The Northern Illinois University women’s basketball team rallied from eight points down in the second quarter to tie the Buffalo Bulls going into the fourth Wednesday night, but it was the visitors who pulled away late in the final quarter for a 65-58 win at the NIU Convocation Center.

“It was a tough 40 minutes,” said head coach Lisa Carlsen. “I was really proud of our effort. When it comes down to a close ball game like you saw tonight, you can look at some possessions you want back. I thought we got some good looks from three and we need to be better from there. We got a lot of good looks at the rim but didn’t finish enough of those.”

Brooke Stonebraker (Versailles, Ohio/Versailles) led a balanced NIU offense with 12 points and 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the season. Redshirt-freshman Brooke Blumenfeld (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) had 10 points and four rebounds off the bench. Grace Hunter (Monroeville, Ind./Bellmont) had nine points and was 2-for-2 from the three-point arc.

NIU (8-8, 2-3 MAC) and Buffalo were tied at 47 going into the fourth quarter. The Bulls opened the quarter on an 8-2 run, with six points from Chellia Watson, to take a 55-49 lead with 3:23 to play. Hunter knocked down her second three of the night to cut Buffalo’s advantage in half, 55-52, with 2:52 remaining. After both teams traded baskets, Watson drove to the rim for a layup to put Buffalo up by five 59-54 with just over one minute left to play. The Huskies got as close as four but were forced to foul late to save time on the clock. The Bulls went 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 32 seconds to make the final score 65-58.

Buffalo (9-6, 3-2 MAC) used a 9-0 run early in the first quarter to take a 13-6 lead. Baskets from Blumenfeld and Kortney Drake (Wilton, Iowa/Kirkwood CC) helped get NIU within three, 13-10, at the 4:12 mark. A Jayden Marable (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) layup in the final 40 seconds of the quarter got the Huskies within one, 18-17. The Bulls grew their lead to eight in the second when a Watson jumper put Buffalo up 32-24. The Huskies closed the half on a 12-4 run over the final 5:34 with a pair of Sidney McCrea (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Prairie) three-pointers capping the run that tied the game at 36-36 going into halftime.

The Huskies scored first in the third as a Stonebraker layup from Marable made the score 38-36. The Bulls responded with the next six points to take a 42-38 lead with 5:08 to go in the third. Down by five after a Watson three with 1:14 to go, NIU rallied back to tie the game at 47-47. Hunter started the run with a layup with 0:45 left and Jayde Van Hyfte (Annawan, Ill./Arizona State) converted a three-point play with 0:20 to go to send the game to the final quarter all square.

“I was proud of our fight for the whole 40 minutes,” Carlsen said. “Offensively, we have to play with a little bit more confidence. We’ve got to get our guards going more, both finishing at the rim and shooting the three.”

NIU shot 41.4 percent from the field for the game despite making only 4-of-18 three-point attempts. Buffalo shot 37.9 percent from the floor and 25 percent from long range, outrebounding the Huskies 39-38. Watson led all scorers with 27 points and 11 rebounds.

The Huskies host Central Michigan on Saturday, Jan. 20 at 1 p.m. at the Convocation Center. Available for all weekend home games throughout the remainder of the basketball season, NIU Athletics is offering its new 2024 Pack. The new package includes four game tickets, four hot dogs, four chips and four sodas for just $40.

The 2024 Pack can be purchased online at NIUHuskies.com/tickets using the promo code 2024PACK for any men’s or women’s Saturday home game this season. Game tickets for the 2024 Pack will be delivered digitally; on game day concession vouchers can be picked up at the NIU Convocation Center Box Office and redeemed at the arena concession stand at any time during the game.