DeKALB | The last time the NIU women’s basketball team and Eastern Michigan squared off, the Eagles handed NIU its first MAC loss in convincing fashion.

There will be no love lost between the two teams when they meet again tonight at 7 p.m. in the Convocation Center.

Not only will the Huskies be playing with a chip on their shoulder as a result of the last meeting, but the game will also have major implications in the MAC West standings.

As it stands, EMU (12-10, 7-4) is in second place in the MAC, with a one-game lead on NIU (15-8, 6-5). Ball State (18-4, 9-2) sits atop the division by two games.

“We have to come out and be ready to play,” NIU head coach Carol Owens said. “The last time we played I thought we had opportunities, but (EMU) played well.”

NIU will have its hands full with junior guard Patrice McKinney and senior forward Sarah VanMetre, a duo near the top of the MAC in points provided. VanMetre is third in the MAC in scoring at 17.2 points per game, while McKinney places 11th with a 14.3 per game average.

“We know we have to limit McKinney,” Owens said. “She’s going to want to post and we can’t let her do that.”

The Huskies have been spreading their offense lately, forcing defenses to spread out. The premise being that on most nights this season, any of their players can step up.

However, Owens said, she wants to force EMU to show its hand by establishing an inside game early.

“We want to go into Kristin [Wiener] early and see if they double-team her,” Owens said. “If they can contain her, then we will try working the perimeter with Stephanie [Raymond] and see how that goes.”

Both teams are struggling at the moment. NIU has lost its last two games including one to No. 18 Bowling Green, while the Eagles have lost three of their last four. Both teams have only three games remaining after tonight.