Burton hits 2 FTs in 2nd OT, Northwestern beats Michigan

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) - Veronica Burton knew it was time to put this one away. Two overtimes were enough for her, and when she stepped to the line, she had no doubt she was going to make the tiebreaking free throws.

Burton hit two foul shots in the closing seconds, Jillian Brown scored a career-high 18 points, and Northwestern beat a top-four team for the first time in 40 years, squeezing past No. 4 Michigan 71-69 in double OT on Sunday afternoon.

The Wildcats (14-9, 6-6 Big Ten) had not beaten a team ranked this high since taking out No. 3 Long Beach State on Jan. 16, 1982. Their most recent victory over a top-five opponent was over No. 5 Ohio State on No. 5 Ohio State on Jan. 14, 2016.

Burton had 13 points and 13 assists. The Wildcats' star was just 2 of 13 from the field, but she made 8 of 10 free throws, including two at the end after getting fouled on an inbounds pass.

'œIt was time to put it away,'ť Burton said. 'œHonestly, I was not willing to play another quarter, so it was time to put an end to it. I've missed free throws at the end of games, and I've had my teammates immediately pick me back up, my coaches immediately pick me back up. I think that, honestly, has prepared me for these situations. My confidence was at an all-time high, and I knew the game was over as soon as I was going to the line.'ť

Brown, a freshman, surpassed her previous high of 16 points. Courtney Shaw scored 16 and grabbed nine rebounds. And Northwestern, coming off a loss at Minnesota on Friday, pulled off the surprising win after losing five of seven.

'œI feel like we've beaten a lot of top-10 teams, top-20 teams over the last three years, four years,'ť said coach Joe McKeown, in his 14th season at Northwestern. 'œI think when people beat us now, it's a big thing.'ť

WOLVERINES LOSE AGAIN

Naz Hillmon scored 16 and became the fourth Michigan player with 2,000 points. She also grabbed 15 rebounds.

Danielle Rauch and Emily Kiser each scored 13. But the Wolverines (20-4, 11-3) lost again after falling at rival Michigan State on Thursday.

'œI thought it was a great battle, great basketball game,'ť coach Kim Barnes Arico said. 'œVeronica Burton was able to get to the free throw line in overtime, and I think that really helped them. We weren't able to get to the free throw line in overtime, and I think that hurt us. We didn't make the plays that they made to win the game.'ť

FINAL STRETCH

Northwestern led 69-66 after Courtney Shaw's layup with 1:15 left in the second overtime. Michigan's Danielle Rauch nailed a step-back 3 from the left win to tie it with 53 seconds remaining.

The Wolverines' Maddie Nolan got called for an offensive foul with four seconds to go. Burton got fouled by Amy Dilk and made two free throws to break the tie.

Michigan's Izabel Varejo missed a shot as time expired, setting off a celebration near the Northwestern bench.

IN FIRST OT

Burton hit two free throws for Northwestern to tie it at 63-all with 1:40 left in the first overtime.

After Brown blocked a corner 3 by Maddie Nolan with 27 seconds left, resulting in a shot-clock violation for Michigan, Northwestern's Lauryn Satterwhite missed on a wild drive. It led to a jump ball with three seconds remaining that the Wolverines controlled. But Courtney Shaw stole a pass from Rauch.

DOWN STRETCH

Michigan led 53-50 with 6:31 remaining in regulation after a layup by Hillmon, then went more than five minutes without scoring.

Northwestern scored eight in that stretch, with six of those points coming from Brown. Michigan missed eight straight shots before Danielle Rauch finally nailed a 3 with 26 seconds left.

Burton then turned the ball over, and Rauch made two free throws to tie it at 58-all with 7.2 seconds to go.

After a timeout, Burton caught an inbound pass near the top of the key and missed a floater, sending the game to overtime.

BIG PICTURE

Michigan: The Wolverines were looking for a bounce-back win. Instead, they have back-to-back losses for the first time this season. Leigha Brown missed her third consecutive game because of a lower leg injury, and playing without their best guard hasn't made things any easier.

Northwestern: A huge win for the Wildcats, who have another tough matchup coming up at No. 7 Indiana on Thursday.

UP NEXT

Michigan: Hosts No. 15 Maryland on Feb. 20.

Northwestern: Visits No. 7 Indiana on Thursday.

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