DeKALB – Poor shooting plagued NIU women’s basketball (11-12, 4-7 MAC) as the Huskies were thwarted by the Western Michigan University Broncos (10-12, 5-6 MAC) by a score of 65-47.
The Huskies shot just 34% from the field and went 1-for-15 from three-point range in their lowest scoring performance of the season.
“You’ve got to give Western credit,” said NIU women’s basketball head coach Lisa Carlsen. “I think they did a nice job of being disruptive. But, we got shots that I would want these guys to take 10 times out of 10, but the ball’s got to go in the basket.”
Western Michigan began the second quarter with a 10-0 run to take the lead after the Huskies finished the first quarter up 15-10. The Huskies trailed the remainder of the game.
Scoring 26 points, Western Michigan graduate student guard Kaitlyn Zarycki was the lone offensive standout as the Broncos shot 35.6% from the field, inching a shooting advantage over the Huskies.
“I thought we contained her (Zarycki) pretty well in the first half, but, you know, in the second half I thought she kinda got going,” Carlsen said. “We made her get rid of the basketball in the first half, and in the second half I think we gave her too much space.”
Zarycki scored 17 of her 26 points in the second half.
Senior forward Brooke Stonebraker provided a small bright spot for the home crowd, pulling down a career-high 16 rebounds.
“Going into every game that’s part of my role,” Stonebraker said. “I need to be on the glass every single time, offensively and defensively, for my team. Most of the time I’m the tallest person out there, so I need to use my height to my advantage.”
The 6-foot-3-inch forward led the Huskies in points with 14.
The Huskies go back on the road to face Eastern Michigan University noon CT Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will be available on SIDEARM Stats.
