The women’s basketball team will look to get its first home victory since Dec. 12 today against Eastern Michigan (7-19, 5-8 MAC).

The Huskies (7-19, 2-11 MAC) have gone 2-3 in their last five games and have lacked consistency overall. However, NIU has had some of its better performances on the road, as was shown with wins against Ohio and Kent State.

Losing their last six home games, the Huskies haven’t had as much success on their home court as expected. However, they can be reassured by the Eagles’ 3-8 road record. Amanda Corral, sophomore point guard and leading scorer, knows this is a big game for the Huskies.

“We’ve lost a lot of close games [at home], and I think we’ve worked hard enough where I think we will be able to get this win,” Corral said. “Last time we turned the ball over a lot so we’re looking to take care of the ball. It’s tough losing at home, but I think we’ll be able to pull this one out. This is our mini-tournament before the [MAC] tournament.”

The last time NIU took on Eastern Michigan, the Huskies suffered a tough 62-67 road loss. The Huskies shot 46 percent for the game but were outscored by nine in the first half. They outscored the Eagles in the second half 36-32, but couldn’t close out the game. Redshirt sophomore forward Jenna Thorp believes the Huskies now have a better idea of what the Eagles like to do defensively.

“Seeing what they did last time against us, we’ve been working on our zone offense,” Thorp said. “We’re able to swing the ball [and] I think we’ve improved a lot against zone and so we are hoping to execute against that and also get back on defense if we stop them in transition that will help us a lot.“

The Huskies will have to stop freshman guard Bianca Cage, who put up 23 points against the Huskies in their last match up. Cage hit six of 10 3-point shots and shot 7-12 from the field and has averaged 10.1 points per game this season. Eagles’ junior forward Natachia Watkins scored eight points and grabbed nine rebounds against the Huskies. She averages 9.9 points 6.2 rebounds per game.

With the Eagles losing two of their best players during the season due to injuries and off-the-court incidents, the Huskies can capitalize on what is now a less-dominant Eastern Michigan team. The Huskies have made it apparent that they seek to finish the regular season strong.