'Cats Battle DePaul Saturday in Wintrust Arena Debut

12/15/2017 3:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

By: Nick Brilowski

NORTHWESTERN BASKETBALL: GAME DAY INFORMATION
DATE	OPPONENT	TIME	LOCATION	BROADCAST	LIVE STATS
Sat., Dec. 16	DePaul	1 p.m.	Wintrust Arena; Chicago, Ill.	FS1 and FOX Sports Go	GameTracker
Radio: 720 WGN (Dave Eanet and Joey Meyer) TV: FS1 (Tim Brando and Len Elmore) Social: Twitter (@NUMensBball and @NU_SportsLIVE) \| Instagram (@numensbball) \| Facebook Game Notes: Northwestern \| DePaul

EVANSTON, Ill. — Northwestern makes its first appearance at the brand-new Wintrust Arena in Chicago Saturday when it renews its series with DePaul. Tip time is set for 1 p.m.

Fans attending the contest are greatly encouraged to familiarize themselves with the arena's strict purse and bag policy.

NU is coming off an 84-50 home victory over Valparaiso on Thursday. Vic Law scored 15 of his game-high 18 points in the first seven minutes of the contest, including hitting five 3-pointers. Combined with a 96-31 dismantling of Chicago State on Monday, the Wildcats have won their first two games this week by a combined 99 points.

The MVP of the Northwestern/DePaul contest is presented the Waldo Fisher/Frank McGrath Award. Scottie Lindsey earned the honor last year, the fourth consecutive earned by an NU player. Northwestern's Billy McKinney, Kevin Coble and Tre Demps are the only two-time recipients of the award.

Northwestern is forcing an average of 18.3 turnovers over the last six contests, including forcing 25 against Chicago State on Monday and 21 by Valparaiso on Thursday. The Wildcats have a 67-10 edge in points off turnovers the last two games and have held four of their last six opponents to 52 points or less.

While the defense has undeniably led the way in the Wildcats' resurgence, Law has sparked Northwestern on the offensive end. Over the last six contests, the redshirt junior forward is averaging 15.2 points per game while shooting 55.8 percent (29-52) from the field, 55.2 percent (16-29) from 3-point range and 94.4 percent (17-18) from the free throw line.

DePaul leads the all-time series, 20-12, though Northwestern holds a 9-7 edge since 1987. NU led 54-18 at halftime en route to a convincing 80-64 win in the last meeting Dec. 3, 2016 in Evanston. Lindsey paced the 'Cats with 19 points and a career-high 7 assists.

Scouting DePaul
The Blue Demons (6-4) are riding a five-game winning streak, most recently defeating Alabama A&M, 83-59, on Monday. Northwestern is DePaul's third Big Ten opponent this season, having been defeated 82-73 by Illinois and 73-51 by Michigan State. Max Strus leads the team with an average of 15.3 points per game, pacing four Blue Demons averaging in double figures. Eli Cain contributes 12.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists per contest.