Morning Box Score: Shurna Sets Career High for NU
Northwestern advances in the Charleston Classic thanks to a career high 37 points from John Shurna. The Wildcats ended the first half down by nine points but outscored LSU 56-41 in the second half to gain the victory.
Coach Bruce Weber's Illini struggled in the first half with sophomore center Meyers Leonard on the bench with foul trouble. Weber benched Leonard after he picked up his second foul less than two minutes into the game. D.J. Richardson eventually picked up the slack and led Illinois with 17 points. The Illini offense moves better with Leonard in the lineup and they showed why with a 50-33 run in the final 12:13 of the game.
The Hawkeyes established control early, cruising to a 19-point halftime lead they never relinquished and dropping the Huskies to 0-3 on the season. The key stat to this game was points off turnovers. NIU allowed 28 of them. Abdel Nader led the Huskies with 18 points.
