Northwestern has won two of its last three games and now faces a Washington team that has struggled in Big Ten play. Is a turnaround on the horizon for Chris Collins' squad?

The 'Cats split their Los Angeles road trip last week with a win over USC and a loss to UCLA. On Thursday night, Northwestern's offense cruised en route to a 93-74 victory against Penn State. The team widely believes it has put its 0-7 start to conference play behind it and that the best is yet to come.

Nick Martinelli once again starred for the Wildcats, dropping 22, 20 and 34 points during the recent stretch. The nation's leading scorer has scored at least 20 points in 12 consecutive games.

However, Martinelli has also been supported with standout efforts from his teammates. Freshmen Tre Singleton, Jake West and Tyler Kropp have posted some of their best performances in purple lately, while sophomores Max Green and Angelo Ciaravino have emerged as key contributors.

West dished out a freshman-record 13 assists against the Nittany Lions. Singleton notched a 17-point, 18-rebound double-double, and Ciaravino scored 20 points off the bench in the win.

Washington is led by likely first-round NBA Draft pick Hannes Steinbach. The 6-foot-11 German big man has been a force during his freshman season with the Huskies, averaging 17.4 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Steinbach leads the Big Ten on the glass and is the only player in the conference to average a double-double.

The Huskies had high expectations entering the season, but have lost six of their last eight games. Here's everything you need to know before Northwestern hosts Washington on Saturday night:

Washington Huskies (11-10, 3-7 B1G) at Northwestern Wildcats (10-11, 2-8 B1G)

Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena | Evanston, Illinois

Tipoff: Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. CT

TV: Big Ten Network | Announcers: Dave Revsine, Bruce Weber

Radio: WGN AM 720 | Announcers: Dave Eanet, Billy McKinney

Student Radio: WNUR Sports 89.3 FM & Mixlr

Betting Line: Northwestern -1.5

Over/Under: 146.5 points

Moneyline: Northwestern -125, Washington +105

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Northwestern OUT:

None

Washington OUT: