National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Northwestern 78, American U. 62
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 16, 2010
Where: Welsh-Ryan Arena, Evanston, Illinois
Officials: # Mike Eades, # Ed Hightower, # Lamar Simpson
Attendance: 3690

John Shurna scored 28 points and Michael Thompson added 23 as Northwestern pulled away for a 78-62 victory over American on Thursday night in Evanston, Ill.

The Wildcats (7-0) never trailed, but still needed some time to shake the persistent Eagles, who went into the half trailing by just four, 38-34, and stayed within single digits until Thompson hit a 3-pointer as part of a 13-0 run that made it 60-40 with 9:06 to go.

Northwestern gradually stretched its lead with an efficient offensive performance, shooting 50 percent from the floor and committing just 10 turnovers. Shurna and Thompson combined to hit 7 of 12 shots from beyond the arc.

Luka Mirkovic added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Northwestern. Vlad Moldoveanu paced American (6-4) with 21 points.

Northwestern has two more tune-ups against St. Francis (N.Y) Monday and Mount St. Mary's on Dec. 23, before opening Big Ten play with a brutal three-game stretch. The Wildcats open conference play at No. 17 Purdue, at home vs. No. 15 Michigan State and at No. 14 Illinois.
Top Game Performances
 
American U.   Northwestern
Vlad Moldoveanu 21 Scoring John Shurna 28
Troy Brewer 3 Assists Drew Crawford 5
Vlad Moldoveanu 6 Rebounds Luka Mirkovic 11
Charles Hinkle 4 Free Throws Made John Shurna 7
Troy Brewer 1 Steals Alex Marcotullio 3
Stephen Lumpkins 1 Blocks John Shurna 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
American U. 62 46.0 6-15 10-12 17 22 2 3
Northwestern 78 50.0 7-16 21-25 18 26 4 9