In a battle of early undefeated teams, a blistering hot second half helped Northwestern blow out High Point, 95-60, in Evanston, Ill., on Friday night.

High Point (1-1) led by as much as nine points in the first half, but used a 7-0 run to go into halftime down just 34-33 to the Wildcats.

John-Michael Wright was the catalyst for the Panthers' quick start on offense, leading all scorers with 14 points going into halftime. He ended up with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-18 shooting from the field.

A quick field goal gave High Point a 35-34 lead just over 10 seconds into the second half, but from then on, it was the Northwestern (2-0) and Pete Nance show.

Nance had a double-double with a career-high 22 points and 10 rebounds, including 20 points in the second half alone. Nance shot 8-for-13 from the field in the win.

Northwestern had one of its best offensive halves in program history in the second half, shooting 78.1 percent from the field and outscoring High Point, 61-27.

Northwestern shot 61.4 percent from the field and 40 percent from deep overall, scoring 18 points off High Point's 13 turnovers and outrebounding the Panthers, 35-30.

The Wildcats had several big runs to start the second half, the biggest being a 15-0 run that quickly put the game out of reach for the Panthers.

Boo Buie ran the offense in the first half for the Wildcats with 11 points and was one of four Northwestern players who scored in double figures for the game, along with Ryan Young and Ryan Greer, who had 20 and 15 points, respectively, off the bench.

Three of High Point's five starters scored in double-figures in the loss: Wright, Jaden House with 11 points, and Zack Austin, who had 10 points.

Both teams will take the court again next Tuesday as Northwestern hosts New Orleans and High Point travels to South Bend, Ind., to take on Notre Dame.

--Field Level Media