BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Hoosiers took care of Northwestern on the road with a convincing 84-64 win over the Wildcats Tuesday night.

Indiana was just two games out of first place in the Big Ten heading into their road clash with Northwestern, and they needed a win to keep their hopes of another regular season title alive. Here's how they got it done.

When Mackenzie Holmes eventually decides her time at IU is over, she will finish as one of the program's all time greats. Performances like the one she had against Northwestern are the reason why.

Holmes has excelled in creating shots in the low post with her elite level footwork and spatial awareness. These skills were on full display Tuesday night. She put up 28 points to lead all scorers.

Not only did Holmes score 28 points, but she did so on a ridiculously efficient 12-13 from the field.

Indiana has done well all year at sharing the ball and getting their top players to have a big impact on the scoring column. Tuesday night, however, Holmes needed to pick up the slack as her teammates struggled to generate offense.

After exploding for 25 points against Iowa last week, Sara Scalia was fairly quiet in this one. She was able to connect on three attempts from beyond the arc, but those would be her only made field goals. she shot 3-9 from the field, and hit two free throws to finish the game with 11 points.

Chloe Moore-McNeil had been on a heater since January, but was quiet in this one, scoring just six points, missing her only three point attempt.

No harm, no foul though for Indiana as Holmes propelled them past Northwestern with a memorable offensive showcase.

One of the biggest qualms with the Indiana men's basketball team this season has been their lack of consistent three point shooting. If they face a large deficit, they struggle to claw back into games as they cannot score in bunches.

This same scenario played out in this one.

Indiana led by 10 at the half, which is by no means impossible to overcome. With some luck from beyond the arc, the score could be squared up in just a few possessions. Luckily for the Hoosiers, they have some of the best perimeter defenders in the conference.

Northwestern struggled to even create open looks from deep, as Indiana played a tight defense around the perimeter. Five different Hoosiers recorded a steal in this one.

When the Wildcats were able to get looks, the quick closeouts from Indiana defenders made it difficult for them to get comfortable in their rhythms.

Indiana does not give away leads easy as is, so this was always going to be a difficult one for Northwestern to get back into. However, that is made infinitely more difficult when you shoot 2-12 from deep for the game, making just one in the second half when they needed points most.

Indiana next returns home to face off with Maryland on Sunday for their last Big Ten matchup of the regular season.

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