John Tonje had 27 points and reserve Carter Gilmore added a career-high 15 as No. 17 Wisconsin overcame a sluggish first half to salvage a 75-69 Big Ten victory over Northwestern on Saturday in Evanston, Ill. Max Klesmit added 11 points and Nolan Winter 10 for Wisconsin (17-5, 7-4 Big Ten), which avoided a third consecutive road loss.

Dawson Garcia, who scored 23 points after halftime, was the only player to make a basket for the Golden Gophers in one eight-minute stretch of the second half in which he scored 16 points. He made one free throw to tie the score at 64 with 2:44 remaining.