Women's Basketball | January 25

DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women's basketball team wraps up a stretch of four consecutive games against Mid-American Conference East division opponents when it travels to Buffalo for a 1 p.m. showdown Saturday.
 
NIU (11-7, 3-3 MAC) is coming off just its second home loss of the season on Wednesday night, a 69-53 defeat to Ohio. The Bobcats are tied atop the MAC East with Buffalo at 5-1. The Huskies were able to hold Ohio, who came into the game leading the conference in scoring offense at 83.6 points per game, to about 14 points below its average. In the last three games, NIU has allowed 60 points per game and held the opposition to 33.8 percent from the field.
 
The Huskies have also held a +4.0 rebound margin in the last three games, bolstered by the play of redshirt-junior forward Ally May (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead). May had her third consecutive double-digit rebound game on Wednesday with a team-high 14 rebounds against Ohio. On Jan. 16, May had her third double-double of the season with 18 points and 15 rebounds in NIU's win at Bowling Green. She is averaging 8.7 points and 11.3 rebounds per game over the last seven games while shooting 57.7 percent from the floor.
 
Mikayla Voigt (Slinger, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran) scored at least 20 points for the eighth time this season on Wednesday night, leading NIU with 23 points against Ohio. She also had 20 points in the Huskies' win over Akron on Jan. 20. The senior guard is second in the MAC in scoring at 20.7 points, behind only Buffalo's Cierra Dillard. Her 61 threes this season are the ninth-most in a single-season in program history. Voigt made 68 three-pointers last season.
 
NIU is 15-8 all-time against Buffalo. The Huskies have won each of the last three meetings, including last season's 86-84 overtime victory at the NIU Convocation Center.
 
Picked to win the MAC East after reaching the NCAA Sweet Sixteen last season, Buffalo (13-4, 5-1 MAC) is currently riding a five-game winning streak after defeating Akron 91-72 Wednesday night. The Bulls shot 49.3 percent from the field and outrebounded the Zips 33-23. Buffalo also scored 29 points off 18 Akron turnovers. Cierra Dillard led the Bulls with 25 points as four other players scored in double-figures. The Bulls are 13-4 on the season, and 5-1 in the MAC with the lone loss coming in overtime against Ohio, 74-71, on Jan. 5. Dillard leads the MAC in scoring at 25 points per game, and is third in assists with 5.5 per game. As a team, Buffalo is fourth in the MAC in scoring at 75 points per game. 
 
NIU is back home at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 30 to face Western Michigan at 6 p.m. Tickets for Wednesday night's game are available through the NIU Convocation Center Box Office by calling 815-753-PACK (7225) or by logging on to NIUHuskies.com/tickets.

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