No NU flameout this time in win over No. 18 Minn.
Northwestern assumed its first Big Ten win would only be a matter of time.
But the Wildcats couldn't help getting antsy and a little frustrated when the unit of measurement changed from days to weeks.
After heartbreaking losses to Penn State and Purdue - as well as a second-half flameout against conference leader Michigan State - Northwestern finally broke through on Sunday afternoon with a 74-65 victory over No. 18 Minnesota in Evanston.
Not only did the Wildcats (9-8, 1-4) snap a 17-game losing streak against ranked opponents, they earned their second win in their last 30 games against Big Ten foes.
Even senior guard Craig Moore, NU's resident grump and the game's high scorer with 22 points, couldn't help but smile after this one.
"I thought we played very well against Michigan State, Purdue; those are ranked teams," Moore said. "We knew we were capable and we had to finish it.
"We played a half, we played 35 minutes and we blew leads. So we knew we just had to step it up in the second half, suck it up, hold onto our guts and play."
Oh, and one other thing: The Wildcats had to switch defenses.
After Minnesota (16-2, 4-2) shredded Northwestern's 2-3 matchup to take a 32-23 lead with five minutes left in the first half, the Wildcats switched back to the 1-3-1 zone trap that worked so well for so long against Purdue.
With junior guard Jeremy Nash at the top forcing turnover after turnover, the Wildcats went on a 16-0 spree early in the second half to take a 10-point lead.
"They're a very aggressive team at scoring," Nash said. "But I felt they were more looking to throw a lob into their big men - and me and the wings went out and pressured the guys holding the ball and just turned it over."
More important, after squandering double-digit, second-half leads to Penn State and Purdue, Northwestern didn't falter.
Though the Gophers had nearly 11 minutes to make up their 10-point deficit - way more time than they needed to rally and shock Wisconsin on Thursday - they never drew closer than 8.
Minnesota committed 19 turnovers, a season high, but the 17th might have been the most fitting.
The Gophers had the ball trailing by 9 with more than seven minutes to go, but Nash (season-high 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals) poked the ball away from behind against Lawrence Westbrook.
Teammate Ivan Peljusic picked up Nash's steal and fired it downcourt for a breakaway dunk.
If you recall, Nash missed a breakaway layup with 19 seconds left against Purdue that would have snapped a tie.
"I thought about it and I'm like, 'I'm not going to miss any more layups,' " said the 6-foot-3 junior guard. "If I can, I'm just going to go up and dunk it. My goal from now on is just to dunk everything."
In Northwestern's brave new world, why not?