BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Northern Illinois University women's basketball team shot 53.8 percent from the field and made 13 threes as it defeated the Mid-American Conference co-leaders Bowling Green 85-81 at the Stroh Center Wednesday night.

"We had a lot of people step up and do some great things tonight," said head coach Lisa Carlsen, who earned her 300th career win with the victory. "We shared the basketball and shot it really well. We handled Bowling Green's defensive very well down the stretch."

NIU (13-11, 5-8 MAC) handed Bowling Green it's first home loss of the season and snapped the Falcons' 11-game winning streak. Chelby Koker (Racine, Wis./Shoreland Lutheran) led all scorers with 18 points, 13 of which came in the second half. A'Jah Davis (DeKalb, Ill./Montverde Academy [Fla.]) had her 17th double-double of the season with 16 points and a game-high 16 rebounds.

Janae Poisson (Matteson, Ill./Marian Catholic) was 4-for-4 from the three-point line in scoring 17 points. Sidney McCrea (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Prairie) was the fourth Huskie in double-figures with 11 points and two steals.

The Huskies shot 56 percent from the field and made seven threes in the first half to take a 42-38 lead at halftime. NIU used an 8-2 run, with six points from Davis, to extend the lead to 10 53-43 with 6:40 left in the third. Poisson extended the lead to 11, 58-47, with a three at the 2:50 to go in the quarter. Bowling Green came back and closed the quarter on an 11-2 run, getting within two 60-58 going into the fourth quarter.

NIU got two threes from McCrea and Koker to start the fourth, extending the lead to five 66-61 with 8:08 to play in the game. The Falcons closed within one with 4:49 to go when Allison Day made back-to-back layups to make the score 68-67. The Huskies then rattled off five straight points as a Poisson three-point play put NIU up six, 73-67, with 3:50 remaining. Bowling Green got as close as four points with 1:20 to go before Koker made a three with 0:51 that put the Huskies up seven, 80-73, and put away the Falcons.

"We just beat one of the best teams in the league and on Saturday we play, arguably, the best team in the league in Ball State," said Carlsen. "Every game has a life of its own and we have to stay in the moment. We'll enjoy this win tonight, it's a huge one for us. In three days, we're going to have another big game and we're going to go battle for 40 more minutes."

NIU shot 52 percent from the three-point line Wednesday night, holding Bowling Green to 5-for-28 from long range. The Huskies were 16-for-22 from the free throw line The Falcons forced 23 NIU turnovers, turning them into 28 points. NIU forced 13 turnovers and scored 11 points off of them.

Bowling Green (22-3, 11-2 MAC) was led in scoring by Nyla Hampton's 17 points and five steals. Day and Lexi Fleming each had 15 points.

The Huskies return home to the NIU Convocation Center on Saturday, Feb. 18 to face Ball State in the Cram The Convo doubleheader. The first 1,000 fans in the building will receive a pair of NIU branded winter gloves, supported by Northwestern Medicine. Fans are encouraged to wear black for a BlackOut of the Convo. For tickets, log on to NIUHuskies.com or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).
 
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