On an emotional senior night, a crowd seemingly composed mostly of Northwestern students or Purdue alumni sold out Welsh-Ryan Arena for the ‘Cats’ last home game of the season. Northwestern (13-17, 5-14 BIG) gave 15th-ranked Purdue (23-7, 13-6) all they could handle but fell short in the last few possessions.
For NU, Nick Martinelli led the way with 28 points, and Jayden Reid also had a great game with 16.
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For the Boilermakers, C.J. Cox finished with 27 points on 10-13 shooting overall and five triples. Trey Kaufman-Renn had 11 points and 10 rebounds and Fletcher Loyer had 10 points on 4-9 shooting from the floor.
With Jake West in street clothes due to an ankle injury, NU head coach Chris Collins added Justin Mullins to the Wildcats’ starting lineup along with Tre Singleton, Arrinten Page, Reid and Martinelli.
Despite Purdue’s immense frontcourt size, Page won the tip for the ‘Cats, and Reid knocked down a long-range two to get the scoring going. A Loyer layup on the other end immediately evened the score as, in large part due to a fiery and two-sided crowd, both teams came out with energy.
Yet that energy translated into nervousness for both teams, as after a series of turnovers by each squad, a Singleton midrange jumper and a layup by Purdue’s Oscar Cluff put the score at 4-4 with 16:43 remaining in the first half.
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Coming out of the first timeout, Purdue’s Cox found himself open on the out-of-bounds play, netting an easy layup to break the tie. Yet, the response was quick, as a Jordan Clayton steal on one end led to an Angelo Ciaravino layup on the other.
Wildcat defense continued to provide opportunities for their offense, as Clayton knocked down the first three-pointer of the game off a Martinelli assist. Two Martinelli free throws later, his first points of the night, and Northwestern led 11-6 with 12:45 remaining.
The weather seemed to travel into Welsh-Ryan Arena as Clayton and Tyler Kropp rained down buckets of their own on the following possessions to put the ‘Cats up 15-6 and on an 11-0 run. Through the first eight minutes of the game, the ‘Cats forced five Boilermaker turnovers as Purdue seemed like a shell of itself.
Boilermaker point guard Braden Smith was unable to find his shot early as Reid dominated the point guard matchup, draining another long two to put the ‘Cats up 11. Purdue’s Gicarri Harris ended the 13-0 run with a three-pointer from the top of the arc, but a Page hook shot on the other end revitalized the NU crowd. Kaufman-Renn finally got on the board for the Boilermakers with a layup, but it was 19-11 with 7:53 remaining in the half.
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Out of the timeout, Jack Benter swished another Purdue triple as its offense seemed to find its footing, but Page countered immediately with a long ball of his own. Another Kaufman-Renn layup tightened the margin to six as NU led 22-16 with 5:18 left in the half.
After a Reid layup, Martinelli made his most meaningful impact 15 minutes into the game as he drew a charge that gave Kaufman-Renn his second foul of the night and sent the crowd into a frenzy. However, the following lackluster Wildcat defense provided Loyer a wide-open three-pointer.
The next possession, Reid once again strolled down the court aggressively and knocked down a counterpunch three. Martinelli’s offense finally got going towards the end of the first as his first three-pointer of the night was sandwiched between a pair of Boilermaker layups, giving NU the 30-23 lead with 1:15 in the half.
After an NU timeout, Martinelli hooked in a layup and then knocked down two free throws, Northwestern up 34-25 going into half with dreams of a court storm floating through students’ heads.
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At the half, Martinelli and Reid led the way for Northwestern with nine points apiece. Page and Clayton also chipped in with five points each. As a team, the ‘Cats were shooting 56.5% from the field and 50% from three. The defense was very strong, forcing nine turnovers and holding the Boilermakers to 44% shooting overall and 27.3% from distance.
A pair of Reid free throws extended the ‘Cats’ lead to ten coming out of the break but C.J. Cox extended his hot-shooting night by knocking down a three pointer from the wing. Martinelli broke into double digits on the other end, bullying the undersized Smith in the paint.
A Kaufman-Renn layup and Cox triple for Purdue inspired the loudest cheers of the night from Boilermaker fans as their team pulled within four. However, as he’s done his whole career, Martinelli played the role of silencer and his personal 5-0 run emblazoned the home crowd. A Loyer triple on the other end represented the response that Purdue desperately needed, and it was 43-37 ‘Cats with 15:32 to go.
The size of Purdue seemed to begin to wear down the ‘Cats as Kaufman-Renn and Cluff layups pulled the Boilermakers to within one possession. NU’s offense couldn’t get out of its own way, coughing the ball up whenever it felt any pressure, and a series of Purdue offensive rebounds resulted in a Cox layup to tie the game at 43.
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Coach Collins calmed his team down via calling a timeout, and Reid immediately got back in the scoring column with a corner three to put the ‘Cats up 46-43 with 11:52 remaining in the game. After an extended official review, Smith scored his first points in response to a Martinelli dunk. Martinelli broke the 20-point threshold for the 22nd time this season via a circus-worthy hook shot but a Cluff layup kept the NU lead at two with under eight minutes left.
A pair of Purdue free throws and then a wide open Cluff dunk gave the Boilermakers a 52-51 lead, motivating half of the arena to rise to their feet. Reid, Kaufmann-Renn and Martinelli traded layups for the two teams before yet another Cox corner triple swished through the net to put the Boilermakers up 57-55 with 4:29 remaining.
A pair of Martinelli free throws tied the game, but Cox, Purdue’s savior of the night, made yet another heavily contested three point shot. Martinelli converted a floater from the paint on the other end but Cox responded with an elbow jumper, his 23rd and 24th points of the night which set and broke his career high. Martinelli then connected on both free throws of his one and one and Purdue up 62-61 with just over two remaining.
Northwestern’s defense then took the spotlight as its ball pressure on Smith forced an errant pass which resulted in an emphatic Page slam. A Boo Bouie cameo almost put the NU crowd over the top but overaggressiveness by the Wildcat defense gave Smith three free throws and Purdue the 65-63 lead with 1:33 remaining.
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What seemed to be a discombobulated offensive possession coming out of the timeout turned out to be a stroke of genius by Coach Collins as Clayton nailed a fall-away three point shot with less than a second on the shot clock to give NU the 66-65 lead with 1:03 left in the game.
However, a defensive lapse by the ‘Cats left Cox, who’s hands might have been on fire, wide open in the corner for Purdue who didn’t hesitate and knocked down his fifth three of the night. An NU turnover on the other end gave the Boilermakers control of the game, yet Loyer shot and missed a three pointer with 18 seconds on the clock, giving the ‘Cats the ball back…or so one thought. Reid stepped out of bounds while tracking down the loose ball and the ‘Cats were forced to foul. Smith calmly converted both free throws of the one-and-one, putting Purdue up four with 13 seconds left.
Martinelli’s three fell short in the final seconds and the final horn blew, Purdue scraping out a 70-66 victory to avoid the upset
The ‘Cats will be back in action on Saturday, March 7 against Minnesota in the regular season finale.
