Last week it was a celebration. This week it was a relief.

In a game Northwestern coach Randy Walker described as “a perfect scenario” for Indiana to score an upset, the Hoosiers nearly won.

The Wildcats barely hit a last-minute field goal in regulation and converted two crucial fourth-down plays to survive two overtimes, spoiling Indiana’s trip to Ryan Field with a 31-24 win.

NU’s offense totaled 213 yards through the first 30 minutes, reaching Indiana’s territory on all five of the Cats’ first-half possessions. But after attacking the Hoosiers’ (2-4, 0-3 Big Ten) red zone on the first three of those possessions, NU (3-3, 2-1) came away with just seven points and went into halftime with a 7-7 tie.

“It’s been our low point all season,” NU quarterback Brett Basanez said. “When we get in the red zone we really need to put some points on the board, preferably six. Great teams, when they get in the red zone, they score. So that’s something we really need to focus on.”

After missing two field goals in the second quarter, a 27-yarder that sailed left and a 48-yard try that barely left the ground and dribbled into the end zone, NU kicker Brian Huffman had another opportunity with 29 seconds left in regulation and the Cats trailing 17-14.

The 32-yard kick clanked off the left upright but turned right and sailed between the posts, sending the game to overtime.

“We’ve got a couple coming to us now, because two of those at TCU bounced out,” Walker said. “We deserve at least one more, and we got one back today.”

Down 24-17 in the first overtime, Basanez converted on fourth-and-six with a pass to receiver Mark Philmore, then threw a touchdown pass to tight end Taylor Jones.

A 16-yard touchdown run by the Cats’ Noah Herron on fourth-and-one in the second overtime gave NU a 31-24 lead and the eventual win.

The Cats’ third win came after what Walker described as “the most challenging week of their lives,” after beating then-No. 7 Ohio State 33-27 in overtime on Oct. 2.

“That challenge was overcoming the success, overcoming the good feeling and overcoming the pats on the back, and getting yourself back to the right place all week,” Walker said. “It was to quit thinking about what happened in that game and to focus on the next.”

NU struggled to contain the Hoosiers’ passing, as Indiana quarterback Matt LoVecchio threw for career highs in completions and yards. The senior finished 27 of 50 with 329 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

“He made some nice shots, had a real command of their offense,” Walker said. “He’s been in the program now a couple of years and he has grown as a player. The receivers made some plays. Some of it was probably our lack of execution perhaps, but a lot of it was their execution.”

LoVecchio threw for a quick touchdown in the first overtime, a 25-yarder to Jahkee Gilmore on the second play.

But NU’s secondary played well in the second overtime, breaking up passes on second and third down with the Cats leading 31-24. Sophomore linebacker Demetrius Eaton tackled LoVecchio for a loss on fourth-and-three, ending the game.

“I think we made some big plays when it counted,” Walker said.

Herron finished with a career-high 197 yards on 29 carries, with 41 yards receiving.

He had the Cats’ offensive line to thank. The line provided the rushing lanes and allowed just one sack, its only sack in the past three games.

Another of NU’s offensive threats, Basanez, converted 28 of 48 throws for 254 yards and one touchdown. He threw for one interception, directly into the hands of Indiana’s Herana-Daze Jones right after the Hoosiers took a 14-7 lead in the third quarter.

Basanez’s problems contributed to NU’s struggles in the red zone, where the Cats were able to score on just two of four opportunities.

“Quite frankly, I don’t feel like I played very well to give our team a chance to win,” Basanez said. “But we overcame some things and came out with a victory, which is what’s important.”

Basanez’s touchdown came in the first overtime, on a third-and-goal pass to Jones that tied the game at 24. Basanez scrambled backward from the two-yard line and heaved a pass from the 20-yard line into the end zone as Indiana’s Kyle Killion provided pressure.

“He told me he thought it was fourth down,” Herron said about Basanez. “So I was like, ‘C’mon Brett. You’re the quarterback.’

“It happened, and so it happened that Taylor was there to make the catch.”

Walker was impressed with his team’s ability to respond after executing poorly on several possessions.

“The game was full of some adversity and some perhaps missed opportunities, but our kids kept fighting,” Walker said. “And they kept believing. They kept playing hard. And I can’t express how proud I am of them.”

Reach Teddy Kider at [email protected].