Northwestern looks to gain more momentum vs. Arizona State

Field Level Media|published: Tue 19th December, 14:56 2023

Dec 16, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats forward Nick Martinelli (2) shoots a free throw against the DePaul Blue Demons during the first half at Wintrust Arena. credits: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

Northwestern dropped out of the Top 25 after losing at home to Chicago State last week, and the Wildcats will try to regain their momentum when they play Arizona State in Phoenix on Wednesday night.

Northwestern (8-2) upset then-No. 1 Purdue on Dec. 1 and beat Detroit Mercy nine days later before falling to Chicago State.

The Wildcats came back with a 56-46 win at crosstown foe DePaul on Saturday.

"We got what we deserved Wednesday night (against Chicago State), and then we bounced back and got what we deserved," Northwestern coach Chris Collins said after the win over the Blue Demons.

The Wildcats now will face an Arizona State team that is 6-4 after consecutive losses to San Diego and TCU.

Wednesday's game will pit two former Duke teammates coaching against each other — Collins and Arizona State's Bobby Hurley. The contest will be played at the Phoenix Suns' Footprint Center as part of the Jerry Colangelo Hall of Fame Series.

Northwestern struggled with its shooting against DePaul, making only 8 of 32 shots from 3-point range. The Wildcats shot 35.6 percent (21 of 59) from the field overall.

Reserve forward Nick Martinelli led Northwestern with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field.

The win was Northwestern's first on the road as a ranked team since Jan. 4, 1969.

Meanwhile, Arizona State's 79-59 loss to TCU on Saturday dampened the debut of LSU transfer Adam Miller, who scored a team-high 20 points.

Miller, a two-time transfer as an undergraduate who started his career at Illinois three years ago, has been fighting to gain immediate eligibility, citing mental-health reasons for leaving LSU.

A federal judge issued a 14-day temporary restraining order last week, allowing Miller to become eligible.

The NCAA has since agreed to allow two-time transfers such as Miller to compete through the end of spring sports.

"He made shots; he kind of really integrated himself quickly," Hurley said of Miller's performance against TCU. "You hope to see that. That was one positive, that offensively he was able to give us a lift."

—Field Level Media