Northwestern 76, Northern Kentucky 55: Tre Demps tied his career high with 23 points to lead the host Wildcats to a comfortable win over the Norse.

Demps, who entered the game shooting 33.3 percent in his last five starts, went 9-of-18 from the floor and had two late 3-pointers for Northwestern (9-4). Freshman Bryant McIntosh added 15 points, five rebounds and four assists while classmate Scottie Lindsey had a career-high 12 points off the bench.

Todd Johnson led Northern Kentucky (6-7) with 14 points off the bench and Chad Jackson chipped in nine. Jalen Billups added eight points and four blocks for the Norse, who were outrebounded 42-24.

Jackson hit a jumper with 5 1/2 minutes left to break a 20-20 tie, but Northwestern finished the half on a 16-2 run. Demps had five field goals during the run, including a pair in transition to start the scoring spree and a buzzer-beating floater for a 36-24 halftime lead.

Johnson hit a 3-pointer and a four-point play in the span of a minute to cut the Northwestern lead to nine midway through the second half before buckets from Vic Law and Gavin Skelly started an 8-0 Northwestern run to push the lead to 64-47 with 6:59 left. Northern Kentucky had one field goal in the final six-plus minutes and Demps finished his day by hitting his last two 3-point attempts for a 74-50 lead with 2:32 left.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Wildcats will take a three-game win streak into their Big Ten Conference opener at Rutgers on Tuesday. ... Northern Kentucky fell to 0-7 when trailing at halftime. ... Northwestern C Alex Olah went 0-of-1 from the floor and finished with two free throws, seven assists, six rebounds and a block.