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.