Texas Southern vs. Northwestern final score: Wildcats route Tigers in opening game

The Northwestern Wildcats opened the post-John Shurna era witha resounding 79-49 victory over the Texas Southern Tigers. The Wildcats were led by senior guard Drew Crawford, who scored 20 points on 8-12 shooting with three assists, two rebounds, two blocks and a steal.

The other double-digit scorer for the Wildcats was freshman Kale Abrahamson, who kicked off his career in Evanston with 15 points on 4-6 shooting from the field. Northwestern was solid on the offensive end, shooting 50 percent from the field as a team and 44 percent from three.

But it was defense where the Wildcats shined. They held Texas Southern to just 29 percent shooting and 5-26 from the three-point line. Oklahoma State transfer Raymond Penn was the high scorer fro Texas Southern with 13 points on just 4-15 shooting.

The Wildcats will be back on the court on Thursday night when they host the Mississippi Valley St. Delta Devils at 7 p.m. CT, but likely won't be tested until they host the Maryland Terrapins in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.