Northwestern’s Nick Martinelli Named Big Ten Player of the Week After Serial Victories

The Northwestern Wildcats are heating up at exactly the right time, and senior forward Nick Martinelli is right in the middle of the surge. It is because on Monday, the Big Ten Conference announced Martinelli as the Big Ten Player of the Week.

And it was right after Northwestern’s dramatic victories over Indiana and Oregon. It is the third time in his career he has earned the honor, and his first since March 3, 2025. He previously captured the award on Nov. 11, 2024.

Northwestern's Player of the Week Performance Built on Comebacks

With that third recognition, Martinelli becomes the first Wildcat to win three weekly honors since Boo Buie accomplished the feat four times.

The Big Ten's leading scorer is the Big Ten POTW 🤌 pic.twitter.com/A53PS9Gui0
— Northwestern Basketball (@NUMensBball) March 2, 2026

Across two victories, he averaged 25.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 51.3 percent from the field. Over the second halves of both games combined, Martinelli poured in 35 points on 16-of-22 shooting. That efficiency fueled back-to-back comeback wins that pushed the Wildcats closer to postseason positioning.

At Indiana on Feb. 24, he scored 28 points and grabbed five rebounds in a 72-68 road victory. Twenty-one of those points came in the second half alone. After the break, he connected on 9-of-12 shots, methodically taking over the game possession by possession.

He followed that effort with a moment Wildcats fans will not forget anytime soon. With 1.8 seconds remaining against Oregon, Martinelli sank a game-winning hook shot to seal a 63-62 triumph. Earlier that same morning, he was also named NCAA March Madness National Player of the Week, adding national shine to his conference accolade.

Since 1999, only seven Northwestern players have earned multiple Big Ten Player of the Week awards. Martinelli now shares that distinction with Boo Buie, Drew Crawford, John Shurna, Vedran Vukusic, Jitim Young, and Evan Eschmeyer.

Consistency That Carried the Wildcats

The weekly award is just the latest highlight in what has become a historic 2024-25 season. Martinelli earned All-Big Ten Second Team honors, was named NABC All-District First Team, and secured CSC Academic All-American First Team recognition. He also led the Big Ten in scoring, becoming just the fourth Wildcat ever to do so and the first since John Shurna in 2011-12.

He set single-season program records with 676 total points and 251 made field goals. Starting all 33 games, he averaged career highs of 20.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 0.7 steals while logging 37.6 minutes per game. On the national stage, he finished 10th in scoring and second among high-major forwards, trailing only Eric Dixon of the Villanova Wildcats.

His season placed him in rare statistical air. Martinelli became the first high-major player to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 37.5 minutes per game since Kemba Walker in 2010-11. He was the first high-major forward to reach those marks since Hakim Warrick in 2004-05. Within the Big Ten, no player had done so since Michael Redd in 1997-98.

The athlete scored at least 15 points in 30 games and reached double figures in 32 of 33 contests. He closed the regular season on an 18-game streak of 15 or more points, the longest by a Wildcat since at least 1996. His 26 straight double-digit scoring games mark the program’s longest such streak since at least 2000.

He recorded 18 games with 20 or more points and posted five double-doubles, tying Pete Nance’s 2021-22 mark for the most by a Northwestern forward in a single season.

In the opening week, Martinelli averaged 29.0 points and 12.0 rebounds, earning his first Player of the Week award on Nov. 11, 2024. He became the first Big Ten player ever to post at least 25 points and 10 rebounds in each of the first two games of a season.

At Dayton on Nov. 9, he set career highs with 32 points and 14 rebounds on 12-of-16 shooting. He joined Zach Edey as the only Big Ten players since 2005-06 to produce a 32-point, 14-rebound performance while shooting at least 75 percent from the field.

The signature moments kept coming. He scored 27 points, including 23 in the second half and overtime, in an upset of No. 19 Illinois. He hit an overtime buzzer-beater to defeat Maryland.

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