NIU (0-1) women’s basketball will look to get its first win against the Davidson Wildcats in its second game of the Preseason Women’s NIT Tournament on Friday.

Davidson (0-1) is in the same boat as NIU as it lost its first game to a tough North Carolina Tar Heels team, 59-70.

Huskies head coach Kathi Bennett said the Wildcats will be another tough test for her young squad.

“They’re a very good team,” Bennett said. “They have two very good players: number two and number 21, they are big girls–6’5”–and can really do a lot inside. They can shoot it from 15 feet and can post up passes very well. They have a very good guard who can get to the rim and shoots the three. They love to run in transition so we need to do a good job of getting back and getting our defense set.“

The players Bennett refers to are junior guard Laura Murray and senior forward Sophia Aleksandravicius.

Murray had 16 points in the Wildcats loss to the Tar Heels. Aleksandravicius, 6’5”, and sophomore center Mellissa Giegerich, 6’6”, give Davidson a good height advantage over NIU.

NIU struggled offensively in the first game against Iowa, and red shirt sophomore guard Danny Pulliam said NIU has been working a lot offensively in practice this week.

“We’re just looking to work together as a team,” Pulliam said. “[We want to] limit our turnovers and try to be defensive minded and get stops, and execute on offense. Actually we’ve been focusing a lot on offensive stuff and being able to execute and get the best possible shot that we can.”

The Huskies will play a second game of the weekend Sunday taking on either Morehead State or Kennesaw State.

Senior forward/guard Satavia Taylor said the quick turnaround will require more mental strength than physical.

“I think we are used to it,” Taylor said. “When we were younger we used to have games back to back so it’s just a mental process. We have to get in and get the first game done and accomplished and then move onto the next step, so just taking it day by day and focusing on the first step.“