Illinois Fighting Illini at Northwestern Wildcats
· NCAA Men's Basketball
Wagler stars as No. 13 Illinois beats Northwestern 79-68 for 6th straight win
Tomislav Ivisic added 21 points and seven rebounds as Illinois (14-3, 5-1 Big Ten) won at Northwestern for the first time since Jan. 29, 2022. The Illini had dropped their last three games in Evanston.
Jayden Reid led Northwestern with a career-high 28 points, including 20 in the second half. Nick Martinelli had 20 points.
The Wildcats (8-9, 0-6) shot 39% (22 for 56) from the field in their fourth consecutive loss.
Northwestern trimmed an 11-point deficit to 53-47 on Reid's jumper with 13:28 left. But Illinois responded with a 9-0 run.
Jake Davis made a 3-pointer, and Wagler drove inside for a three-point play. Wagler then connected from deep, making it 62-47 with 9:43 remaining.
After Reid and Martinelli rallied the Wildcats once again, Wagler set up Ivisic for a 3-pointer that made it 72-63 with 2:53 to go.
Wagler, one of the top freshmen in the country, finished with five rebounds and three assists. He shot 7 for 12 from the field in the second half.
Kylan Boswell had 13 points and six assists for Illinois, which used its superior size to outscore Northwestern 34-18 in the paint.
Ivisic and David Mirkovic made consecutive 3-pointers during a 10-2 run that helped Illinois to a 38-33 halftime lead. Boswell scored nine points for the Illini in the first half, and Martinelli had 11 points for the Wildcats at the break.
Northwestern: Hosts No. 8 Nebraska on Saturday.
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Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 79 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 79 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:01 | team shot clock turnover | 79 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:30 | Tomislav Ivisic Defensive Rebound. | 79 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:33 | Nick Martinelli misses 25-foot three point jumper | 79 - 68 |
Statistics
 ILL |
 NU |
|
|---|---|---|
| 30-63 | FG | 22-56 |
| 48 | Field Goal % | 39 |
| 11-30 | 3PT | 9-25 |
| 37 | Three Point % | 36 |
| 8-8 | FT | 15-17 |
| 100 | Free Throw % | 88 |
| 33 | Rebounds | 30 |
| 14 | Offensive Rebounds | 13 |
| 19 | Defensive Rebounds | 17 |
| 11 | Assists | 12 |
| 6 | Steals | 5 |
| 2 | Blocks | 5 |
| 8 | Turnovers | 7 |
| 1 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
| 8 | Total Turnovers | 7 |
| 1 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 1 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 1 | Flagrant Fouls | 1 |
| 2 | Points Off Turnovers | 6 |
| 3 | Fast Break Points | 10 |
| 34 | Points in Paint | 18 |
| 12 | Fouls | 14 |
| 15 | Largest Lead | 3 |
| 8 | Lead Changes | 8 |
| 82 | Percent Led | 11 |
Game Information
Location: Evanston, IL
Attendance: 7,039 | Capacity:
2025-26 Big Ten Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 19-1 | - | 29-2 |
| Nebraska | 15-5 | 4 | 26-5 |
| Michigan State | 15-5 | 4 | 25-6 |
| Illinois | 15-5 | 4 | 24-7 |
| Wisconsin | 14-6 | 5 | 23-9 |
| Purdue | 13-7 | 6 | 24-8 |
| UCLA | 13-7 | 6 | 22-10 |
| Ohio State | 12-8 | 7 | 21-11 |
| Iowa | 10-10 | 9 | 21-12 |
| 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 |