Nick Martinelli scored 22 points on 8-for-10 shooting, and Northwestern cruised to a 93-53 win over Jackson State on Saturday afternoon in Evanston, Ill.
Angelo Ciaravino added 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting for Northwestern (6-4), which snapped a three-game losing streak. Arrinten Page finished with 12 points and seven rebounds.
Daeshun Ruffin scored 20 points on 6-for-12 shooting to lead Jackson State (1-9). Dorian McMillian contributed nine points and eight rebounds.
Northwestern shot 50 percent (28 of 56) from the field and 26.9 percent (7 of 26) from beyond the arc. Jackson State shot 28.6 percent (16 of 56) overall and 24 percent (6 of 25) from deep.
The Wildcats built a 41-24 lead at the half.
Northwestern jumped to a 10-4 lead int the first six minutes. Martinelli scored six of the Wildcats’ first 10 points on a game-opening layup, two free throws and another layup off an assist from Jordan Clayton.
Ruffin tried to keep Jackson State competitive in the first half. He scored the next five points on a 3-pointer and a layup to cut the deficit to 10-9, but Northwestern never relented.
The Wildcats used a 12-0 run later in the first half to turn a 14-11 advantage into a 26-11 lead. Jake West knocked down a 3-pointer to start the run, which also included a dunk and a layup by Page.
Jackson State pulled within 10 points after Ruffin made a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 34-24 with 3:09 remaining in the first half.
Northwestern scored the final seven points of the half to grab a 17-point advantage. Tre Singleton scored four of his team’s seven points with a layup and a pair of free throws.
The Wildcats outscored Jackson State 52-29 in the second half to put the score out of reach.
Tyler Kropp made a layup for Northwestern’s final basket. It gave the Wildcats a 40-point lead, which was their largest of the game.
–Field Level Media
