DeKALB | Maybe it’s the lack of home-cooked meals. Perhaps it’s a case of homesickness, or not sleeping in their own beds.

Whatever the reason may be, the NIU women’s basketball team has been struggling on the road all season, and continued to do so Sunday when it fell to Western Michigan 67-56 in Kalamazoo, Mich.

The Huskies (17-10 overall, 8-7 MAC) have accumulated eight of their 10 losses this season on the road. That, combined with the Broncos’ (13-16, 6-9) wins in 11 of their 14 home games entering Sunday’s contest, made the possible upset a reality.

“This is a very disappointing loss for us,” NIU head coach Carol Owens said. “We don’t shoot nearly as well on the road as we do at home and it showed.”

The Huskies shot just 31 percent for the game. NIU was shorthanded, however, as it was without starting guard Mary Basic, who injured her thumb in practice. She will be a game-time decision for Wednesday’s game against Ball State, Owens said.

Basic’s defense was sorely missed by the Huskies, who were unable to find an answer for WMU senior guard Carrie Moore, the leading scorer in the nation at more than 25 points per game. Moore scored 32 points on 13-for-23 shooting from the field, while grabbing 10 rebounds.

“That’s why she’s the leading scorer in the nation,” Owens said. “We knew we weren’t going to stop her. We just had to limit her touches and we weren’t able to do that.”

Sophomore guard Tiera DeLaHoussaye was the only other Bronco to put double digits on the scoreboard. DeLaHoussaye scored 10 points while dishing out six assists.

Kristin Wiener led the Huskies, scoring 19 points and pulling down a game-high 16 rebounds. The only NIU player to convert more than half of her shots was forward Becky Smith, who scored 12 points and shot 6-for-8 from the field.

“Kristin and Becky played well,” Owens said. “I thought they were the two bright spots for us today.”

With Eastern Michigan losing Saturday to Ball State, NIU remains one game back of second place, and could still potentially finish second in the MAC West. NIU will host the division leading Cardinals in its final game, while EMU will take on Central Michigan.