Five players reached double figures as Northwestern rolled up its biggest point total since 1966 with a 111-66 nonconference victory over Chicago State on Saturday afternoon in Evanston, Ill..
William & Mary transfer Chase Audige produced 20 points and eight rebounds to lead the way for the Wildcats (2-0), who cracked the 100-point barrier for just the second time in 28 seasons.
Starting forwards Robbie Beran (19 points), Miller Kopp (16 points) and Pete Nance (12 points, 8 rebounds) and reserve guard Ty Berry (14 points) also scored in double figures for Northwestern while redshirt junior guard Anthony Gaines grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds.
For Chicago State (0-5), which failed to hold a lead at any point for the fourth straight game, Levelle Zeigler recorded 18 points off the bench. Xavier Johnson added 15 points and six assists.
Both teams pushed the ball at every opportunity from start to finish. On multiple occasions, the Northwestern player who grabbed the defensive rebound -- even the 6-foot-10 Nance -- put the ball on the floor and triggered the Wildcats' transition offense.
Northwestern reeled off 11 straight points over a three-minute stretch to seize a 24-11 lead at the 12:00 mark. When Kopp swished a 3-pointer from the corner with 7:36 left in the half, Northwestern's lead swelled to 38-21 and forced Chicago State to call a timeout.
Johnson tried to keep the Cougars in the game with 13 points in the final 11 minutes of the first half -- including 3 3-pointers -- but Northwestern owned a 51-35 lead at the break. The Wildcats built their big margin despite shooting just 39 percent from the field because they had 17 points off 13 Chicago State turnovers.
Northwestern, which owned a 54-23 advantage on the boards, gradually increased its lead throughout the second half. When Ryan Greer fed Beran for a layup with 4:06 to go, Northwestern owned triple figures for the first time since a 103-67 win over Sacred Heart on Dec. 21, 2015.
--Field Level Media
