Feb. 11, 2012
Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
OXFORD, Ohio - It was a day where the ball just would not fall in the basket, as the Miami University women's basketball team fell to Northern Illinois, 70-58, on Saturday. Courtney Osborn led the RedHawks with 21 points. Miami falls to 17-7 overall and 7-4 in the Mid-American Conference. The Huskies improve to 11-12 overall and 5-6 in the MAC.
After NIU opened the game with a three-point basket, Maggie Boyer quickly tied things up with a trey of her own. The Huskies would score the next four points to take a 7-3 advantage, but a jumper from Osborn, a three-pointer by Hannah Robertson and a layup from Lillian Pitts gave the RedHawks a 10-7 lead and forced a Northern Illinois timeout with 12:12 remaining.
Miami's would have significant shooting issues the remaining of the half. Hannah Robertson would drain a three-pointer at the 9:49 mark, but it was the only points the Red and White would score in the remainder of the period besides three free throws. Miami's defense would hold tough, and Northern Illinois would only go into the break with a nine-point lead at 25-16.
The RedHawks shot only 20 percent (5-for-25) for the first half.
The offensive struggles continued to begin the second half. Erica Almady hit a layup at the 15:40 to make it 35-22. That ended a field goal drought of 14:09. The Huskies would respond with a 15-6 run that would give them their largest lead at 50-28 with 9:37 remaining.
Miami would turn on its press to force turnovers and begin a comeback. A layup from Osborn and a three-pointer from Boyer were part of a 9-0 run that made it 50-37 with 7:19 to go. The Huskies were able to take advantage of a gambling RedHawk defense to record some fast break layups and extend the advantage to 16 at 56-40 at the 4:32 mark. Miami had one last run in it as back-to-back treys from Boyer and Osborn made it 58-46 with 3:43 to go. The Red and White would get as close as 11 after two Boyer free throws, but Northern Illinois would score on its next three possessions to seal the 70-58 win.
In addition to Osborn's 21 points, Boyer finished with 17. The RedHawks finished the game shooting 31.6 percent (18-for-57), while the Huskies shot 54.3 percent (25-for-46). Courtney Shelton finished with 13 points and 13 assists for NIU. The Huskies outrebounded the RedHawks, 35-29, for the game.
Miami returns to MAC East Division play on Wednesday when it travels to Kent State for a 7 p.m. contest.
