PEORIA, Ill. - The Northern Illinois University women's basketball team cut a 19-point third quarter deficit down to seven points with 3:30 to play Friday night at Renaissance Coliseum but could not overcome a cold three-point shooting night in a 69-54 loss to the Bradley Braves.
Graduate guard Alecia Doyle (Carterville, Ill./SEMO) led the Huskies with 15 points. Leah Middleton (Auburn, N.Y./Binghamton) added 10 points, three rebounds and two steals. Sa'Mahn Johnson (Columbus, Ohio/Reynoldsburg) scored eight points off teh bench with four rebounds.
Bradley (1-1) led 34-23 at the half and scored the first eight points of the third quarter to take a 42-23 lead at the 8:26 mark. NIU responded by scoring seven of the next eight points with a Doyle three making the score 43-30 with 4:33 remaining in the quarter. The two sides traded baskets until the Braves' Charia Smith knocked down a triple with 0:18 left to give Bradley a 52-36 lead going into the fourth.
NIU (1-1) attacked the basket at will to start the fourth quarter and it paid off. NIU went on an 8-2 run in the first three minutes with Middleton and Johnson each scoring four points to get the Huskies within 10, 54-44. After two Inia Jones free throws made the score 56-44 at the 6:15 mark, two Doyle free throws kickstarted a 6-1 NIU run over the next 2:45. Freshman Komari Booker (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike) put in a jumper with 3:30 to play to cap the run and get the Huskies within seven at 57-50. The Braves made one last run to pull away, scoring 10 straight to take a 69-52 lead in the final 0:30.
The Braves used a 7-2 run early in the first quarter to break a 4-4 tie, with an Alice Veilleux three putting Bradley up 11-6 with 5:06 to play. Bradley led by as much as 10 in the first before Middleton and Ashlynn Brooke (Logansport, Ind./Ball State) combined to score the Huskies' last seven points to cut the deficit to seven, 21-14. NIU held Bradley without a field goal for a stretch of over six minutes in the second quarter, getting baskets from Doyle, Laniah Davis (Michigan City, Ind./Marquette Catholic) and Anna Stromberg (Andover, Minn./Radford) to close the deficit to six, 26-20 with 2:30 to go until halftime. Bradley closed the half on an 8-3 run to take a 34-23 advantage.
Bradley shot 40.7 percent from the field and had 17 assists on 24 made field goals. NIU shot 34.5 percent for the night but was 1-for-19 from three-point range. The Braves had 41 rebounds to the Huskies' 37. Veilloux led all scorers with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Jones added 15 points off the bench.
NIU goes back on the road on Wednesday, Nov. 11 to take on the DePaul Blue Demons. Tip-off at Wintrust Arena is at 6 p.m. CT.
—NIU—
