EVANSTON, Illinois (Ticker) -- A victory over the defending national champions two weeks ago now must feel like a distant memory for Wisconsin.
Noah Herron and Jason Wright led a strong ground attack as Northwestern pulled off a surprising 16-7 win over the 17th-ranked Badgers in a Big Ten Conference matchup.
Two weeks ago, Wisconsin (6-3, 3-2 Big Ten) was in the thick of the conference race after ending Ohio State's 19-game winning streak.
But after a heartbreaking loss at home to Purdue last Saturday, the Badgers played without starting quarterback Jim Sorgi and struggled against the improving Wildcats (4-4, 2-2).
"Certainly, the first time we played like that all year," said Badgers offensive coordinator Brian White. "We were really lethargic."
Badgers defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove pointed towards the Ohio State and Purdue games as reasons for the Badgers' struggles.
"We just came off two emotional games," he said. "We'd like to say it won't happen (a loss), but we put a lot into those two weeks."
Matt Schabert was ineffective as Sorgi's replacement and the Badgers had no answers for the strong Wildcat running game.
Wright carried 18 times for 97 yards, including a one-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that gave the Wildcats a 16-7 lead. He also had 53-yard touchdown reception in the opening quarter.
Herron saw less work than Wright but rushed for 104 yards on 11 attempts. He did have a key 31-yard run in the fourth quarter to help keep alive a drive.
The Wildcats posted their second straight win over the Badgers. En route to its 2000 Big Ten championship season, Northwestern posted a 47-44 overtime victory at Wisconsin.
Clinging to a 9-7 lead in the third quarter, the Wildcats used a big play from their special teams to further push the contest in their favor.
The Wildcats were faced with a 4th-and-6 at the Wisconsin 23. Coach Randy Walker sent his field goal unit on but called for a fake and Herron ran 23 yards.
"We ran it a few times in my career," said Northwestern coach Randy Walker. "It's probably out the window, you can only dust it off every few years. I'm the world's greatest plagiarist. We took it from Ball State University."
Two plays after the surprising fake, Wright plowed over from one yard to give the Wildcats a 16-7 lead with 2:08 left in the third quarter.
The deficit proved too much to overcome for the Badgers, who watched Schabert struggled while playing without star running back Anthony Davis for much of the contest. Davis left the game late in the first quarter after aggravating an ankle injury.
Schabert, starting in place of Sorgi, who underwent knee surgery on Sunday, completed 20-of-36 passes for 193 yards and one interception. He also rushed for 65 yards on 13 attempts.
Northwestern quarterback Brett Basanez went 10-of-23 for 176 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
Basanez made one of the game's biggest plays when he hooked up with Wright on a 53-yard scoring playing down the right sideline with 3:52 left in the first quarter to give the Wildcats a 6-0 lead.
"Anytime you got a playmaker like Jason, and he busts one - the guys kind of get into it, especially the linemen," Basanez said. "They start running the ball real well and they get real happy."
Dwyane Smith, who replaced the injured Davis, capped an eight-play, 52-yard drive with an 18-yard run with 6:55 left in the half, giving the Badgers a 7-6 lead.
But Wildcats responded with a 12-play, 82-yard march, capped by Brian Huffman's 25-yard field goal to take a 9-7 lead with 1:44 left before intermission.
