Northwestern Wildcats at Rutgers Scarlet Knights
· NCAA Men's Basketball
Barnhizer sparks Northwestern to 65-53 victory over Rutgers
Northwestern (21-10, 12-8) ended a three-game losing streak and finished the regular season in a tie with No. 15 Indiana for second place in coach Chris Collins' 10th season with the Wildcats. Northwestern surpassed the 11 wins of the 1930-31 Wildcats, who won the school's only outright conference title. The program record for wins in a season is 24, set in 2016-17. That team earned Northwestern's lone trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Barnhizer made 7 of 12 shots from the floor with a 3-pointer for the Wildcats. Boo Buie sank three 3-pointers and scored 14. Ty Berry pitched in with 12 points and seven rebounds, while Matthew Nicholson scored 10 on 5-of-6 shooting with six boards.
Clifford Omoruyi finished with 14 points, six rebounds and two blocks for the Scarlet Knights (18-13, 10-10). Reserve Derek Simpson had 12 points. Caleb McConnell scored just two points, but he had a team-high eight rebounds and finished with six steals. McConnell moved past Myles Mack (211) into second place on the school's all-time steals list with 214.
Barnhizer scored eight to help Northwestern take a 25-21 lead at halftime.
Barnhizer followed a 3-pointer with a layup to cap 9-0 run and Northwestern upped its lead to 36-24 with 14:10 remaining in the game. Omoruyi's layup pulled the Scarlet Knights within 38-30 at the midway point, but Buie answered with a three-point play and the Wildcats' lead never slipped below nine from there.
Northwestern beat Rutgers for the second time in the last seven match-ups, but the Wildcats lead the overall series 12-7. Northwestern's .632 winning percentage against the Scarlet Knights is its best against a Big Ten opponent.
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| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 65 - 53 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 65 - 53 |
| 2nd 0:06 | Ty Berry Defensive Rebound. | 65 - 53 |
| 2nd 0:08 | Derek Simpson missed Three Point Jumper. | 65 - 53 |
| 2nd 0:17 | Boo Buie made Free Throw. | 65 - 53 |
Statistics
 NU |
 RUTG |
|
|---|---|---|
| 24-53 | FG | 20-55 |
| 45 | Field Goal % | 36 |
| 7-23 | 3PT | 2-17 |
| 30 | Three Point % | 12 |
| 10-17 | FT | 11-21 |
| 59 | Free Throw % | 52 |
| 40 | Rebounds | 34 |
| 11 | Offensive Rebounds | 11 |
| 29 | Defensive Rebounds | 23 |
| 13 | Assists | 11 |
| 10 | Steals | 10 |
| 6 | Blocks | 3 |
| 17 | Turnovers | 16 |
| 1 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 17 | Total Turnovers | 16 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 11 | Points Off Turnovers | 13 |
| 5 | Fast Break Points | 18 |
| 26 | Points in Paint | 36 |
| 18 | Fouls | 19 |
| 14 | Largest Lead | 7 |
Game Information
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Attendance: 8,000 | Capacity:
2025-26 Big Ten Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 19-1 | - | 35-3 |
| Nebraska | 15-5 | 4 | 28-7 |
| Illinois | 15-5 | 4 | 28-8 |
| Michigan State | 15-5 | 4 | 27-8 |
| Wisconsin | 14-6 | 5 | 24-11 |
| Purdue | 13-7 | 6 | 30-9 |
| UCLA | 13-7 | 6 | 24-12 |
| Ohio State | 12-8 | 7 | 21-13 |
| Iowa | 10-10 | 9 | 24-13 |
| Indiana | 9-11 | 10 | 18-14 |
| Minnesota | 8-12 | 11 | 15-17 |
| USC | 7-13 | 12 | 18-14 |
| Washington | 7-13 | 12 | 16-17 |
| Rutgers | 6-14 | 13 | 14-19 |
| Northwestern | 5-15 | 14 | 15-19 |
| Oregon | 5-15 | 14 | 12-20 |
| Maryland | 4-16 | 15 | 12-21 |
| Penn State | 3-17 | 16 | 12-20 |