Ball State University
14-7, 7-2MAC
Northern Illinois University
15-5, 8-1MAC
Women's Basketball Loses Tough Battle To Northern Illinois Saturday
January 28, 2017 | Women's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. -- The women's basketball battle Saturday for first place in the Mid-American Conference between Ball State and Northern Illinois provided just what you might expect from the league's best shooting teams.
It was a high scoring, back-and-forth affair that came down to the fourth quarter. But Northern Illinois just made too many shots down the stretch, as it handed Ball State its first home loss in conference play, 101-96 at Worthen Arena.
The Cardinals (14-7, 7-2 MAC) placed six scorers in double figures, led by Moriah Monaco with 23 points, and actually made more shots from the floor than NIU.
Renee Bennet added 16 points, while Carmen Grande (12), Jill Morrison (12), Calyn Hosea (11) and Destiny Washington (10) also reached double figures. Grande directed the Ball State offense with 10 assists for a double-double.
But the Huskies (15-5, 8-1 MAC) shot the ball at a 56 percent clip and outscored the Cardinals by nine points from the 3-point line and four from the charity stripe to overcome a 20-10 disadvantage on the offensive glass.
"It was a whale of a game," Ball State coach Brady Sallee said. "Two good teams just battled. I give a lot of credit to Northern because they made big play after big play."
It was nip and tuck through most of the fourth quarter as it seemed neither team could miss. At one point, the teams combined for a stretch in which 12 of 13 possessions ended without a defensive stop.
It was a tie game at 85-all with five minutes to play, but the Huskies used a 7-2 run to seize control. They never trailed again, going on to make 11 of 15 shots (73.3 percent) in the fourth quarter.
"They really made us pay for some breakdowns there in the second half when they kind of built the lead at the end," Sallee said. "My kids fought, and I'm proud of them for that. I thought we played at a high level; Northern just played at a little bit higher level."
Ball State continued to fight. The Cardinals trailed 101-95 as the clock ticked under 10 seconds to play. Three-point attempts from Monaco and Grande rattled out, and by the time Morrison was fouled rebounding Grande's attempt, the clock had nearly expired.
Courtney Woods paced NIU with 21 points, while Ally Lehman and Janae Poisson had 18 each.
Ball State controlled things in the early going. The Cardinals led by as many as 11 on multiple occasions in the first half, but Northern Illinois used a 16-3 run to grab the lead. It was a tight game from there on out.
The Cardinals will go on the road this week, playing Wednesday at Akron (7 p.m.) and Saturday at Miami (Noon).
