Three Huskies scored in double figures as the Northern Illinois University women’s basketball team defeated Buffalo, 66-57, on Wednesday night (Feb. 21) at Alumni Arena. Buffalo led in the opening minutes of the contest, but the Huskies took the lead midway through the first quarter and held off multiple Buffalo comeback attempts to seal the win.

NIU led 57-53 with under six minutes to play before holding Buffalo to a scoring drought of 5:04. NIU increased its lead to 62-53 lead during the Bulls drought with baskets from Brooke Stonebraker (Versailles, Ohio/Versailles) and Laura Nickel (Marshall, Wis./Marshall) to earn its fourth win in five games.

“Everybody has to be ready to step in and do their job,” NIU head coach Lisa Carlsen said. “Our composure in the fourth quarter seemed a lot like against Eastern (Michigan) which was great, that shows the maturity as we continue to grow.”

Jayden Marable (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) set a career high with nine assists while scoring nine points and grabbing six rebounds. Stonebraker recorded a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Nickel scored 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting.

“I think Jayden did a great job, especially in the second half of orchestrating the offense,” Carlsen said. “She understood what we needed on offense and handled the pace of the game. She really played like a true point guard tonight.”

The Huskies shot 44.8% from the field and held Buffalo 34.3%. Both the Huskies and Bulls struggled from deep as NIU shot 5-for-20 from three-point range and Buffalo was held to just 4-for-23.

Buffalo was led by Chellia Watson with 16 points. Watson was unable to make a three-pointer on eight attempts.

The Bulls opened the game by jumping out to a 6-2 lead. The Huskies evened the game at 6-6 in the early going with baskets from Brooke Blumenfeld (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) and Kortney Drake (Wilton, Iowa/Kirkwood CC). NIU would not trail over the final 33:21.

Stonebraker pushed NIU ahead, 12-6, as she scored six straight points. The teams went back-and-forth in the closing minutes of the first quarter as NIU led 19-14 after 10 minutes.

In the second quarter, the Huskies opened up on a 10-2 run to extend the Huskies lead to 29-16 with seven minutes to play in the first half. Buffalo closed the half on a 9-4 run to trim the Huskies lead to 33-25 at halftime.

The third quarter opened with a 7-2 run for NIU which included a three-pointer from Sidney McCrea (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Prairie). That pushed the Huskies lead to 12 before Buffalo responded and cut the Huskie advantage to just two, 40-38. Nickel got NIU back on the board after a four-minute drought and the Huskies led 45-43 heading to the fourth.

In the final quarter, five different Huskies scored the team’s first five baskets including a three-pointer from Grace Hunter (Monroeville, Ind./Bellmont). NIU led by six, 57-51, with six minutes to play before Alexa Davis’s layup would put the Bulls back within four points with 5:48 left.

After Davis’s layup, NIU would hold the Bulls scoreless for the next 5:04 and extended their lead to nine with under a minute remaining. The Bulls got back on the board with 44 seconds to play, but it was too late as Marable and Tara Stauffacher (Columbus, Wis./Wisconsin) sealed the nine-point win at the free throw line.

The Huskies return home at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, as they open the Cram the Convo doubleheader against Bowling Green. For tickets, log on to NIUHuskies.com or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).