No. 5 Illinois makes 17 3-pointers, beats Northwestern 84-44 for 12th
straight win
[February 05, 2026]
By STEVE STEIN
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Andrej Stojakovic scored 17
points and No. 5 Illinois made 17 3-pointers in an 84-44 win over
Northwestern on Wednesday night.
Keaton Wagler, Zvonimir Ivisic and Ben Humrichous each had 13 points for
Illinois (20-3, 11-1 Big Ten), which won its 12th straight game. David
Mirkovic had 12 points and Tomislav Ivisic had 12 rebounds. |
Illinois' Keaton Wagler (23) and Tomislav Ivisic (13) trap
Northwestern's Justin Mullins on the baseline during the second half of
an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Champaign,
Ill. (AP Photo/Craig Pessman) |
|
Six players made 3s for Illinois, which shot 17 of 38 from
behind the arc.
Wagler, whose 19th birthday was Tuesday, has scored in double
figures in 15 straight games and 20 times this season.
He banked in a 3 from halfcourt with four seconds left the first
half, giving Illinois a 47-19 lead at halftime.
Northwestern (10-13, 2-10), which shot 29% from the field
including 4 of 25 on 3-pointers, did not have a player score in
double figures.
Nick Martinelli, the Big Ten's leading scorer, had just four
points, 19 under his average. He was 2 of 10 from the field
while playing 27 minutes. Tre Singleton led the Wildcats with
eight points.
The Illini outrebounded Northwestern 50-23. They’ve outrebounded
teams in 20 of 23 games, with an 18-2 record in those games.
Illinois has made at least 10 3s in a game a Big Ten-leading 17
times. The Illini are 15-2 in those games.
The Illini have won 10 in a row at home against Northwestern
since 2015 and are 76-14 overall against the Wildcats at the
State Farm Center.
Illinois beat Northwestern 79-68 in Evanston on Jan. 14, one of
five straight losses for the Wildcats at the start of January.
Up next
Northwestern: Plays Sunday at Iowa.
Illinois: Plays Saturday at No. 10 Michigan State.
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