HAMMOND, Ind. - Purdue Northwest used a decisive second-half surge and a major edge from beyond the arc to hand Parkside an 82-61 setback Saturday afternoon at John Friend Court.
Parkside dropped its second straight and moved to 8-7 overall and 3-5 in GLIAC play. Purdue Northwest improved to 7-8 overall and 3-5 in the league.
The Rangers trailed by just five at the break, 33-28, but the Pride opened the second half with a run that stretched the margin into double figures and never allowed Parkside to fully recover. Purdue Northwest outscored Parkside 49-33 after halftime while shooting 62% from the field in the second half (16 of 26). The Pride finished the day at 54% shooting (29 of 54) and hit 46% from 3-point range (10 of 22), compared to Parkside's 42% overall (20 of 48) and 25% from deep (4 of 16).
Early on, Parkside briefly had the upper hand with a 10-3 start, highlighted by a 3 from Josiah Palmer and another triple from Braden McGlothlin. The Rangers also generated transition chances, finishing with 10 fast-break points, but Purdue Northwest settled in quickly behind its interior attack and perimeter shooting.
The Pride tied the game at 19 with 7:30 left in the first half and then grabbed the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Kwat Abdelkarim to go up 22-21 with 6:51 remaining. Abdelkarim added another 3 later in the half as Purdue Northwest closed the opening period on top by five.
Purdue Northwest then delivered the turning point in the opening minutes of the second half. After two free throws by Kyle Ross made it 35-28, the Pride pushed the lead to 10 on a 3 by Aaiden Ashton at 19:47 and continued to stack stops and scores to create separation. Ross and Kevin Taylor scored in the paint as the lead swelled, and Purdue Northwest hit another 3 from Ahlante Askew to make it 45-30 with 17:58 left. The run continued into a 21-point advantage at 59-38 with 12:16 remaining, the largest lead of the night.
Even with the game tilting, Parkside kept attacking the rim and getting to the line, finishing 17 of 24 at the stripe. The Rangers scored 26 points in the paint and 10 second-chance points, but Purdue Northwest countered with 34 points in the paint and 44 bench points. The Pride also won the points-off-turnovers battle 15-11 and finished with 16 assists on 29 made field goals.
Paxton Warden led Parkside with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and added four rebounds and two assists. Fawaz Surakat scored eight points on 3-of-5 shooting and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Luka Mateski finished with eight points and five rebounds, while Jack Rose added six points in 22 minutes. Parkside received 22 bench points, led by Matas Castillo with six points and three assists, and Rose with six.
For Purdue Northwest, Ross and Abdelkarim each scored 17. Ross added seven rebounds, while Abdelkarim hit 5 of 7 from 3-point range. Davontae Hall scored 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting, Trevon Stoutermire added nine points and four rebounds, and Taylor chipped in eight points, six rebounds and five assists.
Parkside will return home for a non-conference matchup against Division III Edgewood at 3 p.m. CT on Monday, Jan. 19.
To follow the Rangers all year long, be sure to visit parksiderangers.com/coverage.
