Northwestern To Be Without Key Player Against Indiana In Big Ten Tournament

With a 76-66 win over No. 18 seed Penn State on Wednesday, No. 15 seed Northwestern advanced to face No. 10 seed Indiana on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT in the Big Ten Tournament at the United Center in Chicago.

After the win, Northwestern coach Chris Collins shared an important update on starting forward Arrinten Page, who has missed the last two games with an illness.

"Obviously we're a big guy down with AP. AP will be out [Thursday against Indiana]," Collins said. "He won't be with us tomorrow, then it's kind of a day-to-day after that."

How Arrinten Page's absence impacts Indiana's game plan against Northwestern

Sam Alexis Indiana Basketball — Indiana's Sam Alexis and Northwestern's Arrinten Page (22) go for a loose ball at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Page, a 6-foot-11 forward, has started 16 games and played in 29 for Northwestern as a junior.

He's the team's second-leading scorer at 10.2 points per game, third-leading rebounder with 4.5 per game and leading shot blocker at 1.2 per game. He's also Northwestern's most efficient scorer, shooting a team-best 54.6% from the field on 7.1 attempts per game.

Page played an integral role off the bench when Northwestern defeated Indiana on Feb. 24 at Assembly Hall, totaling 10 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block in 28 minutes. Tyler Kropp –– a 6-foot-9, 230-pound freshman –– started over Page in that game, but Kropp recorded just one rebound and one field goal attempt in six minutes of action.

With Page unavailable in the last two games, Northwestern has started forwards Nick Martinelli and Tre Singleton alongside a trio of guards in Angelo Ciaravino, Jayden Reid and Jake West. That has left Northwestern's front court notably short-handed. Kropp was the only forward to come off the bench in the Wildcats' 67-66 loss at Minnesota on March 7 and their 76-66 win over Penn State on Tuesday.

"This is who we got. Guys have to just –– by committee, we have to figure things out," Collins said. "We gotta guard the paint. We gotta rebound. We gotta bring physicality. Can't just be on those three guys –– Nick [Martinelli], Tre [Singleton] and Tyler [Kropp] –– it's gotta be on the guards, too. We gotta get in there. We gotta help rebound. We gotta bring physicality."

While Kropp is averaging just 3.0 points and 2.2 rebounds across 11.7 minutes per game this season, his six points on Tuesday tied his third-highest scoring game of the season. His highest statistical output of the year was an 11-point, nine-rebound effort in a 74-68 win at USC on Jan. 21.

"I thought Tyler really stepped up," Collins said after Northwestern's win over Penn State. "I thought he really stepped up and gave us good minutes tonight. It was exciting for me to see as a young player in his first Big Ten Tournament to come in and give those positive minutes for us."

Without having to worry about Page as an interior presence, Indiana can likely shift even more defensive attention toward Martinelli, Northwestern's leading scorer at 22.8 points per game. He had his way against the Hoosiers in the first matchup, scoring 28 points on 12-for-21 shooting.

Page's absence doesn't necessarily make it any easier for Indiana to defend Martinelli, but it's certainly a blow to Northwestern's front court from an inside scoring and rebounding standpoint. It could also affect Northwestern from an energy perspective, as they'll be playing on back-to-back days with an undermanned lineup.

Indiana's main front court rotation consists of Tucker DeVries, Sam Alexis, Reed Bailey and Trent Sisley. While interior scoring, rebounding and defense haven't necessarily been strengths for the Hoosiers this season, Page's absence creates a more favorable matchup for Indiana's front court.