WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) For Matt Haarms, defense will be the key to Purdue's success. If the Boilermakers have to win ugly, Haarms said so be it.

Sasha Stefanovic scored 14 points and Haarms added 12 points to lead Purdue to a 58-44 victory over Northwestern in the Big Ten opener for both teams on Sunday.

"The outside shot didn't go in at all throughout the entire game," Haarms said. "I think we responded really well after the initial shock of 'none of our shots are falling.' We knew this was going to be a game where we grind it out on defense. We had stops 10 of the last 11 possessions in the first half and it translated into the second half."