Northwestern tops USC for first Big Ten win of season

Field Level Media|published: Thu 22nd January, 01:47 2026

Jan 21, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Northwestern Wildcats guard Jake West (3) dunks the ball against Southern California Trojans guard Kam Woods (13) n the first half at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Nick Martinelli scored 22 points and delivered clutch plays down the stretch to help Northwestern score its first Big Ten Conference win of the season, a 74-68 decision against Southern California on Wednesday in Los Angeles.

The Wildcats (9-10, 1-7 Big Ten) led throughout the second half, but the Trojans remained within striking distance behind a huge performance from Jordan Marsh. The junior reserve scored all 19 of his points after intermission, including a layup with 4:58 remaining that pulled USC to within one point.

The Trojans (14-5, 3-5) moved within 65-63 on another Marsh bucket with 2:47 to go, and their defense denied Northwestern a clean look at the basket on the ensuing possession until Martinelli sank a mid-range jumper just as the shot clock expired.

That basket capped Martinelli's game-high scoring performance, but the nation's second-leading scorer was not finished delivering key plays.

Martinelli stole a pass from Marsh a minute later. On Northwestern's resulting possession, Martinelli drove the baseline and drew away defensive attention to free up Tyler Kropp.

Kropp scored on the last of Martinelli's five assists, extending the Wildcats' lead to six points with 1:19 left and effectively putting the game away.

Kropp finished with 11 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Northwestern's Jake West also had 11 points, including two key free throws late.

Former Trojan Arrinten Page chipped in eight points for the Wildcats.

Ezra Ausar scored 17 points for USC, nine of which came on 14 free-throw attempts. The Trojans shot 26 of 43 (60.5%) at the foul line to Northwestern's 15 of 18 (83.3%).

Chad Baker-Mazara scored 14 points, but USC's season-long leading scorer was limited to 12 minutes of playing time due to an ongoing neck issue.

Highly touted Trojans freshman Alijah Arenas scored eight points in his debut, but struggled mightily in all phases of shooting. Arenas finished 3 of 15 from the floor, including 0 of 6 from 3-point range, and he was 2 of 6 at the free-throw line.

--Field Level Media