Chris Collins Gets Honest After Northwestern's Blowout Loss to Illinois

Among a season full of ups and downs — though mostly downs — the Wildcats hit a low point on Wednesday night. Northwestern was blown out on the road against its in-state rival, and it was the manner of the loss that was utterly devastating.

No. 5 Illinois dominated Northwestern, almost from the jump. The Fighting Illini went on an astonishing 33-4 run and made 11 of their 22 three-pointers in the first half. That amounted to a 47-19 halftime deficit and an 84-44 loss.

The 40-point defeat was Northwestern's largest to Illinois since 1995. Chris Collins was blunt in his assessment of his team's performance.

"They are a vastly superior team to us," Collins said after the game. "They have better players, a better coach."

Northwestern shot just 29.2% from the floor and went 4-of-25 (16.0%) from deep. Both efficiency rates were the Wildcats' lowest this season.

Shooting has been an issue all season long for the 'Cats. On the year, Northwestern is shooting a Big Ten-worst 31.1% on three-pointers, which ranks the fifth-worst among Division I high-major teams. Those problems came to a head on Wednesday night, when the Wildcats went 1-of-12 from three in the first half and 3-of-13 in the second.

Northwestern even turned the ball over just one time, the fewest by any Division I team against a top-10 opponent since 2004-05. It didn't matter because of the shot disparity.

"We just shot the ball so terribly," Collins said. "I looked up one time and it was 33-9. Had we made any shots at all, maybe it's 33-20 or 33-21 and you're still kind of in the mix."

Nick Martinelli, the nation's leading scorer entering the game, was held to just four points on 2-of-10 shooting. Tre Singleton led the way with eight points, Jayden Reid had seven and Tyler Kropp finished with six. Jake West put up five points, and nobody else ended with more than four. Zero Wildcats made more than three shots.

Northwestern has embraced a youth-centered lineup amid the difficult season, with three true freshmen — Singleton, West and Kropp — all becoming starters. It's yielded positive moments, but it has also resulted in games like the loss to Illinois. Over the last two outings, Singleton, West and Kropp have combined for 29 points on just 12-of-34 shooting.

It's a reminder for Collins and Northwestern fans that growth isn't always linear.

"We're playing a lot of young kids that aren't really ready for this level right now," Collins said. "Sometimes, you've got to take some lumps and go through it to figure things out."

The Wildcats' upcoming schedule is unforgiving. Northwestern plays Iowa on the road, then hosts No. 2 Michigan before traveling to No. 9 Nebraska over the next nine days. Although the season may largely be a lost cause, there are still valuable experiences remaining for the 'Cats' young players, who will look to emerge from gutting losses like the one at Illinois to build the foundation for the next era of Northwestern basketball.