Final Stats

OU 72, NIU 47 

DeKALB - NIU (8-10, 1-6 MAC) played with pluck in the first half against Mid-American Conference leader Ohio (15-3, 7-0) Saturday afternoon as the squads swapped shots in the opening 10 minutes. However, the Bobcats made 10 three-point baskets and shot over 48 percent from the field in the second half with 19 points off of turnovers on the day to defeat the Huskies, 72-47.

Kelly Smith (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) led the Huskies with 12 points in the game while Ally Lehman (Nineveh, Ind./Indian Creek) pulled down 11 rebounds. Jazmine Harris (West Allis, Wis./Heritage Christian) went 7-for-10 from the free throw line and finished with nine points.

“We gave them too many opportunities, giving them the basketball and turning it over and that led to second chance opportunities. That was a problem for us in the first half and it didn’t get better in the first half,” said Head Coach Lisa Carlsen. “You can’t give a good team opportunities like that. 19 points off of turnovers is enough to tell the story today.”

Smith led the Huskies in the first quarter, going 4-for-6 from the field to lead NIU with nine points as NIU trailed Ohio at the end of the period, 17-13. Northern Illinois University’s post game started things off, trailing the Bobcats, 4-0, as Smith made back-to-back baskets in the paint, followed by an Amber Gray (Mukwonago, Wis./Mukwonago) layup to put NIU on top, 6-4.

In the final three minutes of the second quarter, NIU went on a 7-0 run to close the gap to four points on a layup by Courtney Woods (Brisbane, Australia/St. Margaret’s Anglican School), 27-23. Ohio's own 7-0 run pushed the lead to 13 points, 36-23, with 57 seconds left. A pair of free throws by the Huskies put them down by 11 at the end of the half, 36-25.

Smith closed the first 20 minutes with 10 points, sharing the game lead with Ohio’s Quiera Lampkins. Both teams finished the half shooting below 40 percent but three-pointers were the difference in the first half minutes as NIU made one and the Bobcats made four behind the arc.

The NIU defense stymied Ohio in the second half, limiting the Bobcats to 4-of-11 shooting and only 11 points in the period.

Both teams saved their best offensive output for the last period as the Huskies scored 17 points while Ohio added 25 points. The Bobcats made six shots behind the arc in the final 10 minutes of play. That potency put OU on top by 29 with 1:48 left. OU would improve its unbeaten streak to 10 games with the 72-47 victory.

NIU outrebounded the Bobcats, 40-35, leading on the both the offensive and defensive glass in the contest. Ohio had four players in the double figures, led by Lexie Baldwin’s double-double at 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Northern Illinois University will return to action Wednesday, Jan. 27 when it takes on Kent State at the MAC Center in Kent, Ohio. Tipoff between the Huskies and Golden Flashes is set for 6 p.m. Central.