Dec. 30, 2017 Box Score (HTML) | Box Score (PDF)
OXFORD, Ohio - Lauren Dickerson battled through foul trouble to score 11 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter as the Miami women's basketball team grinded out a 67-65 win over Northern Illinois on Saturday afternoon.
The win is the RedHawks' (9-3, 1-0 Mid-American) sixth-straight as they open MAC play with a victory.
The Huskies (8-4, 0-1 MAC) came out firing, making their first three shots to nab an early 6-2 lead. MU regathered itself to counter with an 11-2 spurt. Kayla Brown contributed seven of those 11 points, starting the spurt with a left-handed runner in the lane, going up and under to score through contact and convert the three-point play with a free throw and getting a layup off an offensive rebound by Molly McDonagh. Leah Purvis also got into the action with a physical score at the hoop and the run had Miami on top 13-8 with 4:01 to go in the opening quarter.
With Miami leading 13-10, Dickerson stepped back to drain a three-pointer and the Red & White eventually took an 18-12 lead into the second quarter.
A Savannah Kluesner layup extended Miami's lead to eight at 20-12 right away in the second and its lead sat at 24-17 with 6:45 remaining in the half. The offense went cold over the next couple minutes and a Paulina Castro three-pointer cut the RedHawks' lead to 24-21 midway through the second.
After trading baskets, the Huskies tied it up on an Ally May three-pointer, leaving it 26-26 with 3:30 showing on the clock. A Kristen Levering jumper put MU back in front, but NIU netted the next four to grab a 30-28 lead with 27 seconds to go until the break. The Red & White answered that on the strength of Baleigh Reid putback at the buzzer to leave the score all tied up at 30-30 at halftime.
The RedHawks struggled to finish early on in the third quarter, hitting just one of their first 10 second half shots. The Huskies were not much better, going 2-for-9 to grab a 35-32 lead four minutes into the half. Both teams began trading layups with MU trailing by either one or three points over the next two minutes.
Facing a 40-36 deficit late in the third quarter, Reid trimmed the deficit in half with a layup and then made it a one-point game by splitting a pair of free throws. Brown then put Miami back in front 41-40 by driving to the hoop and scoring with the left hand with a minute left in the quarter. The Huskies countered with a pair of free throws, but Kendall McCoy hit a basket to put the RedHawks back on top. With time winding down, Courtney Woods scored on a contested shot to give the Huskies a 44-43 lead through 30 minutes.
After sitting for a good chunk of the third quarter due to foul trouble, Lauren Dickerson came alive at the beginning of the fourth. The sophomore guard came around a screen and hit a three to give MU the lead and got to the basket for a layup on the next possession to make it 50-46.
Northern Illinois again battled back to tie it up on a three by May, leaving it 50-50 with just over seven minutes to play. A Purvis free throw and a McCoy jumper put Miami back in front with under five minutes remaining. Dickerson then made it five-straight for the RedHawks by picking up a steal and scoring at the other end to make it a 55-50 game with 4:39 to go.
The Huskies clawed back to within three on a couple occasions, leaving the RedHawks ahead 57-54 with under three minutes left in regulation. Dickerson got the lead back up to five with a pair of free throws. Reid then shot true for a pair from the charity stripe to make it a seven-point game at 61-54.
NIU got the next two buckets to make it a one-possession game at 61-58 with 45 seconds remaining. On the ensuing MU possession, Dickerson found Reid with a long pass that drew a foul. Reid split her free throws to extend the lead to 62-58 with 41.8 seconds remaining. Once again, Northern Illinois pulled to within two on Kelly Smith bucket with 34.2 seconds to go. After a timeout, McCoy managed to break free of a trap by NIU and score at the basket to make it 64-60. MU got a stop at the other end and McDonagh added one more to the lead with a free throw.
Myia Starks drew NIU back within 65-62 with 18 seconds remaining and MU missed a pair of free throws to give the Huskies the ball back with a chance to tie. Woods took advantage of the added life, hitting a three-pointer to even it up with 7.6 seconds to go. Following a timeout, Miami called Dickerson's name and she got to the line with 3.1 seconds remaining. The sophomore calmly sank her pair of free throws and Reid intercepted a long inbounds pass to secure the win for the RedHawks.
Neither team had their perimeter game working as Miami shot 39.7 percent from the field and made just 2-of-20 three-pointers while Northern Illinois made 38.5 percent of its shots and hit 5-of-17 from beyond the arc. The Huskies held a 49-41 lead on the glass and hit 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) at the charity stripe while the RedHawks finished 11-of-23 at the line. Dickerson's 18 points led Miami while Brown (11 points), Reid (10 points) and McCoy (10 points) scored in double figures. Reid also hauled in a team-high nine rebounds. MU forced 14 turnovers while committing just six of its own.
The RedHawks are back in action on Wednesday when they head to Ball State. That game tips off at 7 p.m.
