MADISON, Wis. -- Northwestern clinched a signature win over a ranked opponent and polished its resume in an effort to claim the program's first NCAA Tournament berth.

Bryant McIntosh scored a game-high 25 points and Northwestern snapped No. 7 Wisconsin's eight-game winning streak with a 66-59 Big Ten upset on Sunday night at the Kohl Center.

The Wildcats halted a 19-game home winning streak for the Badgers. Northwetern has won two in a row in the series dating to last season.

Northwestern coach Chris Collins, in his fourth season, said he wants to imitate Wisconsin's success.

"When you look at this program we just played, they have good kids, they play the right way and play together," Collins said. "We're just trying to build a program to emulate that with the right guys who want to believe in something bigger than themselves.

"When you have success, I want these guys to feel good about it. It was a great win for us."

Collins said defense made a difference, particularly double-teaming Wisconsin sophomore forward Ethan Happ on the inside. Happ was held to nine points and had four turnovers.

Sophomore forward Vic Law and sophomore center Derek Pardon contributed 11 points each for Northwestern (19-6, 8-4 Big Ten), which stopped a two-game losing streak. The Wildcats shot 44.8 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from beyond the arc.

Learning how to play without leading scorer Scottie Lindsey, who has missed two games with mononucleosis, has proved a challenge for the Wildcats. McIntosh, a junior guard, said they've remained confident despite some struggles.

"A lot of teams can feel sorry for themselves when they have their leading scorer out with illness and things are falling apart," said McIntosh, who has scored 53 points in the two wins over Wisconsin the past two seasons.

"It shows a lot of character from us and we talked about being strong, together and having a belief in ourselves that we could accomplish something special."

Senior forward Nigel Hayes delivered a team-high 13 points for Wisconsin (21-4, 10-2), which shot 38 percent from the field in the only regular-season game this season against Northwestern.

Senior forward Vitto Brown and freshman guard D'Mitrik Trice added 11 points each for the Badgers.

Northwestern strung together a 16-0 first-half run -- finding success from beyond the arc -- to muscle its way into the lead.

Law hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 19 and senior forward Nathan Taphorn drained back-to-back long-range buckets to give Northwestern a 28-19 run with 4:07 left in the first half.

McIntosh scored 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field to lead Northwestern in the opening 20 minutes. A McIntosh jumper with 6:54 to go pulled the Wildcats within two points at 19-17.

Happ, who had difficulty dealing with double teams inside the paint, registered seven points and five rebounds in the first half. Senior guard Bronson Koenig was 0 of 4 from the field, including 0 of 3 from 3-point range, for the Badgers in the first half.

Wisconsin struggled on offense during a drought that spanned 4:52 in the first half. Senior guard Zak Showalter's 3-pointer ended the futility with 3:04 to go.

The Badgers regained their poise on offense in the second half with a 10-0 run sparked by consecutive 3-pointers by Showalter and Brown.

Hayes' layup with 16:28 left handed the Badgers a 32-31 edge.

"We knew they were going to go on a run to start the second half. They're too good and they never lose here," Collins said. "I didn't know they were going to score the first 10 points of the second half."

The Wildcats were 0 of 9 from the field before Law's bucket from beyond the arc spearheaded an 8-0 run as Northwestern regained the lead at 39-32 with 13:04 to go.

Meanwhile, Koenig struggled on offense and finished with two points on 1-of-8 shooting from the floor. Koenig, who played 30 minutes, was 0 of 5 from beyond the arc.

Koenig suffered a left calf strain in Wisconsin's 82-55 win over Penn State and Badgers coach Greg Gard said Koenig was hampered by the injury. He has shot 22.6 percent from 3-point range (7 of 31) in the last five games.

"I think he's OK mentally," Gard said. "I think the injury is a factor. How much of a factor? His acceleration off screens is obviously diminished a little bit, but he also has had some decent looks, too (against Northwestern).

"They weren't all screens. He had some catch-and-shoot opportunities."

NOTES: Wisconsin's last loss before falling Sunday at the Kohl Center was Jan. 9, 2016, a 63-60 setback to Maryland in which guard Melo Trimble drilled a winning 3-pointer at the buzzer. ... Wisconsin has won nine of the last 12 in the series with Northwestern. The Wildcats won the most recent matchup, a 70-65 home victory on Jan. 12, 2016. ... Senior F Nathan Taphorn returned to the Wildcats' lineup after suffering a right ankle injury during the first half of Northwestern's 68-55 win over Indiana on Jan. 29. Taphorn was sidelined for two games.