EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern coach Chris Collins loved the way his team played in the first half Saturday against DePaul.The Wildcats were efficient on offense as they raced out to a big lead.He wasnt so fond of the ending.Northwestern built a 36-point halftime lead before DePaul outscored the Wildcats 46-26 in a foul-ridden second half as reserves took the court.The ball was moving. We were sharing it. With the score, we did not play as well in the second half, Collins said. Give DePaul credit. A lot of it had to do with them. They kept fighting.Scottie Lindsey scored 19 points and Vic Law had 16 as Northwestern beat DePaul 80-64.Gavin Skelly added 15 points and Sanjay Lumpkin had 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats (6-2), who have won three straight.Derrick Wood scored 15 points and Joe Hanel and Billy Garrett Jr. added 11 apiece for DePaul, which saw its three-game winning streak end. The Blue Demons (4-2) shot just 33 percent from the field and went 2 for 20 from beyond the arc.Severe disappointment, DePaul coach Dave Leitao said. Our performance today, I have to go back a long way to be a part of a first half like that.The Wildcats had little trouble despite losing their starting center earlier in the week. Freshman Barret Benson started in place of Dererk Pardon, who is expected to be sidelined for the rest of the non-conference schedule after undergoing surgery on his non-shooting hand. Pardon, who averages 6.9 points and 7.0 rebounds, was injured Monday in a victory over Wake Forest.Benson had five points in foul trouble in his first career start.He did a great job. Dererks going to be out for a while, Collins said. Were going to need him to continue to progress in his role.Skelly also helped inside and was 5 of 7 from the field.Northwestern led 54-18 at halftime after shooting 54 percent from the field to DePauls 24 percent. Lindsey led all scorers with 16 points and was 4 of 5 from beyond the arc for the Wildcats, who led by as much as 39.The Wildcats opened the game with a 32-8 lead before Hanels layup ended a 25-2 Wildcats run.Theyre only a couple plays away from being undefeated, and they play like that, Leitao said.BIG PICTURENorthwestern continues solid non-conference play as it aims for its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament after winning a school-record 20 games last season. The Wildcats upset then-No. 22 Texas on Nov. 21, and their two losses were by a combined six points to No. 18 Butler and Notre Dame.DePaul, which went 9-22 last season, lost its first road game after edging Missouri State and Drake by two points apiece.HE SAID ITIt makes us harder to guard because we have so many different guys that can put the ball in the hoop, Lindsey said of Northwesterns balanced offense.STAT OF THE GAMENorthwestern made 19 baskets and had 18 assists in the first half.UP NEXTDePaul hosts Lamar on Tuesday.Northwestern faces New Orleans on Dec. 11. Cheap Custom Cardinals Jersey . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. Mark McGwire . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. http://www.custommlbcardinalsjersey.com/custom-harrison-bader-jersey-large-1311q.html .2 billion agreement with Rogers Communications for the leagues broadcast and multimedia rights. Giovanny Gallegos . Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. Ozzie Smith . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. CHICAGO -- Wrigley Field was dark and empty when a loud cheer reverberated throughout the neighborhood surrounding the iconic ballpark.While the Chicago Cubs decided to delay their party Thursday night, their long-downtrodden fans were ready to celebrate.Chicago wasted its first chance to clinch the National League Central title but became the first major league team this season to clinch a division crown when St. Louis?lost 6-2 at San Francisco.The Cubs lost 5-4 to the Milwaukee Brewers earlier Thursday night, but they captured their first NL Central crown since 2008 when the Giants finished off their victory over the Cardinals.Wrigley was quiet when Matt Adams made the final out on the West Coast. However, it touched off a celebration in Chicago that included honking horns and chanting in the streets.And late at night, the Cubs famous marquee lit up with a message:Led by a stellar pitching staff and MVP contenders Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, Chicago got off to a sizzling 25-6 start. After stumbling into the All-Star break, the Cubs pulled away with a 22-6 August that turned the NL Central race into a mere formality.This is just the first step, manager Joe Maddon said after the Cubs game but before the Cardinals loss. I mean, we have much larger baseball fish to fry in our skillet.The Cubs likely will enter the 2016 postseason as heavy favorites. According to the Westgate Las Vegas Superbook, they are 9-4 favorites to win the World Series.Indeed, the NL Central crown is not how this group of Cubs will be judged, not this year.After running roughshod over the rest of the majors for most of the season, Rizzo & Co.dddddddddddd are trying to end the franchises famous championship drought, going all the way back to when the Cubs beat the Tigers in the 1908 World Series.Weve got a lot ahead of us. We really do, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein said before the Cubs loss. It kind of all boils down to how you perform in October.This is the 16th time since the first World Series in 1903 that the Cubs have finished in first place in their league or division, but they are 2-for-15 when it comes to winning the World Series in those seasons and are on a run of 12 straight first-place finishes that didnt result in a World Series title.Its only the third time since 1903 that the Cubs have reached the postseason in consecutive seasons. They got in as a wild card last year and made it to the NL Championship Series before they were swept by the New York Mets.The offseason additions of Ben Zobrist and Jason Heyward only added to the anticipation for the Cubs loyal fan base, and they have delivered up until this point. But many of those same fans also were around for the last division title, when the 2008 Cubs won 97 games and then were swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division series.Theres no team Id rather be going into October with, Epstein said. But there are never favorites in October the same way there are in the regular season.Information from The Associated Press and ESPN Stats & Information was used in this report. ' ' '
