EAST LANSING—Tom Izzo figures this game was payback for some of the tough losses his Michigan State team endured earlier in the season.

”Today’s one we should have lost that we won – but I can tell you three we should have won that we lost,” Izzo said Sunday.

Travis Trice had 18 points and 10 assists, and Michigan State outlasted Northwestern 84-77 in overtime. The Spartans held the Wildcats without a point in the extra session until the final minute.Denzel Valentine scored 17 points for Michigan State, and Branden Dawson and Gavin Schilling added 13 each, but Izzo wasn’t all that happy with his team’s third straight win.

”Every time I think we’re taking a step forward, to me, we take a step back, and the performance today was not one that I’m very proud of,” he said.

The extra session was finally kind to the Spartans, who had lost their first three overtime games this season, including a double-OT defeat against Maryland late last month. Michigan State (12-5, 3-1 Big Ten) had a 14-point lead in the first half, but that was gone by halftime, and Northwestern (10-6, 1-2) also rallied from an 11-point deficit in the second.Bryant McIntosh led NU with 18 points. Tre Demps added 17 and JerShon Cobb had 12.

”I’m heartbroken for my team because I felt we deserved to win the game,” Wildcats coach Chris Collins said. ”I just thought our guys were really

good today. I thought we made a lot of plays down the stretch.”
Northwestern shot 12 of 25 from 3-point range.

”It feels good to finally win a close game, but we shouldn’t have let it get that close,” Valentine said. ”We can’t stop playing, and that starts on defense. We can’t win many Big Ten games when teams shoot like that.”

Michigan State went on a 17-2 run in the second half to take a 66-55 lead, but Northwestern shot its way back into the game. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Vic Law and Demps tied it at 68, and when Demps made two free throws with 28 seconds left, the Wildcats led 72-70.Valentine drew a foul at the other end and made both his free throws, and Demps missed from the perimeter in the final seconds of regulation.Michigan State scored the first eight points of overtime.The Spartans scored the game’s first nine points and led 23-9 after a four-point play by Bryn Forbes. Collins was called for a technical foul for arguing with 9:42 left in the half, but the Wildcats eventually found their touch from the outside. They shot 7 of 12 from beyond the arc in the half, and it was tied at 40 at halftime.A 3-pointer by Nathan Taphorn gave the Wildcats a 53-49 lead, but Dawson and Valentine helped Michigan State build another double-digit lead. The Wildcats haven’t won at Michigan State since 2009. The Spartans were playing their third game in seven days, while Northwestern was playing its first in that span. … Izzo improved to 31-4 against NU.Cobb made all five of his field goal attempts in the first half, but he played only eight minutes the rest of the way.

”Someone landed on his foot so he couldn’t play. He had to come out of the game,” Collins said. ”That really hurt us, because he was playing really well.”

Valentine played 34 minutes, although Izzo said he’s ailing and Matt Costello hasn’t looked right either. NU hosts Illinois Wednesday night.

No. 15 Wichita State was facing a tough challenge from Loyola, and then the second half started.Tekele Cotton scored all but two of his 16 points and hit four 3-pointers over the final 20 minutes, and the Shockers pulled away for a 67-53 victory over the Ramblers on Sunday.Ron Baker scored 15. Fred VanVleet hit all five of his shots in a 14-point effort and matched a career-high with 10 assists.The Shockers (14-2, 4-0 Missouri Valley Conference) took control in the second half, outscoring the Ramblers (12-4, 2-2) 44-25 after trailing by five at the break to pick up their 22nd straight league win.

”I think we’re starting to click a little bit more now,” VanVleet said. ”Guys usually start hitting their stride around this time. Hopefully, we can keep it going.”

Earl Peterson led Loyola with 13 points and Devon Turk scored 11. The emerging Ramblers hit 10 of 18 3-pointers but simply came up short against the league’s powerhouse.Loyola has already eclipsed last season’s win total of 10 and is threatening to reach the postseason for the first time in three decades. A win over Wichita State certainly would have strengthened its case, but the Shockers wasted no time taking the lead in the second half.

”There’s never been a team that understands 40 minutes more than them,” Loyola coach Porter Moser said. ”They had no panic in them at all.”

Wichita State opened the second half on an 18-3 run, scoring the first 10 points to wipe out a 28-23 deficit.Back-to-back 3-pointers by Cotton made it 33-28, and a fast-break layup by VanVleet after he stole the inbounds put the lead at 41-31 with about 12:30 left.It stayed in that range until the closing minutes.Peterson banked in a half-court heave at the shot-clock buzzer to pull Loyola to 53-45 with just over 4 minutes left. But Cotton hit back-to-back 3s to start a 10-2 run for Wichita State.Loyola had the near-capacity crowd rocking thanks to a 10-point run over the final 2:36 of the first half that turned a five-point deficit into a five-point lead.Milton Doyle drove for a three-point play to start the spurt and followed that with a spin around Darius Carter for a neat layup.Peterson added a 3-pointer. And with the crowd chanting ”L-U-C!” he nailed a jumper off the dribble in the closing seconds to send the Ramblers to the locker room with a five-point lead.

LINCOLN—The story of Nebraska’s 53-43 win over Illinois Sunday is found in the numbers.Illinois made just 15 of 55 shots, 27.3 percent, the lowest an opponent has shot against Nebraska since Tim Miles became the Cornhuskers’ coach in 2012. The Fightin’ Illini’s 43 points were the second fewest allowed by a Miles-coached Nebraska team. ”A big part of our offensive struggles, Nebraska deserves a lot of credit for that,” said Illinois coach John Grose. ”Their defense is ranked in top 25 in the country for a reason when it comes to efficiency. I thought they were very difficult to score on tonight. I thought they defended very well. They did a great job.” Nebraska forward David Rivers said the Husker defense worked as planned.

”We played pack defense and just executed what the coaches have been preaching to us all week,” Rivers said. ”We were solid on defense packing it in, keeping it tight, trying to get the shooters the best we could. I think our screen-and-roll defense was good tonight and that was something we were working on.”

Nebraska (10-6, 2-2 Big Ten) built an 11-point lead midway through the second half and made 4 of 4 from the line in the final two minutes to seal the win. The Huskers shot and made just one free throw in the first 38 minutes of the game.Illinois (11-6, 1-3) cut the Nebraska lead to six late in the game but struggled to hit shots. The Fightin’ Illini made just 15 of 55 shots and didn’t have a basket after the 3:14 mark until Aaron Cosby’s short jumper with :14 left.Nebraska took the first double-digit lead of the game on Petteway’s 3-pointer that put the Huskers up 34-24 with 16:48 remaining. But Illinois’ Kendrick Nunn countered with a 3 on the next possession.But the Illini fell behind 40-29 on Petteway’s layup with 11:06 left. Nebraska then went cold, hitting just one basket over a five-minute span. Leron Black’s dunk with 8:09 left capped a 6-2 Illinois spurt, cutting the lead to 42-36. ”We’re sitting there at one point, late in the game, 6, 7 minutes left, we’re holding them to 27 percent and we’re only up six,” Miles said.

”I’m like `what do we got to do?’ You can’t play much better defense than that. It wasn’t like we were awful turning the ball over. We were shooting a decent percentage. But it was just one of those nights. Nobody’s going to the foul line. It’s going to be a tight game. I was proud of our team effort.”

Nebraska again pulled away, outscoring Illinois 7-2 in the next five minutes and taking a 49-38 lead on Petteway’s 3-pointer with 3:25 left. Illinois got no closer than eight the rest of the game.Illinois, which didn’t lead after the 15:49 mark of the first half, put up 17 3-point shots in the first half and made just three, but Nebraska couldn’t take advantage of the poor shooting and led by just six at the half.Shavon Shields had 11 points for Nebraska. Nunn and Malcolm Hill each had 10 for Illinois.The Illini visit Northwestern Wednesday night.

The Bulls went right inside to Pau Gasol on their first possession, and just kept feeding the big man. There was no reason to go anywhere else.Gasol had a career-high 46 points to go along with 18 rebounds, and the Bulls bounced back from two ugly losses with a 95-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.

”He wasn’t going to let us lose tonight,” coach Tom Thibodeau said.

Gasol was 17 for 30 from the field and 12 for 13 at the line in his 20th double-double of the season. He became the first player to record at least 46 points and 18 rebounds for the Bulls since Michael Jordan had 69 points and 18 rebounds in a 117-113 overtime victory at Cleveland on March 28, 1990.

”You start making your first couple of shots, your teammates start looking for you, and I was able to find good spots and get in rhythm,” the 34-year-old Gasol said. ”I give a lot of credit to my teammates. They made a lot of plays for me and looked for me a lot of times.”

Kirk Hinrich added 16 points, and Jimmy Butler had nine points, a career-best 10 assists and eight rebounds in the opener of a three-game homestand.The Bulls were coming off a pair of bad losses to Utah and Washington, when they shot a combined 36 percent from the field. They weren’t much better against Milwaukee, finishing at 40 percent (35 for 88), but Gasol’s big performance was enough to hold off the Bucks.

”He was very comfortable right from the first shot of the game,” Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd said. ”He was very comfortable and you could see that. We have to do a better job at making him feel uncomfortable.”

Brandon Knight scored 20 points for Milwaukee, which had won its last five road games. Jared Dudley had 15 points, and fellow reserve O.J. Mayo finished with 12.Milwaukee trailed for the entire first half, but moved in front with a 12-2 run to begin the third quarter. Knight had two jumpers in the surge.The Bulls responded with a 10-0 run of their own for a 60-51 lead with 4:43 to go. Butler capped the surge with two free throws after he drew a foul on Khris Middleton while shooting a 3 as the shot clock expired.Gasol then helped the Bulls close it out in the final period. He had a driving layup that made it 87-75 with 4:01 remaining. He finished with four straight free throws, surpassing his previous career best of 44 points for Memphis against Seattle on March 28, 2006.

”We kept trying, but we never could get stops when we wanted to,” Knight said. ”They were able to keep the lead in a comfortable position for them.”

The Bulls played without starters Derrick Rose and Mike Dunleavy. Rose, who missed much of the last 2 1/2 seasons due to a series of injuries, was sidelined by left knee soreness, and Dunleavy missed his fifth straight game with a right ankle injury.Dunleavy had an MRI and was scheduled to see team physician Dr. Brian Cole on Saturday night. Rose also was expected to meet with Cole, and the point guard also could be headed for an MRI depending on the result of the examination. Thibodeau said after the game that he had no update on either player.Milwaukee’s visit to the United Center was supposed to be Jabari Parker‘s first NBA game in his hometown, but the rookie forward is out for the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last month.Bulls guard Tony Snell had two points, six rebounds and two assists in his first start of the season. He made 12 starts during his rookie year last season.

”I thought Tony gave us really good minutes defensively,” Thibodeau said.

NOTES—The Bucks Ersan Ilyasova (concussion) missed his 10th straight game, but Kidd said he will make the trip to London for Thursday’s game against the Knicks. ”The plan is for him to play there,” Kidd said. ”We’ll see.” … Knight tweaked his right ankle while guarding Butler with 10:46 left in the third, but stayed in the game. … F Kenyon Martin left his second game with Milwaukee with a chest contusion….Bulls: Gasol had 28 points on 11-for-18 shooting at halftime. … The Bulls improved to 10-2 in their last 12 home games…..The Bulls host Orlando Monday night while the Bucks play the New York Knicks in London on Thursday.

ST. PAUL—Corey Crawford may have stolen two points for the Blackhawks with an impressive performance.Crawford made a season-high 42 saves, Bryan Bickell scored twice in the third period and the Blackhawks held on to beat the heavy-hearted Minnesota Wild 4-2 on Thursday night.

”That was a goalie win,” Joel Quenneville said. ”They were the better team tonight, for sure, and we dodged a bullet.”

Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane also scored for the Hawks, who have won four of six. The Blackhawks remained two points behind Nashville in the Central Division.Jason Zucker and Jason Pominville scored for Minnesota, which has lost nine of 11.

”We were short. That’s the bottom line,” Wild captain Mikko Koivu said. ”But I thought we had a good 60-minute effort from everyone, from the whole team, and that’s what we’re going to need to get out of this.”

Facing a hot goaltender wouldn’t hurt, either.Crawford was at his best in the final two periods when the Wild had 37 shots on goal.

”I was just trying to look around traffic and to battle as hard as I could through screens and stuff, especially on their power play,” he said. ”They were playing with a lot of energy. We were able to weather the storm.

“He made a couple great saves for us at crucial times and that’s what we need,” Bickell said. ”We need to be better in front of him.”

The Wild played its second straight game without left wing Zach Parise. His father, former Minnesota North Star J.P. Parise, died Wednesday night after battling lung cancer.Zach Parise, who missed Tuesday’s game to be with his family, has been designated as a non-roster player to give him time to grieve. A moment of silence was held before the game and Wild players wore ”11” decals on their helmets.But Minnesota needed more than Parise.With Darcy Kuemper, who has started 27 of the Wild’s 39 games, out at least a week with an injury, Niklas Backstrom – entering the game 60th in the league with an .896 save percentage – got the call in goal. He made 15 saves.

”It’s not the easiest game to play as a goalie,” he said. ”You have to find a way even if there’s not a lot of chances and a lot of shots. When they got a shot, it’s very much a chance, so you have to find a way for that. You want to be better today.”

Backstrom might have been able to get a save on the Hawks first goal barely 5 minutes into the game. Sharp gathered a loose puck low in the left circle, cut to the net and tucked the puck behind the Wild goaltender. It marked the first time in seven games that the Blackhawks scored the game’s first goal.Backstrom had almost no chance when Kane made it 2-0 with a power-play goal late in the period, converting from below the right circle before Backstrom could scurry back across the crease.Minnesota’s slow start came one day after coach Mike Yeo laced an expletive-filled tirade at his team during an uninspired practice before breaking his stick over the boards and leaving the ice.

”We responded the right way,” Pominville said. ”Our bench was positive. Our room was good. We did a lot of good things to give ourselves a chance to win, and if we play that way we’ll probably win most of our games.”

The team’s effort improved dramatically in the second period as the Wild controlled play, outshot the Hawks 19-5, and scored the period’s lone goal at 1:03.With Minnesota keeping sustained pressure in the offensive zone, Koivu sent a pass along the boards behind the goal to Pominville who passed to Zucker in the slot. Zucker’s one-timer beat Crawford high for his team-leading 15th goal.

NOTES—The teams meet again Sunday in the . … The Blackhawks are 14-1-0 when leading after one period; 14-0-0 when leading after two. … Minnesota D Marco Scandella missed the game with an upper-body injury sustained Tuesday against San Jose. … Wild F Jordan Schroeder, D Jonathan Blum and G John Curry were recalled from AHL Iowa. … Daniel Carcillo returned. He was a healthy scratch the past two games.

LAKE FOREST—The Bears announced Thursday they have hired Ryan Pace as their new general manager. He replaces Phil Emery, who was let go in December after three years as general manager.Pace spent the last 14 seasons with the Saints, including the last two as the director of player personnel. Prior to that, he served as an operations assistant (2001), scouting assistant (2002-03), pro scout (2004-06) and director of pro scouting (2007-12).

“I’d hate to lose him and yet, he’s ready for a general manager’s job,” Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said when talking with the media Tuesday. “He’s talented. I would expect to lose him at some point.”

VALPARAISO—Vashil Fernandez scored a career-high 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting and had blocked four shots to lead a balanced Valparasio attack Thursday in an 85-56 win over UIC.Alec Peters, Tevonn Walker and Darien Walker scored 11 apiece, Jubril Adekoya scored 10, and the Crusaders (15-3, 2-1 Horizon) shot a hot 60.4 percent from the field to 30.4 percent for the Flames and outrebounded them 40-32.UIC led 12-8 after a 3-pointer by Jay Harris, but Valparaiso pulled ahead 13-12 on a free throw by Peters, then used a 15-5 run to lead 47-32 at halftime. Fernandez scored 11 points in the half.The Crusaders opened the second half with a 13-6 run, then pulled away on a 10-2 run to lead by as many as 30. All nine Crusaders who check in scored points and Valparasio’s bench outshot UIC’s 28-17.Ahman Fells led the Flames (5-13, 1-2) with 13 points.

CHAMPAIGN—Illinois wondered who would score with Rayvonte Rice injured, and Malcolm Hill provided the answer Wednesday with a career-high 28 points in a 64-57 upset over No. 11 Maryland.Hill turned it on in the second half with 18 points. The sophomore’s hot hand fueled a 20-3 run that the Illini (11-5, 1-2) used to take over the game.Rice is Illinois’ leading scorer and rebounder but will be out up to six weeks after breaking his left hand this week in practice. His loss left Illinois looking at possibility of a 0-3 conference start with its next two games on the road.Hill added seven rebounds. Nnanna Egwu led Illinois with nine.Melo Trimble led the cold-shooting Terrapins (14-2, 2-1 Big Ten) with 17 points. Maryland shot just 36.5 percent from the field.

Derrick Favors had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and the Utah Jazz used a strong defensive effort to beat the Bulls 97-77 on Wednesday night.The Jazz held the Bulls to a season-low point total on just 28-of-84 (33.3 percent) shooting. The Bulls were averaging 103.1 points.Gordon Hayward had 18 points for Utah (13-23), and Trey Burke scored 17. Seven of the Jazz’s wins have come on the road.Jimmy Butler led the Bulls with 16 points and 11 rebounds, and reserve Taj Gibson added 15 points.Derrick Rose had just seven points on 3-for-15 shooting. The 2011 NBA MVP is shooting 25.5 percent (28 for 110) in his last six games.The Bulls (25-11) went 3-2 on a five-game homestand. They are 11-7 at home this season.With outside temperatures dropping below zero, the United Center was colder than usual – and the first-half shooting was quite chilly for both teams.The Bulls were just 13 for 46 (28.3 percent) from the field in the first half, including 0-for-13 shooting by their starting backcourt of Rose (0 for 9) and Kirk Hinrich.Utah suffered through 2-for-16 shooting over the first 10 minutes of the second quarter, but closed the first half with an 8-2 spurt for a 36-32 halftime lead.The Jazz carried the momentum into the second half and opened the third period with a 13-5 surge run.Following a timeout, the Bulls responded with a 9-0 run to trim Utah’s lead to 49-46 with six minutes left in the third. Rose, who missed his first 10 shots, made back-to-back baskets on a driving layup and a short-range floater.They had a chance to move even closer, but they had turnovers on back-to-back possessions, and Utah increased its advantage to 63-51 heading into the fourth quarter. The Jazz then opened the final period with a 14-3 run for a 77-54 lead with nine minutes to play.

NOTES—Forward Mike Dunleavy (right ankle) was listed as questionable, but missed his third straight game. He might be ready to return over the weekend.

EVANSVILLE—Christian Thomas scored 16 points, including a basket underneath in the final second, to lift Loyola to a 71-70 victory over Evansville 71-70 on Wednesday.A basket by D.J. Balentine gave Evansville a 70-66 lead with a minute left. Milton Doyle hit a 3-pointer to get the Ramblers (12-3, 2-1 Missouri Valley) within a point with 42 seconds remaining. Balentine missed a jumper with 12 seconds left and Thomas, getting the offensive rebound after Doyle missed a jumper, scored the winner.Doyle added 13 points for the Ramblers, who shot 50.9 percent and made eight 3-pointers.Balentine led the Evansville (11-4, 1-2) with 18 points. Duane Gibson added 16. Evansville shot 57.4 percent, but made just 1 of 7 3-pointers.Neither team led by more than six.It was the first MVC road victory for the Ramblers after dropping 10 away games since joining the conference last season.