Northwestern Completes 72-68 Comeback at Indiana, Snatches Fourth Big Ten Win

After playing the tragic role in college basketball earlier this season — leading at halftime only to collapse down the stretch — Northwestern flipped the script Tuesday night and proved itself an elite.

Despite trailing by double digits multiple times, Northwestern (12-16, 4-13 B1G) erased the deficit and completed a stunning comeback, beating Indiana (17-11, 8-9 B1G) 72-68 at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The victory marked the Wildcats' sixth win over the Hoosiers in the last four years and provided a critical confidence boost as the season winds down before the Big Ten Tournament.

In a battle against Lamar Wilkerson, the Big Ten's second-leading scorer, Nick Martinelli won the duel with 28 points and five rebounds. Jake West followed with 16 points, including three triples. Arrinten Page contributed 10 points, six rebounds, and four assists off the bench. Tre Singleton posted seven points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.

Wilkerson led the Hoosiers with 18 points (14 from the first half) and made four three-pointers (all made in the first half). Tayton Conerway and Sam Alexis added 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Both teams traded three-pointers to open the battle. Wilkerson buried a triple before Singleton responded with one of his own. Indiana remained hot with Nick Dorn's five-point play, giving the Hoosiers an early 8-7 lead.

Angelo Ciaravino earned Northwestern its first lead with a cutting layup. But Wilkerson caught fire early, drilling back-to-back triples. Arrinten Page powered through a fadeaway jumper on a right-side post-up, but Wilkerson remained unfazed, troubling Northwestern with five consecutive points. After Martinelli's offensive foul, Tucker DeVries blasted another triple. The Hoosiers surged on a 10-1 run, leading 23-13.

West stepped up with a pull-up three, but the 'Cats continued struggling to contain Indiana's firepower after Jasai Miles' three-pointer. Martinelli hit a turnaround jumper on the wing before the second media timeout.

Coming back, the Hoosiers established another double-digit lead on Conerway's and-one drive. West beat the pressure and splashed a stepback three—his second of the game. Ciaravino's driving layup trimmed the deficit to single digits, but Dorn delivered another blow with a corner three — Indiana's eighth triple — pushing the lead back to 12.

Singleton hit a Penny Hardaway-esque stepback jumper from the charity stripe, and Martinelli followed with a transition bucket to make it a nine-point game. Alexis knocked down a hook shot to maintain Indiana's double-digit cushion. Northwestern continued pushing, and after Ciaravino and Singleton combined for four points, the 'Cats trailed 33-42 at halftime.

Martinelli sparked the second half with four straight points, cutting the deficit to seven. After Page missed a jumper, Martinelli grabbed the offensive rebound and powered through for another hook shot. Northwestern trailed just 41-44.

DeVries hit a corner three to staunch the bleeding for Indiana. After a timeout, Conerway knocked down another. Angelo Reid dove deep and found West cutting to the post, but Conerway ripped through Northwestern's defence with a driving layup for a nine-point advantage.

Reid connected with Martinelli on a pick-and-roll. West followed with his third three-pointer to cut it to four. Alexis powered inside for a strong bucket. Ciaravino airballed a pull-up jumper. Page grinded on the left post and drew a foul on a tough drive against Alexis, nailing both free throws. After a clean steal, Ciaravino converted the fastbreak with a windmill drive. Northwestern trailed 52-56 with nearly eight minutes remaining.

However, the 'Cats, with no fouls in the first 11 minutes of the half, committed three straight fouls, sending DeVries to the free-throw line twice. Martinelli rattled in a stepback jumper from the post. Page ignited with a huge three-pointer. One-point game with six minutes to go.

Both teams' shots bricked for a minute through chaotic, back-and-forth possessions. Martinelli stepped up when the 'Cats needed him most, knocking down a contested jumper for Northwestern's first lead since early in the first half.

After intercepting an Indiana high pass, Page took over in transition and found Martinelli at the right corner for another massive three. Following an inbounds play, the possession that was fought by Singleton in a 50-50 rebound battle, Martinelli splashed two consecutive contested jumpers, giving Northwestern a 67-63 lead with 48 seconds remaining.

In another late-game situation, Northwestern trembled momentarily as Martinelli lost possession under a double team after Conerway's driving layup. Alexis drew a foul on a second-chance dunk attempt but missed one of two free throws. A subsequent loose-ball foul on Indiana sent West to the free-throw line, where he nailed both in crunch time.

Conerway rallied with a dunk from the weakside. On an inbounds play from the backcourt, West drew another foul and hit both free throws. As DeVries' final shot airballed, Northwestern completed the comeback victory in Bloomington, Ind.