It looked as if NIU would put an end to their 6-game losing streak Tuesday night against Miami (Ohio) in Oxford, but the second half would hold another story.

Up 29-25 at halftime, NIU looked to be in control over the RedHawks (13-12, 9-5). However, the Huskies lost their hot hands dropping from 55-percent shooting to 30 percent from the field in the second half to drop the game 57-46.

Coming onto the court for second half with freezer burns, NIU amassed a total of 17 points. Also contributing to the second-half demise was the Huskies’ turnovers, finishing with 13 in the second half.

“It was turnovers again,” said NIU coach Andy Greer. “You can’t score if you’re turning the ball over. That was the difference. We missed some good looks, but Miami are an outstanding defensive club. It’s difficult to get downcourt against them. Rarely do you get transition points. They get back. They are just very sound, a sound defensive club.”

Extending its losing streak to 8 games, NIU (4-18, 3-10) could not find an answer for the RedHawks in the second half. Going on a 14-point run that stretched 8:52 in the second half, Miami walked away with their third conference win in a row defeating MAC leaders Ball State and Kent State earlier this month.

With a quick start to the game, jumping out to a 7-0 lead, the Huskies were led by Mike Brown. The only player in the game to play all 40 minutes, Brown finished with 13 points and only committed 2 turnovers in the turnover-prone game. Brown also jumped into the No. 21 spot on the all-time Northern Illinois scoring list with 992 points.

Also contributing for the Huskies was the continued play of freshman Marcus Smallwood with 6 points and 7 rebounds. Stephen Jones finished with a respectable 8 points and 7 rebounds, but the rest of the team added only 19 points in the loss.

“I thought our kids were ready to play,” Greer said. “I thought we controlled the tempo in the first half. It was a good half for us.”