CMU women's basketball moves to 10-0 in MAC play with 66-60 win over NIU
Central Michigan forward Kyra Bussell tries to get around a Northern Illinois defender Feb. 5 at McGuirk Arena.
In the second half of the conference schedule, winning tough games are a must.
Winning conference games at home — even more important.
The Central Michigan women’s basketball opened the second half of its Mid-American Conference schedule Wednesday with a 66-60 win against Northern Illinois in McGuirk Arena.
CMU (17-4, 10-0 MAC) has won 17 of its last 18 games and maintains its lead in the MAC West standings. Ball State as the team’s nearest challenger with a 6-3 conference record.
In Wednesday's game, the Chippewas never trailed and had contributions from several players against the Huskies.
The Chippewas ended the first half with a block from junior guard Maddy Watters to keep the score at 35-26. Junior forward Kyra Bussell lead the half with 13 points.
“I know everybody else can score on the court, and I know they can’t stop us all at the same time,” Watters said. “I’m just ready to do whatever the team needs me to do.”
The closest the Huskies drew to CMU was in the third quarter with the Chippewas up by one with 5:44 to go. Freshman guard Molly Davis quickly extended the Chippewa lead by hitting a 3-pointer coming out of a timeout.
Bussell lead the Chippewas with 19 points. Junior guard Micaela Kelly finished with 14 points and Watters ended with 13 points. As a team, the Chippewas shot 23 percent from 3-point range and 37 percent from the field. CMU had 12 turnovers while NIU had just four.
NIU’s redshirt-senior guard Courtney Woods led the Huskies with 18 points.
Central Michigan coach Heather Oesterle mentioned getting outscored by NIU in the final three quarters of the game.
The Huskies outscored the Chippewas, 15-12, 16-14 and 18-17, in the final three quarters but led 23-11 after the opening quarter to earn the win.
NIU also outrebounded the Chippewas 52-40 in the game, led by Woods' 10 to complete the double-double. Kelly led CMU with nine boards.
“I’m proud of the way we found a way to win, but I do know there’s a lot to work on,” Oesterle said. “There’s a mentality on our team that we refuse to lose.”
Bussell, one of the leaders on the team, has emerged as one of the more confident players for CMU.
After the win, Bussell reflected on having confidence and sharing that confidence with her teammates.
“My teammates have been putting me in positions to capitalize and I wouldn’t be able to do what I did out there without my teammates,” Bussell said.
CMU travels to Miami (Ohio) for its next game at 2 p.m. Saturday in Millett Hall. In the teams' previous matchup, the Chippewas defeated the Redhawks 76-70 on Jan. 11 in McGuirk Arena.
