DeKALB, IL – It was a complete team effort for the Northern Illinois University women's basketball team Saturday afternoon as the Huskies defeated the Ohio Bobcats 78-66 at the NIU Convocation Center.
"I was really proud of this group today, especially down the stretch," said head coach
Lisa Carlsen. "We did a good job of handling the run that Ohio made late in the game. Everybody that got on the floor stepped up and did a nice job for us. That's how we're built.
Ten of the 12 Huskies that played in Saturday's game scored, led by senior forward
A'Jah Davis' (DeKalb, Ill./Montverde Academy [Fla.]) 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Chelby Koker (Racine, Wis./Shoreland Lutheran) scored 10 of her 13 points in the second half and had a game-high five assists.
Janae Poisson (Matteson, Ill./Marian Catholic) had 12 points off the bench.
NIU (10-5, 2-2 MAC) opened the game on an 8-3 run over the first 3:39 with Davis scoring the last six points. After Ohio tied the game at 8-8 with 5:05 left in the first a
Grace Hunter (Monroeville, Ind./Bellmont) three kickstarted a 9-2 Huskies' run that put NIU ahead 17-10 at the 2:27 mark of the opening quarter. The Bobcats closed the gap to two when a Jasmine Hale triple put the score at 17-15, but a
Jayden Marable (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) layup at the buzzer gave NIU a 19-15 lead.
Ohio (2-13, 0-4 MAC) closed the gap to one early in the second quarter as back-to-back Caitlyn Kroll threes made the score 22-21 with 8:16 to go until halftime. NIU responded with a 12-2 run over the next 4:04.
Emily Meinert (Galesburg, Ill./Parkland College) started the spurt with five straight points and a Koker three helped punctuate the run that put the Huskies up 11, 34-23, with 4:12 left in the first half. The Huskies took a 38-29 lead into the intermission, shooting 42 percent from the field.
The Bobcats chipped away at NIU's lead to start the third, getting within six at the 8:20 mark when a Hale jumper made the score 42-36. The Huskies then went on a quick 7-2 run, highlighted by an
Emma Carter (Bristol, Vt./Franklin Pierce) three, to go back up by 11 49-38. Ohio cut the deficit to five, 60-55, by the end of the third quarter. Layups from Hale and Felder to start the fourth got the Bobcats within one, 60-59, with 8:28 to go in the game. NIU and Ohio traded baskets for the next five minutes, with the Huskies answering Ohio layups with threes from Koker and
Sidney McCrea (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Prairie). The Bobcats got as close as two, 68-66, with 4:05 to go but the Huskies sealed the win from there. NIU closed the game on a 10-0 run, with all 10 points coming from Koker, Hunter and Davis, to lock up the victory 78-66.
NIU finished the game shooting 45.3 percent from the field and made double-digit three-pointers for the second straight game with 10.
"We made threes when we needed to," Poisson said following the win. "We just had to keep shooting with confidence. We've had a lot of ups and downs this season with that, but I think we're starting to get back on track."
The Huskies outrebounded Ohio by 16, 40-34 and scored 20 second chance points on 19 offensive rebounds.
Felder led all scorers with 23 points and nine assists for Ohio.
NIU is back in action at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. against the Miami RedHawks. For tickets, log on to NIUHuskies.com or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at (815) 753-PACK (7225). General Admission tickets are $6 with reserved seats at $8.
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