Takeaways: Northwestern 84, No. 15 Indiana 83

Northwestern went on the road to No. 15 Indiana and brought home a nail-biting 84-83 win.

The Northwestern offense got out to their best start of their season on the biggest stage of their season, and then held on to pull off the upset.

It was a phenomenal game all around, with both teams put up ridiculous numbers.

Boo Buie led Northwestern with 26 points on 10-for-18 shooting. Typically when Buie leads the team, he does it by bombing away from deep, but he put up his 26 on just 1-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc. Chase Audige briefly left the game with a back injury, but played through the pain and finished with 19 points, eight assists and an absurd six steals.

Indiana, which was playing without injured starters Xavier Johnson and Race Thompson, had two players put up video game numbers. and Trayce Jackson-Davis. Jalen Hood-Schifino finished with 33 points, and single-handedly brought Indiana back into the game with 21 in the second half. Trayce Jackson-Davis had 18 points and 24 rebounds.

Here are our takeaways from Northwestern's upset win in Bloomington that lifted their record to 12-3 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten:

Universally regarded as the team's Achilles heel, the offense got out to a roaring start and never looked back. The Wildcats shot better than 70% from the floor and doubled up Indiana, 34-17, at one point in the first half. All five starters scored six or more points in the opening period.

In the second half, the scope narrowed and it was about Buie and Audige against Hood-Scifino and Jackson-Davis. Both tandems scored 29 second-half points, and that was enough for Northwestern to stave off Indiana's 49-43 second-half advantage to secure the win.

The Wildcats have seemed to live and die with Audige and Buie this season, and there's no doubt they delivered yet again. What set this game apart though, were the exceptional performances from Ty Berry and Robbie Beran.

Berry found his shooting touch and poured in a pair of threes on his way to 13 points and 11 rebounds. The 6-foot-3 guard has a nose for the ball this year and came up with another double-double at he perfect time.

Beran also made a couple threes on his way to 13 points, and provided crucial spacing and creation when the Hoosiers keyed in on Buie and Audige.

The Wildcats shot 46% from the floor and 36.8% from three, both were extraordinarily welcome sights and completely crucial to pulling off the upset at Assembly Hall.

If head football coach Pat Fitzgerald watched this game, he would be grinning ear-to-ear seeing the Wildcats force so many turnovers.

Northwestern won the turnover battle 16-7 and outscored Indiana off turnovers 25-6. In a one-point game, the importance of a 19-point advantage cannot be overstated.

Even though they allowed 83 points, the Wildcats defense played well, and some of the defensive stats are hard to believe. Seven of the eight Wildcats who saw the floor got a steal, Audige led the team with six. Beran and center Matt Nicholson combined for five blocks.

The turnovers were especially important early on when the Wildcats built their lead. Northwestern won the first half TO battle 9-1.

The Wildcats are bad guests this season and haven't lost a true road game yet. They have gone into two extremely hostile environments, Michigan State's Breslin Center and now Indiana's Assembly Hall, and come out victorious.

There were frenetic stretches as Indiana ratcheted up the pressure and went to a full-court press, but by-and-large this is a calm, cool and collected Wildcat team that handled the pressure efficiently. They have two seasoned ballhandlers in Buie and Audige, who make the right decisions and knock down their free throws. That was another key component for the Wildcats, who outscored the Hoosiers 19-10 at the charity stripe, including five of six in the closing seconds.

The eternal saying is that defense travels, and while the Wildcats gave up 83 points on Sunday, that has certainly been the case. Northwestern has built their foundation on a strong defense, and it has reaped its rewards. They are a dangerous opponent anywhere and anytime, but they have delighted in shutting up Big Ten crowds this season.

Before the season, it would have been seen as a good sign if the Wildcats won one of their first three Big Ten games in January. Instead, they went 2-1, with a dominant win over Illinois and an upset over a ranked Indiana team where they controlled the game for significant stretches.

Northwestern's offensive demons are certainly not completely banished, but today the Wildcats showed against IU that they can play with almost anyone in the conference -- or the country, for that matter.

The Wildcats got embarrassed by Ohio State in a 73-57 loss on New Year's Day. Rather than folding, this team responded by hanging 73 on Illinois and 84 on Indiana. Rather than Buie or Audige just going off from beyond the arc, those wins were built on controlled and cohesive offensive efforts.

The Wildcats have some formidable momentum now, and can start to seriously challenge for a spot in the Big Dance by continuing it in Big Ten play. But it doesn't get any easier.

Northwestern will face another test of its mettle with a rock-solid Rutgers team, which knocked off No. 1 Purdue on Jan. 2, coming to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Wednesday.