DeKALB — NIU women’s basketball (5-20, 2-11 MAC) hosted and suffered a crushing 75-68 overtime defeat to the University of Akron Zips (6-19, 3-19 MAC) on Saturday.
The Huskies rallied in the second half after trailing by as many as 12 points to force overtime. In the extra period, NIU fell short as the Zips’ bench production and dangerous range limited the Huskies.
“We knew it was going to be physical with a really tough post-player like Ni’Rah Clark,” head coach Jacey Brooks said. “But we have a really tough postplayer in Nevaeh Wingate.”
Junior forward Nevaeh Wingate led the Huskies offense with 22 points and 8 rebounds, her fourth consecutive game over 10 points, going 7-of-16 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free-throw line.
“It starts in practice, we do an extra 100 shots after every practice,” Wingate said. “Taking my time but knowing that we need points on the board.”
Freshman guard Emilie Sorensen (15), senior forward Marta Hermoso (13) and senior guard Maria Serracanta (10) also ended the game in double digits with efficient shooting splits. Serracanta added on 9 rebounds, tying her season high.
FIRST HALF
In the opening quarter, Hermoso led the charge with 8 points, but the Zips’ were lethal from long range, converting 12 points from deep for a 20-17 lead.
The Huskies shot 25% from the field in the second quarter while Akron couldn’t miss despite NIU forcing long possessions. A combination of sluggish NIU possessions and mistakes led to a Zips’ 17-4 run in the middle of the third quarter.
Wingate’s clutch free throw efficiency kept NIU within eight points heading into the break, 39-31.
SECOND HALF
NIU’s offense started flowing in the third, shooting 8-of-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from three. Meanwhile, Akron’s long-range efficiency plummeted, allowing NIU to chip away at the lead.
With 5:45 left in the third, Hermoso’s three evened the game at 46 points, and back-and-forth action saw the Huskies take a one-point near the end of the quarter.
Offenses came to a standstill in the final quarter with NIU shooting 2-of-8 and Akron shooting 3-of-13. Neither side converted a single three and instead settled for free throws and layups.
Graduate student guard Nadechka Laccen’s jumper with 14 seconds left sent the game to overtime, the first of the season for NIU.
“She (Laccen) was able to be disruptive, grabbing rebounds and showing up in defense,” Brooks said.
OVERTIME
NIU continued to struggle offensively and foul trouble caught up with the Huskies. The Zips converted 5-of-7 from the free-throw line, leaving the game out of reach for NIU.
“There was an offensive foul when we had a stop which was a huge momentum shift for us,” Brooks said. “But they made tough shots and we missed some easy ones.”
UP NEXT
The Huskies hope to break a six-game losing streak in conference play against Kent State University at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center in Kent, Ohio. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will be updated on SIDEARM Sports.
