Overview
- Butler edged Northwestern 61-58 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, moving to 9-3 as the Wildcats fell to 7-5.
- Ajayi delivered his ninth double-double of the season with 19 points and a career-high 20 rebounds.
- Butler controlled the glass 41-35 and logged 10 first-half second-chance points to Northwestern’s zero despite shooting 38% overall and 7-for-30 from three.
- Northwestern played without leading scorer Nick Martinelli due to a concussion, and Butler’s Jamie Kaiser Jr. left with a rolled ankle with negative X-rays and did not play Monday.
- The victory rates as a Quad 2 neutral-site result for Butler, which returned home to beat NJIT 101-52, while Northwestern gets a roughly 10-day layoff before facing Howard on Dec. 30.