March 10, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions guard Kayden Mingo (4) defends Northwestern Wildcats forward Nick Martinelli (2) during the first half at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Image Nick Martinelli had 24 points and nine rebounds and Jayden Reid added 14 points and nine assists as Northwestern beat Penn State 76-66 in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament on Tuesday in Chicago.
The 15th-seeded Wildcats (14-18) face 10th-seeded Indiana in the second round on Wednesday.
Ivan Juric paced 18th-seeded Penn State with 22 points and six rebounds. The Nittany Lions (12-20) shot 51.1% from the field compared to 50.9% for the Wildcats. But the visitors struggled to maintain momentum, resulting in 17 turnovers that Northwestern converted into 24 points.
Capitalizing on 10 Northwestern personal fouls in the second half, Penn State went 9 of 12 from the free throw line after halftime but failed to build momentum from the field. Josh Reed hit two foul shots to pull the Nittany Lions within three with 11:56 left before the Wildcats began to pull away.
Northwestern leads by as many as 14. Martinelli, the conference’s leading scorer in the regular season, made an exclamation point with 3 minutes and 48 seconds left. He stole a Dominick Stewart pass and ran the other way for a dunk to give the Wildcats a 68-55 advantage.
Freddie Dilione V (14 points), Reed (14 points) and Kayden Mingo (13 points) also scored in double figures for the Nittany Lions.
Northwestern set a Big Ten tournament record with 21 assists. Tyler Kropp followed Reed with six assists. Tre Singleton had nine points for the Wildcats, who were without Arrinten Page (illness).
Neither team led by more than six points in the first half. Led by four points apiece from Martinelli and Jake West, Northwestern closed the half on an 8-3 run to take a 34-32 lead.
Penn State committed seven turnovers before the break but stayed afloat behind efficient long-range shooting, going 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. A nearly six-minute scoring drought for the Wildcats late in the first half also helped the Nittany Lions.
Juric had 12 first-half points on 5-for-6 shooting.
Martinelli led all scorers with 13 points in the first half, going 6 of 9 from the field.
Northwestern won 72-68 against Indiana (18-13) on February 24. Martinelli scored 21 of his 28 points after halftime.
–Field level media
