Bryant McIntosh and Scottie Lindsey combined for 41 points to lead Northwestern over La Salle, 82-74, in the semifinals of the 2017 Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament Saturday afternoon.

Northwestern (3-1) will meet Texas Tech tomorrow in the championship game at 4:30 p.m. CT. The action will be televised on ESPN2.

McIntosh scored a team-high 21 points with a 5-of-6 mark behind arc, while Lindsey dropped 20 points to go along with six rebounds. Aaron Falzon made his season debut after missing the majority of the 2016-17 campaign due to injury to score 11 points on a trio of 3-pointers and pair of free throws.

La Salle suffered its first setback of the season to fall to 3-1 on the campaign. B.J. Johnson led the way for the Explorers with a game-high 22 points.

Northwestern shot 56.0-percent from the field on 32-of-57 shooting, including 57.0-percent (12-of-21) from 3-point territory.

McIntosh had a hand each of the Wildcats' first 11 points of the game as he hit a pair of 3-pointers while assisting on a triple by Scottie Lindsey and a layup by Gavin Skelly.

The contest was knotted at 13 just over eight minutes into the contest when Northwestern took control. An 8-1 run put the 'Cats up by seven, 21-14, with 9:38 remaining before halftime.

The advantage was 23-18 with eight minutes remaining, but the Wildcats closed the opening stanza on a 23-6 run to take a convincing 46-24 advantage into halftime.

NU rode strong shooting from behind the arc in opening up the comfortable cushion. The Wildcats connected on six of their 10 3-point attempts over the opening 20 minutes of play with McIntosh (11 first-half points) leading the way by knocking down each of his three triple tries.

Falzon also hit a 3-pointer while contributing five first-half points. Lindsey and Dererk Pardon chipped in with eight points apiece while Vic Law had a solid all-around half with 6 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

Northwestern shot a blistering 62.1 percent (18-29) from the field while holding the Explorers to 31.3 percent shooting (10-32) in the opening half.

The lead grew to 26 before a 12-point La Salle run got the Explorers within 14 with 16 minutes remaining. Falzon ended the opposing surge by knocking down his second 3-pointer of the game.

The Explorers, who connected on 10 of their first 12 field goal attempts to open the second stanza, crept to within eight, 59-51, but Lindsey's third trey pushed the lead back to double digits.

Johnson, who hit each of his first six field goal attempts of the half, led La Salle's charge back as it got within seven, but a 3-pointer by McIntosh and a dunk by Pardon extended the lead back to 12.

Northwestern eventually pushed the advantage to 20 with 3:15 remaining before La Salle used a 12-point run to close the game to make the final score more respectable.

Northwestern Notes vs. La Salle – Nov. 18, 2017
• Northwestern will play for the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament title against Texas Tech on Sunday. The Wildcats are seeking their first in-season tournament crown since winning the 2013 South Padre Island Invitational.
• Northwestern earned its first win against La Salle in four meetings.
• After sitting out all but three games last season and the first three games of this season, redshirt sophomore forward Aaron Falzon played in his first game of the season for Northwestern. Falzon came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers and score 11 points.
• Senior guard Bryant McIntosh dished out 7 assists Saturday, raising his career total to a nation-leading 577. McIntosh moved past Purdue's Brian Walker, Penn State's Dan Earl, Michigan's Rumeal Robinson and Iowa's Andre Woolridge on Saturday into 16^th place on the Big Ten career assist list.
• With 21 points in the contest, McIntosh increased his career scoring total to 1,419, moving him past Shon Morris into 12^th place on Northwestern's all-time scoring list. He is 99 points behind Tre Demps for 11^th place.
• McIntosh (21) and Scottie Lindsey (20) gave NU multiple 20-point scorers for the second consecutive game. On Wednesday against Creighton, Vic Law scored 30 points while McIntosh tallied 24. It is the 21^st 20-point game of McIntosh's career and the seventh for Lindsey.
• Northwestern shot a season-best 56.1 percent from the field. It is the team's highest mark since shooting 60.0 percent against Rutgers March 9, 2017.
• Bryant McIntosh's 5-of-6 effort from 3-point range ranks as a tie for the fifth-best single-game effort in school history with a minimum of five attempts. Vic Law went 5-of-6 from behind the arch twice last season at Butler and at Nebraska.
• McIntosh's five triples match a career high. He also hit five 3-pointers vs. Columbia Nov. 20, 2015.
• Lindsey and La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini claim the same high school as their alma mater, Fenwick High School in Oak Park, Illinois. Additionally, redshirt first-year guard Tino Malnati's father, Rick, is the current head boy's basketball coach at Fenwick.