The Wildcats wrapped up the month of November in seemingly the only way they could: an ugly slugfest that went down to the wire. Northwestern (5-2) fell to Oklahoma State (7-0) on Thanksgiving night, 86-81.

Nick Martinelli provided most of the offense for the 'Cats at the United Center. The senior forward posted a 28-point, 10-rebound double-double on an efficient 12-of-16 shooting. Excluding Martinelli, the rest of the 'Cats combined to shoot just 16-of-41 from the field.

As a team, Northwestern was 3-of-19 from deep.

Oklahoma State guard Jaylen Curry scored 18 points to lead the Cowboys, while Vyctorius Miller had 17. Anthony Roy made three crucial triples late on the way to 16 points.

The Wildcats were slow out of the gate, and rebounding was once again the story. Oklahoma State grabbed three boards off the offensive glass in the first four minutes, using second-chance opportunities to take an early lead.

Arrinten Page nearly single-handedly kept Northwestern in the game by drawing contact and knocking down shots from the foul line. The big man's success at the charity stripe kept the Wildcats within striking distance, despite the offense's struggles.

Thanks to accurate free-throw shooting and improved defensive play, Northwestern eventually took the lead late in the first half. A spinning floater from Martinelli put the 'Cats ahead, 40-39, going into the break.

The 'Cats used a 6-1 run to extend their lead out of halftime, but a quick 8-0 surge by the Cowboys put them back in front. Another long scoring run in response regained the lead for Northwestern as both teams racked up fouls.

Oklahoma State then got hot at the right time. After a 2-of-20 start from downtown, the Pokes connected on four consecutive three-pointers — three from Roy — as part of a 16-4 run that gave OSU a 70-62 lead.

Angelo Ciaravino made several big-time shots down the stretch to get the deficit down to two, and Martinelli used his physicality on an and-one putback to make it 80-79 with 34.2 seconds left. Following a pair of free throws from Oklahoma State, Jayden Reid air-balled a side-step three that would've tied the game, and the Cowboys were able to put the game away.

Northwestern will open Big Ten play next Wednesday in Madison, when the Wildcats take on Wisconsin.

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