Reach five straight wins for the Utah women's basketball team under Gavin Petersen.
The Utes beat the Big Ten Northwest 91-66 on Sunday at Huntsman Center, avenging a loss to the Wildcats in a non-conference game last season.
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This time, Utah pulled away in the second and third quarters after a tight first quarter.
The team is getting into shape before the Big 12 game
It took a while for the Utes to find a groove with a new group that doesn't include former Ute greats like Gianna Knipkens, Jenna Johnson, Kennady McQueen and Ines Vieira.
In the win over Northwestern, senior guard Lani White continued to solidify her position as someone the Utes will rely on this season as they attempt their fifth straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
After going 5-for-5 from 3-point range in last week's win over Boise State, White improved on that mark and shot a perfect 7-for-7 from 3-point range against Northwestern, including 4-for-4 in the third quarter as Utah beat Northwestern 32-13.
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White scored a career-high 26 points and added seven rebounds and three assists, while junior forward Reese Ross added a season-high 20 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
The Utes followed their veterans to victory, including a tough day with 11 points, five rebounds and four assists from Maty Wilke, who is playing through a shoulder injury.
Utah shot a stunning 76.5% in the third quarter, completed 53.8% of its shots for the game and committed 24 turnovers against its power conference opponent.
The Utes hit 13 3-pointers, a highlight of their recent run of success in the Petersen-Lynn Roberts era, while holding Northwestern to two 3-pointers.
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It all culminated in a dominant win over the Wildcats that gave Salt Lake City a 6–3 record.
Utah survived some early adversity and thrived
Even though Utah was doing well in the final two-plus quarters (the Utes outshot Northwestern 45-30 in the second half), the home team had to fight from the start to the end.
The Wildcats led by five points in the first quarter thanks to Grace Sullivan's 14 first-period points and were up 24-23 after one quarter.
Northwestern even made it 34-34 with just over three minutes left in the second quarter before Utah began to pull away.
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The Utes outscored the Wildcats 12-2 to end the second quarter and went into the half with a 46-36 lead before extending the lead to 38-8, scoring 26 of the first 32 points of the third to go up 72-42.
That was more than enough to beat the Wildcats, who led Sullivan by 21 points.
What does this mean for Utah?
The Utes (8-3) averaged 24.6 points per game during their five-game winning streak, beating Weber State, Montana, Colorado State, Boise State and Northwestern during that stretch.
Utah will complete the non-conference portion of its schedule with a home game this Wednesday (7 p.m. ET) against UC Riverside, which is 2-7 on the season.
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Utah is just eight days away from Big 12 play, with a Dec. 22 game at Arizona before the Christmas break.
The Utes will then host undefeated Arizona State on Dec. 31 in their conference opener at home.
After a three-game losing streak earlier this year against three teams currently considered NCAA tournament teams in Washington, Syracuse and defending national champion UConn, the Utes responded well and began to show the kind of efficiency Utah fans have become familiar with in recent years.
Can young players like LA Snead, Avery Hjelmstad and Evelina Otto continue to develop as the conference season gets underway?
There is one more chance to continue this development before Big 12 play begins.
