KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Thanks to strong defense and hot shooting by NIU (6-4) in the third quarter, the Huskies closed a 21-point deficit to one possession in the final four minutes of regulation against reigning WNIT Champion South Dakota (10-2), however, Northern Illinois University fell to the Coyotes, 97-83.

Four Huskies scored in double figures paced by Cassidy Glenn (New Lenox, Ill./Presbyterian), who shattered her three-day-old career-high with 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting. Courtney Woods (Brisbane, Australia/St. Margaret's Anglican School) also had 19 points while Ally Lehman (Nineveh, Ind../Indian Creek) and Kelly Smith (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Lehman also registered eight assists and pulled down six rebounds as well.

The Huskies 21-point deficit was the largest margin of the season, falling to the mark with 24 seconds left in the first half.

Both teams combined for 13 shots behind the three-point in the opening 5.5 minutes of the first quarter, setting a tempo that carried through the remaining 20 minutes. The Huskies and Coyotes combined for a 13-of-32 (.406) clip in the first half with South Dakota hitting nine of those shots.

Glenn, with one trey in the period, paced the Huskies with 12 points as NIU trailed by 11 in the first, 33-22. USD asserted itself in the final 10 minutes of the half as it built a 21-point lead late in the half and entered the halftime locker room with a 59-39 lead.

Determined to not fall behind any further, Northern Illinois University played with a possessed intensity in the second half, outscoring South Dakota in the third quarter, 31-19. Defensively, NIU recorded eight stops on the Coyotes first nine possessions of the period.

The Huskies shot 5-of-10 behind the arc and attacked the paint with fervorous repetition as they drew seven personal fouls against USD to go a perfect 8-of-8 at the free throw line. The Huskies clawed back to within eight points at the end of the period, 78-70.

"Obviously South Dakota played a great first half and took it to us, but I told the kids at halftime, we know we have enough firepower to get back in the game but we did not play with any sense of urgency defensively in the first 20 minutes and that had to change," said Head Coach Lisa Carlsen.

"We got a few stops, Courtney got hot for awhile and we were able to put some points on the board and make it a ball game. Unfortunately when we did get it within a possession or two, a couple baskets or a couple stops here and there and this game maybe goes a different way. I was proud of the way they fought back and I think we're going to be in a position regardless of what the scoreboard says, we can fight back as long as we get a few stops in a row," Carlsen added.

The trend continued in the fourth quarter as NIU opened on a 9-4 run, led by a Glenn three-pointer and a pair of buckets from Lehman, as the Huskies closed the gap to three points, 82-79, with 6:30 remaining. The defenses stood resolute over the next two minutes, forcing low-percentage shots until the media timeout where the Huskies remained with three, 84-81.

After the break, South Dakota outscored NIU 13-2 in the final four minutes to seal its 10th victory of the season, 97-83.

Northern Illinois University will close its non-conference season tomorrow afternoon, taking on Roo Holiday Classic host UMKC at Swinney Recreation Center at 3:30 p.m. Central.