Hoosiers defeat Wildcats 71-66

The IU men’s basketball team squeaked out a 71-66 victory against Northwestern on Wednesday night at Assembly Hall.

The Hoosiers were led by freshman forward Cody Zeller, who had 23 points and seven rebounds.

Northwestern senior forward John Shurna scored from everywhere on the floor and led all scorers with 29 points.

IU went the entire first half without a 3-pointer and finished the game with just two on 15 percent shooting from beyond the arc. While IU still shot 49 percent from the floor, Northwestern outshot the Hoosiers with 49 percent (27-of-55) to keep it close.

In his first game in two weeks, IU senior guard Verdell Jones filled the stat sheet. Coming in off the bench, Jones had six points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals.

The performance came on a night in which junior guard Jordan Hulls failed to score for the second time in his IU career.