BUFFALO, N.Y. - Freshman guard Emilie Sorensen (Waukee, Iowa/Waukee) had a near-perfect night from the field on Wednesday night, scoring a season-high 20 points in leading the Northern Illinois University women's basketball team to a 64-58 win over the Buffalo Bulls at Alumni Arena.

Sorensen was 5-for-6 from the field, including making 4-of-5 three-point attempts, and a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line. She also added six rebounds. Nevaeh Wingate (Liverpool, N.Y./St. John's) had 15 points and seven rebounds as Nadechka Laccen (San Juan, Puerto Rico/St. Bonaventure) had 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a game-high three steals.

"We've been trying to get all three of them going offensively," said head coach Jacey Brooks. "It's been one or two most nights. For Emilie, Nevaeh and Nadechka to put it all together night proved to be the difference."

NIU (3-11, 1-2 MAC) scored first and didn't look back. Marta Hermoso (Seville, Spain/McNeese) made a three 0:22 into the game, sparking a 9-2 Huskies run over the first 4:21 of the night. The Huskies went up 11-4 with 4:21 to go in the first on a Teresa Mbemba (Benguela, Angola/Presbyterian). However, that was NIU's last field goal of the quarter. Buffalo closed the gap to three, scoring the last four points to make the score 11-8.

Sorensen scored eight of NIU's first 10 points in the second quarter, making two threes to put the Huskies up 21-11 with 6:11 to play until halftime. The Bulls closed within four at the 4:51 mark as layups from Diann Jackson and Deana Thompson made the score 21-15. Sorensen responded with her third three-pointer of the quarter, followed by a Laccen basket to put NIU ahead by 11, 26-11. The Huskies shot 42.9 percent from the field in the second quarter to take a 29-20 halftime lead.

The Huskies took their largest lead of the game early in the third quarter. A Laccen layup at the 7:33 mark capped a 9-2 run that put NIU ahead by 16, 38-22. Buffalo used a 7-2 run late in the quarter to get within seven, 44-37, with 0:58 left on a pair of free throws from Aniya Rowe. The Huskies responded with a 9-2 run of their own. Mbemba scored five points in that stretch, capping the scoring spurt with a layup at the 5:40 mark of the fourth quarter to give NIU a 53-39 lead. The Huskies hung on from there as Buffalo only got as close as six points the rest of the way.

"We did a good job limiting Buffalo in transition and limiting their offensive rebounds," said head coach Jacey Brooks. "I'm really proud of the team for getting it done tonight. We kept it a little interesting at the end, but it helps to be in that situation and it'll help us grow."

The Huskies shot 41.8 percent from the field and were 6-for-14 from the three-point arc. Buffalo (2-12, 0-3 MAC) shot 37.7 percent for the night. The Huskies held the Bulls to three second chance points on 10 offensive rebounds and forced 17 Buffalo turnovers. NIU had 16 assists on its 23 made field goals with Maria Serracanta (Sabadell, Spain/Mercer) leading all players with six, tying her career-high.

The Huskies host Bowling Green at the NIU Convocation Center on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 2 p.m. Tickets are on sale now at NIUHuskies.com/tickets or by calling the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).

—NIU—