Nick Martinelli is a two-time Big Ten scoring leader and owns the two best scoring seasons in Northwestern history.
But he was still “super nervous” as he geared up for the Wildcats’ game against Penn State on Tuesday night at the United Center.
“That senior urgency really hit different today,” he said.
Martinelli’s time at Northwestern is nearing its end, but he and the 15th-seeded Wildcats did what they needed to do to extend it with a 76-66 win over 18th-seeded Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Martinelli had 24 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals, while junior guard Jayden Reid had 14 points and nine assists to push Northwestern into a second-round matchup against No. 10 seed Indiana at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Wildcats (14-18) upset the Hoosiers on Feb. 24 in Bloomington, Ind.
“We’ve got nothing to lose, so we’re just playing our hearts out,” freshman Tyler Kropp said. “We know we’re a high-level team, so we’re just trying to prove that and keep winning and having a good time.”
Martinelli is the leader of a young group this season, and Kropp was one of three NU freshmen to make an impact Tuesday. He stepped in to help fill the void left by 6-foot-11 forward Arrinten Page, who missed his second straight game. Northwestern announced Page had an illness before Saturday’s regular-season loss to Minnesota, and coach Chris Collins said he would be out again Wednesday.
Kropp had six points and six rebounds. Fellow freshman forward Tre Singleton had nine points. And freshman guard Jake West had eight points and five assists.
They’re gaining experience while Martinelli is getting ready to say goodbye.
“We have stud freshmen,” Martinelli said. “I thought Tre in the second half really came alive, and it was because of Jake getting them the ball in good positions. Jake has been money for us. He’s so solid. He plays like a senior, like a veteran. Those guys are going to have a great future.”
The game wasn’t a blowout the whole time against the worst team in the conference. Penn State 7-foot freshman forward Ivan Jurić scored 12 of his 22 points in the first eight minutes, and Northwestern led just 34-32 at halftime
The Nittany Lions kept it close early in the second half before the Wildcats gained separation during a stretch in which they had 17 points without Martinelli scoring. That included two 3-pointers by Justin Mullins — his first from beyond the arc since Dec. 30.
Martinelli ended the stretch with a steal and dunk to cap an 8-0 NU run for a 68-55 lead with 3 minutes, 48 seconds to play, and the Wildcats cruised from there.
Collins said the coaching staff looked at first-half film and thought the Wildcats’ hand activity and aggressiveness on defense were off. The coaches thought there were more deflections to be made.
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The Wildcats forced 10 of 17 Penn State turnovers in the second half and finished with 24 points off those turnovers.
“The way they were making passes, we felt like (if) we really dialed up our defense and our activity, we could force some more turnovers,” Collins said. “They had 10 turnovers in the second half. A lot of those were live ball, which allowed us to get out on the open floor and get the easy baskets.”
This is the first year the Big Ten Tournament has 18 teams. Last season, the first after conference expansion, only the top 15 teams made it.
The first day, which also featured No. 17 seed Maryland’s 70-60 win over No. 16 Oregon before the Northwestern-Penn State game, drew sparse crowds.
That didn’t make it less meaningful for Martinelli, whose teammates said they’re “definitely” playing to keep his season going.
“That’s a big part,” Kropp said. “I’ve never seen someone work as hard as he does, so it’s pushing me every day and it’s pushing everyone really.”
