Central Michigan University Athletics
Central Michigan University
Northern Illinois*
Women's Basketball Falls At Northern Illinois, 68-42
2/19/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 19, 2006
DeKALB, Ill. - A frigid first half offensively by the Central Michigan University women's basketball led to its demise in a 68-42 loss at Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon.
The Huskies improve to 6-7 in the Mid-American Conference race and take sole possession of fourth-place in the West Division while CMU falls to 5-8 in MAC action. NIU is now also 10-14 overall while the Chippewas are 14-10.
The Maroon and Gold shot just 23.1 percent (6-of-26) in the first frame compared to 56.0 percent (14-of-25) by NIU which put the Chippewas in a 21-point hole at the half, 36-15. Turnovers also plagued CMU in the stanza as the squad committed 13 miscues in the half after entering the game averaging just 15.6 per game as NIU held a 14-0 edge in points off turnovers at the half.
The Chippewas did warm up early in the second half, shooting 50.0 percent from the field over the first 10 minutes of the frame. That allowed CMU to cut the deficit to 14 three times during that span but the Chippewas could get no closer as the offense cooled off again.
NIU finished the contests shooting 54.0 percent (27-of-50) from the field while CMU knocked down just 31.3 percent (15-for-48). The Huskies also better from downtown as they finish 4-of-10 from three-point range while CMU was just 5-of-19. Turnovers also hindered CMU as the squad finished with 23 for the game compared to just 13 by NIU with the Huskies turning CMU's miscues into 25 points.
NIU's Kristin Wiener finished with a game-high 22 points to lead NIU, going 10-of-12 from the floor. She was key in the second half as Weiner scored 13 of the Huskies first 15 points in that stanza to keep the Huskies comfortably ahead. Stephanie Raymond was the other Huskies in double figures with 18 points and a game-high nine assists.
Casey Manning finished with a team-high 13 points to lead CMU while Lindsay Mecoli tallied a season-high nine points, going 3-for-5 from three-point range. Sharonda Hurd did her part by pulling down a game-high 12 boards, six on the offensive end.
The first four minutes of the game was a defensive battle as CMU held a 1-0 led entering the first media timeout. NIU got on the board with a lay up by Raymond who followed that up with a three-pointer on the next possession to give the Huskies a 5-1 advantage.
A put back by Sharonda Hurd got CMU within two at the 14:35 mark, but the Chippewas would get no closer as they would go the next 6:41 without a point. The Huskies used CMU's offensive drought to go on a 13-0 run which made the score 18-3 with 7:56 to go in the half.
Things continued to go bad for CMU as after a jumper by Candace Wilson at the 7:05 mark, CMU went cold again with a five-minute scoreless drought. This allowed Northern Illinois to build a 31-7 advantage with just over two minutes to play. The teams traded baskets the rest of the stanza as NIU held a 36-15 lead at the break. The 15 points by CMU is its lowest total for a half this season.
The second half started promisingly for CMU as it went on a 10-4 run to open the half. Solid shooting allowed CMU to stay around for the first 10 minutes of the frame as it cut NIU's lead to 14 three times, the final time coming at the 9:41 mark, but the squad ran out of gas down the stretch for its biggest margin of defeat this season. The 42 points also sets a season-low for the Chippewas.
The Chippewas did control the boards, out rebounding Northern Illinois, 32-28. CMU finished with 13 offensive caroms while the Huskies tallied just seven. Both teams got to the line 12 times with NIU hitting 10-of-12 and CMU just 7-of-12. The Huskies also had more steals (11-8), assists (19-7) and blocks (5-0) on the night.
CMU returns home for a pair of games next week beginning with Ball State on Wednesday, Feb. 22. Tip off for that contest is set for 7 p.m. The Chippewas than wrap up their regular season home schedule with Senior Day against Toledo on Saturday, Feb. 25. That game tips at 2 p.m.
