Northwestern expected Jake West to take a leap this season.
That it’s coming so soon is merely a bonus.
West enters Monday night’s game against Boston University in Evanston, Ill., as the 2-0 Wildcats’ second-leading scorer (21.5 points per game) and top assists man (9.0).
With graduate transfer Jack Karasinski out with a concussion, West, a sophomore guard, keyed Friday’s 78-65 win against Stony Brook with 23 points on 47.1% shooting from the field while adding six assists.
“I think having almost half a year in the Big Ten under my belt was really great for my development,” West said. “Kudos to coach (Chris) Collins for believing in me my freshman year and letting me be out there because I think it’s really starting to pay off.”
West connected on four 3-pointers, doubling his total from a season-opening victory against Binghamton last Monday. Classmate Phoenix Gill also hit four treys on the way to a career-high 14 points on Friday.
A roster short on returnees is benefiting from its veterans so far, including the floor game of Angelo Ciaravino. Collins said Ciaravino “just does a lot of things that help you win” after he collected seven rebounds, four blocks and two steals on Friday.
“Angelo’s superpower is his activity,” Collins said.
Boston University (2-0) is set to conclude a two-game road trip after edging Brown 72-67 on Friday.
Senior guard Kyrone Alexander steadied the Terriers with a career-best 29 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field to go with eight rebounds. Sam Hughes added 14 points while Michelangelo Oberti notched a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Terriers coach Joe Jones lauded the scoring balance but also credited the competitiveness of reserve Alex Zakheim, an attribute Jones hopes can be an asset when foes play a more physical style.
“His defense, he got three straight steals in the second half; that turned the game completely around,” Jones said. “We were really struggling at that time, and he came in and played great for us. And so I just thought the big key was his energy and the guys kind of fed off him, and we got going.”