For the first time in a day short of two months, Northwestern celebrated a victory on Thursday night in Minneapolis.

The Wildcats pulled off a 67-59 win over Minnesota to snap their 13-game losing streak and notch their first win of 2021. They hadn’t doused head coach Chris Collins with water in the locker room since beating Ohio State on Dec. 26.

Boo Buie scored 19 of his game-high 25 points in the second half to spark the Wildcats, who managed to win despite committing 19 turnovers. Northwestern trailed by six at the half but outscored an undermanned Minnesota squad by 14 points in the second half.

“They deserved it tonight and I’m really proud of them,” said head coach Chris Collins.

Miller Kopp scored 15 points for the Wildcats, while Ryan Young chipped in eight.

Marcus Carr scored 21 points to lead the Gophers, who have now lost five in a row and may slide off of the tournament bubble.

This game certainly didn’t start out looking like the one that would snap the skid for the Wildcats. Northwestern turned the ball over eight times in the first eight minutes as Minnesota jumped out to a 17-3 lead.

But then, as they usually do, the Wildcats came right back. They ripped off a 16-2 run to tie the game at 19 after a Kopp three-pointer from the wing fell through.

The Gophers answered with six points in the blink of an eye on a layup and two fast-break dunks and the teams traded baskets from that point on. Despite playing carelessly for 20 minutes, the Wildcats trailed by just six points, 31-25, at the break.

Northwestern was a different team in the second half. The Wildcats made their share of mistakes, but they grabbed the game by the throat, coming up with six steals, diving for loose balls, attacking the rim and drawing fouls.

Buie got off to a hot start in the second period, hitting a pair of three-pointers and a layup as the Wildcats reeled off the first 10 points to take a 35-31 lead at the 15:55 mark. Minnesota roared right back, and a Carr layup and free throw gave the Gophers the lead again, 43-42.

Buie re-tied the game at 46 with a pair of free throws with 6:41 to go, and it was a dogfight from that point on. Kopp hit a three-pointer to give the Wildcats an edge, and then Carr hit one to take it back for the Gophers.

Northwestern had built a four-point lead when Buie hit the biggest shot of the night, a triple from five feet beyond the arc with 1:37 to go that gave the Wildcats a 58-51 lead that they wouldn’t give up for the rest of the game. From there, they closed it out at the free-throw line, of all places.

Here are our takeaways from the win that raised Northwestern’s record to 7-14 overall and 4-13 in Big Ten play:

Northwestern made plays down the stretch: The Wildcats have blown more than their share of late leads this season, but they made big plays down the stretch to put this one away.

In the last five minutes, Kopp hit a three-pointer and a jumper and Chase Audige, who had a night to forget with just four points and seven turnovers, tipped in a second-chance basket and came up with a steal. Then Buie hit the dagger, his three-pointer from Duluth.

Northwestern then hit eight straight free throws to seal the win. The Wildcats, for just the second time in the last 18 games, took more foul shots than their opponent and wound up going 22 for 27 from the charity stripe, compared to 9 of 10 for the Gophers.

Buie came up big: “I thought Boo was fantastic,” said Collins. “He was the one guy we had that could get downhill and attack their pressure.”

Buie did his damage from beyond the arc and at the free-throw line. He set the tone for the second half early by hitting a pair of three-pointers, and his last one was the clincher. He went 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the second half, and a perfect 12-for-12 on free throws, including 8-for-8 in the second half.

He finished the game with a plus/minus of +21.

The Wildcats turnover woes continued: Early in the year, Northwestern was one of the best teams in the nation at ball security. But lately, the ball has been coated with Crisco for the Wildcats.

Northwestern came into the game averaging 11.4 turnovers a game. They exceeded that by halftime as the Gophers had a 13-2 edge in points off of turnovers. Audige had five turnovers all by himself in the opening period, including one on a Tre Williams steal that was converted into a dunk on the other end.

The Wildcats played better in the second half, but the turnover problems didn’t stop, as they committed seven over the final 20 minutes. Audige finished with seven turnovers, the most by far, while Buie, Pete Nance, Robbie Beran and Ty Berry had two apiece.

NU wasn’t ready to play at tipoff: Northwestern has had its share of slow starts this season, but this one may have been the team’s worst.

The Wildcats turned the ball over eight times in the first eight minutes. They not only had more turnovers than points (three); they had more turnovers than shots (five).

Minnesota jumped out to a commanding 17-3 lead by the 11:55 media timeout, while the Wildcats were busy throwing the ball all over Williams Arena. Audige “led” the Wildcats with four turnovers in that span, including a couple of careless entry passes, and the team racked up two shot-clock violations after sloppy play on the offensive end.

Minnesota played shorthanded: The Gophers were missing two of their starters against Northwestern, and their absence showed.

Center Liam Robbins, the Big Ten’s leading shot blocker and the Gophers’ leading rebounder and second-leading scorer, missed the game with an ankle injury. Guard Gabe Kaulscher, a co-captain and the team’s best defender, was out with a broken finger.

Despite missing their two best defenders, the Gophers played a strong defensive game, coming up with eight steals. But they really missed Robbins presence in the post. With reserves pressed into duty, Minnesota only got two points from its bench.