Women's Basketball | November 10

DeKALB, IL – The Northern Illinois University women's basketball team looks to get in the win column Tuesday night when the Western Illinois Leathernecks come to the Convocation Center.
 
Tip-off is at 6 p.m. for Salute To Service. Tickets are on sale now on NIUHuskies.com or by calling the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225). All Service Members can claim complimentary tickets by visiting VetTix.org. Tuesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and locally on 94-9 WDKB.
 
NIU (0-2) got off to a fast start but did not keep up with the three-point shooting of the Milwaukee Panthers Friday night at the Convocation Center in a 76-65 loss. Milwaukee was 9-for-17 from long range while the Huskies were just 4-for-16.
 
Graduate guard Nadechka Laccen (San Juan, Puerto Rico/St. Bonaventure) led all scorers with a career-high 26 points. Laccen was 9-for-15 from the field with three three-pointers while making 5-of-6 free throws. Her previous career-high of 22 points came when she was at St. Bonaventure against Kent State on Dec. 4, 2022. Laccen is the sixth Huskie since 2020 to score at least 25 points in a game. She is NIU's leading scorer through the first week of the season at 17.0 points per game.
 
Nevaeh Wingate (Liverpool, N.Y./St. John's) and Maria Serracanta (Sabadell, Spain/Mercer) each had 10 points against Milwaukee. It was Wingate's second consecutive game in double-figure scoring to start the year. Serracanta's 10 points were a career-high, besting her previous high of seven on Dec. 5, 2023 when she was at Mercer against Georgia Tech. She also had a career-high six rebounds.
 
Western Illinois (1-0) opened its season on Nov. 4 with a 116-46 win over Westminster College. The Leathernecks shot 54.3 percent from the field and were 20-for-23 from the free throw line. Mia Nicastro led five Western Illinois players in double figure scoring with 26 points. The Leathernecks were picked to finish third in the preseason Ohio Valley Conference coaches poll.
 
On Thursday night, the Huskies head to UIC for the first time since 2014. Tip-off at Credit Union 1 Arena is at 7 p.m. with the game broadcast on ESPN+ as well as on NIUHuskies.com. The Flames are 0-2 to start the year after a 72-56 loss at Indiana last Friday. UIC led 34-27 at the half but the Hoosiers outscored the Flames 45-22 in the second half to rally for the win. Jessica Carrothers is averaging 22.5 points per game to start the season. UIC won last season's meeting against NIU at the Convocation Center 69-66.
 
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