Northwestern Basketball 2025-26 Preview: Put Up Or Shut Up<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s look at Northwestern basketball for 2025-26, as it\u2019s a put up or shut up season for Collins.<\/p>\n
Roster Outlook<\/p>\n
Following the graduations of Ty Berry<\/a>, Keenan Fitzmorris<\/a>, and Matthew Nicholson<\/a>, the Wildcats have to really work on their frontcourt.\u00a0 The best news for the Wildcats is that Martinelli is back to build off his all-conference season. However, Collins was able to use the NCAA transfer portal to add three new faces.<\/p>\n 6-foot-11 and 245-pound junior Arrinten Page<\/a> transfers in from Cincinnati. Sure, his trey-ball doesn\u2019t quite say much with 25 total attempts in 58 career games. Still, Page is a career 36.0 percent 3-point shooter with a gigantic frame and a chance to contribute right away to Northwestern. With that being said, Holy Cross guard Max Green<\/a> has a good shot at filling the hole left by Berry. To that point, the 2025 Patriot Rookie of the Year shot 38.0 percent from deep last season. The final transfer is junior point guard Jayden Reid<\/a>, an important contributor for South Florida. Thus far in his collegiate career, the 5-foot-10 floor general is averaging 9.6 points, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 39.1 percent from 3.<\/p>\n Some 3 on 3 highlights for your afternoon enjoyment \ud83c\udfc0 pic.twitter.com\/W6DPi71B2P<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Northwestern Basketball (@NUMensBball) July 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Elsewhere, Northwestern has an impressive freshman class coming in, led by the Mr. Basketball of Pennsylvania: Jake West<\/a>. A three-star recruit, the 6-foot-3 guard has a legit shot to become the next Wildcats star. Ranked No. 80 nationally by 247 Sports, dynamic small forward Tre Singleton<\/a> is the highest-ranked recruit in program history. He and Cade Bennerman<\/a>, a seven-footer rated as the No. 1 prospect in Tennessee, are key frontcourt additions.<\/p>\n It would be negligent not to mention sophomore guard KJ Windham<\/a>. Though better coming off the bench than starting, he certainly got his feet wet last season in the Big Ten. In 2025-26, he should be able to take the next steps towards making a consistently positive impact.<\/p>\n The rest of the Northwestern basketball roster includes:<\/p>\n Tyler Kropp<\/a> (Fr.)<\/p>\n Jordan Clayton<\/a> (Jr.)<\/p>\n Phoenix Gill<\/a> (Fr.)<\/p>\n Justin Mullins<\/a> (Sr.)<\/p>\n Blake Smith<\/a> (Sr.)<\/p>\n Angelo Ciaravino<\/a> (So.)<\/p>\n Gus Hurlburt<\/a> (Jr.)<\/p>\n Schedule Outlook<\/p>\n Collins isn\u2019t afraid to throw his team into the fire.<\/p>\n The Wildcats open with an exhibition against the tough-as-nails Iowa State Cyclones. That matchup should prepare them well for their challenging non-conference schedule<\/a>. A road visit to fellow Chicago area university DePaul in early November will be fun. That gears them up for the Greenbrier Tip-Off in West Virginia. Of note, the Wildcats have drawn the Virginia Cavaliers and a clash with the South Carolina Gamecocks during that event.<\/p>\n All of this leads into what will be a huge Thanksgiving Classic game in downtown Chicago against Oklahoma State. In December, there will be one more massive neutral site clash, this time with the Big East\u2019s Butler in Indianapolis. Ultimately, their non-conference schedule should be a good tune-up to see where they stack up once they begin Big Ten play.<\/p>\n Speaking of conference play, Northwestern will have plenty of huge showdowns in the Big Ten. Home and away games against Illinois are always entertaining, especially as they\u2019re in-state rivals. They\u2019ll also have both home and away games with Nebraska and Minnesota.<\/p>\n This season, Northwestern\u2019s road-only games will be against Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Rutgers, UCLA, USC, and Wisconsin. Their home-only games will be against Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, and Washington. With that in mind, the Wildcats have given Purdue fits in Evanston in recent years. History says that this is a battle that will be highlight-worthy once again.<\/p>\n The Last Word On The Northwestern Wildcats<\/p>\n So, what can be expected of the Wildcats? Martinelli, who\u2019s poised to be the team\u2019s centerpiece, brings a lot to the table. In fact, he has a real shot to challenge Braden Smith<\/a> for the Big Ten Player of the Year next season. Yet, they\u2019re pretty young on the whole and it might take more time than is ideal for this squad to gel.<\/p>\n Given that Northwestern has only made three appearances in the NCAA tournament ever, it\u2019s hard to come out and predict they will do it again in 2025-26. However, they definitely won\u2019t be a team that finishes in the bottom three of the Big Ten and misses the Big Ten Tournament.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n
![\"Northwestern](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/USATSI_25659368_168404789_lowres-scaled.jpg\")
Mar 13, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach Chris Collins reacts to a play during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images<\/p>\n