DeKALB - Starting strong in the opening quarter but trailing the reigning Mid-American Conference East Division Champions Ohio (11-3, 2-1 MAC) by four points, the NIU Huskies (10-4, 3-0 MAC) took an 11-point lead heading into the third quarter and clinched an eight-point triumph over the Bobcats, 88-80. The victory sealed Northern Illinois University's first 3-0 start in conference since 1993-94 as five Huskies scored in double figures with the team going 31-for-35 at the free throw line.

"We're excited about the outcome," said Head Coach Lisa Carlsen after the game, "we talked at the beginning of the year that great teams defend home court and I think if you look at what we did against a really good Ohio team, we did that. There were a couple things that didn't go our way, but I felt like this group never panicked. Anytime you can play the game with a lot of confidence and step to the (free throw) line at the end of the game and put things away, you're going to win your share of ball games."

Senior Cassidy Glenn (New Lenox, Ill./) led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-22 shooting, including three treys in six attempts. Courtney Woods (Brisbane, Australia/St. Margaret's Anglican School), who shot 11-of-14 from the free throw line, scored 18 points while tallying four steals while Ally Lehman (Nineveh, Ind./Indian Creek) recorded her 10th double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds with six assists.

Off the bench, freshman Abby Woollacott (Rockford, Ill./Rockford Lutheran) pulled down a season-high 10 boards with four points in the effort.

NIU started the game on a 9-0 run and took an 11-5 lead into the first media timeout with 5:00 left. While the Huskies did a great job of attacking the basket and drawing fouls to force several Bobcats into foul trouble, NIU trailed OU at period's end, 21-17, despite a 9-for-10 clip at the charity stripe.

After the Bobcats hit the first shot of the second period, the Huskies went on 14-0 run to reclaim their three-possession lead, 31-23. Northern Illinois was an impressive 10-of-18 from the field in the quarter, outscoring Ohio off turnovers, 10-2, to take a 45-34 lead into the halftime locker room. Glenn led NIU with 12 points in the opening half.

Though NIU built its biggest lead of the game in the fourth, 17 points, OU did not back down from the challenging comeback as it closed the gap to four points over the final 7:17 of the game. However, the Huskies strong free throw shooting in the period (11-of-12) kept Ohio at bay and the two possession lead in NIU's palms.

Northern Illinois University outscored the Bobcats 31-9 at the free throw line en route to the victory at the Convocation Center. NIU is 6-0 at home this year and reached the 10-win plateau in 14 games, the program's fastest ascension to the mark since 2005-06.

NIU will hit the road for an extended stay in Ohio, taking on Kent State on Wednesday and  Toledo on Saturday. Tipoff for Wednesday's against the Golden Flashes is set for 6 p.m. Central.