DeKALB, IL – The Northern Illinois University women's basketball team is back in action at the NIU Convocation Center Wednesday night when the Ohio Bobcats come to town. Game time against the Bobcats is 6 p.m. with the game broadcast available on ESPN3.
 
NIU (2-3, 0-1 MAC) jumps back into Mid-American Conference play after a 79-71 loss at Bradley last Sunday. Sophomore guard Chelby Koker (Racine, Wis./Shoreland Lutheran) filled up the box score against the Braves with 14 points, nine rebounds, and career-highs of seven assists and six steals. In two games last week Koker averaged 18.5 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and 3.5 steals per game. Koker is in the top-10 in the MAC in scoring and rebounding with 19.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game and is second in the league in free throw percentage at 95.8 percent.
 
The Huskies got a scoring lift from junior forward Mikayla Brandon (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bradley-Bourbonnais) on Sunday at Bradley. Brandon set career-highs of 13 points and 14 rebounds for her first career double-double. She scored the first eight points of the second quarter Sunday to put NIU in the lead and had 11 in the quarter as a whole to help the Huskies take a 38-30 halftime lead. Brandon has averaged 9.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game over the last three games.
 
Wednesday's game features the top two three-point shooters in the MAC in Ohio's Erica Johnson and NIU's Janae Poisson (Matteson, Ill./Marian Catholic). Johnson leads the league with five three-pointers and 28 points per game. Poisson is second with 3.4 threes per game. As a team NIU leads the MAC with 11.4 three-pointers per game, which is fourth-most in the country. The Huskies are also second in the MAC in three-point field goal percentage at 37.3 percent.
 
Ohio (2-1, 0-1 MAC) was picked to finish second in the MAC in the Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bobcats dropped their league opener last Friday in an 84-80 loss at Kent State. Ohio has the top two scorers in the MAC in Johnson and Cece Hooks who is second with 24.3 points per game. The Bobcats are the top scoring offense in the MAC early in the season, averaging 80.7 points per game.
 
Although fans are unable to attend NIU basketball games this season, you can still make your presence felt in the NIU Convocation Center by purchasing a cutout as part of the "Huskie Howl" presented by First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO). For just $60, fans can put their image on a cutout that will remain in place in the NIU Convocation Center for all NIU men's and women's basketball games during the 2020-21 season. Net proceeds from all fan cutouts will benefit the Huskie Athletic Fund. 
 
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