Northwestern was over-matched on the road tonight against a 10-2 Washington team that had the offensive fire-power to handle a slumping Wildcat team. UW beat the 'Cats 94-73 on a night where 16 Northwestern turnovers drastically impacted the outcome.

Avery Howell led the way for Washington with 23 points and five rebounds. Elle Ladine matched her point total and tacked on five boards of her own. For Northwestern, Grace Sullivan had a typical Sullivan night, finishing with 30 points and eight rebounds -- she has just been so consistent for this year's team. Xamiya Walton was also impressive with 12 points.

On the glass, the Wildcats held their own, trailing the Huskies by a 39-30 margin that got worse in garbage time. They also shot the ball at a 50% clip, but it wasn't enough to overcome the turnover problems.

Northwestern's bigs provided the offense early. Sullivan, making her return to the lineup after missing the previous game vs. GW, had four early points. So did Tayla Thomas. Late in the first quarter, though, the 'Cats trailed 22-12 before Casey Harter caught fire. She had seven points towards the end of the first, and the 'Cats trailed 24-18 at the buzzer.

The Wildcats had a serious turnover issue early in the game, something that's been a pattern for this team this season and in recent previous campaigns. Northwestern had a whopping eight turnovers in the first frame, and that was truly the difference. Both teams shot 50%, and NU held the rebounding advantage, but Washington was able to capitalize on Wildcat errors for eight points.

In the second quarter, the game got further away from Northwestern. Sullivan continued to get easy buckets, tallying eight points in the frame, but nobody else was matching her production. On the UW side, Avery Howell scored nine points, and the Huskies widened their lead to 46-33 at the break.

Towards the end, Caroline Lau went down with an apparent lower-body injury, making matters worse for the Wildcats. Turnover issues also continued to persist, as the 'Cats went into the locker room with 11 on their ledger.

To Northwestern's credit, it continued to battle into the second half. Sullivan never stops doing her thing in the post, and the Wildcats were only outscored 25-24 in the third quarter. Lau also returned, which allowed Northwestern to continue running its typical offense. The turnover issues were quelled to some extent, but the damage was already done.

At the end of the day, it wasn't enough. Washington simply shot the ball too well, especially from deep where it finished with a 44% mark. In the fourth quarter, the Huskies widened the lead once again, and the Wildcats fell to under .500 for the first time this season.

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