For the second straight game, the NIU women’s basketball team held a four-point lead at halftime.

And for the second straight game, the Huskies blew that first-half lead.

The Huskies (6-15 overall, 3-7 MAC) dropped their fifth straight game Wednesday with a 61-48 loss at Kent State.

After leading 25-21 at the break, the Huskies allowed the Golden Flashes (14-8, 7-4) to go on a 16-4 run and take control of the game.

“I feel like we are playing extremely hard, but we are not playing with a lot of purpose,” NIU coach Carol Hammerle said. “Their press bothered us a little bit. We made some bad decisions and they started hitting shots.”

Junior forward Jamie Wilson, who had a team-high 16 points, made a layup to bring the Huskies within three with 11:19 remaining. That was as close as NIU would come.

Kent State closed the game on a 23-13 run to clinch its sixth win in eight games.

Melissa Degrate led Kent State with 20 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double.

“It just boils down to possessions,” Hammerle said. “You can’t turn the ball over 26 times against a good team and win, especially on the road. Until we learn to value each possession throughout the game, we are not going to be successful.”

The victory was Kent State’s eighth in the last nine against the Huskies.

Sophomore forward Kristin Wiener had 11 points for the Huskies and guard Stephanie Raymond chipped in with nine points and six assists.

The Huskies loss was their seventh in eight games.