Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
14-14,6-11MAC
Northern Illinois
16-12,8-9MAC
Eastern Michigan Falls Short at Northern Illinois
3/1/2023 9:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball
A chance to clinch a spot in the MAC tournament comes Saturday, March 4
DEKALB, Ill. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team came up short in a 73-63 loss to the Huskies on the road Wednesday, March 1, inside the Convocation Center located on the campus of Northern Illinois University.
The Eagles (14-14, 6-11 MAC) saw three players score in double figures, led by Lachelle Austin (Redford, Mich.-Wayne Memorial), who had 16 points. Tayra Eke (Madrid, Spain-IES Oretega y Gasset-LIU) tacked on 12 points, six rebounds and two steals while Olivia Smith (Fort Wayne, Ind.-South Side) helped out with 10 points.
Eastern Michigan did a great job disrupting Northern Illinois shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks, four of which came from the hands of Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu (London, England-City of London Academy-Robert Morris).
How It Happened
After falling behind 3-2, Eastern Michigan went on a 6-0 run with 8:38 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Austin, to take an 8-3 lead. The Eagles then surrendered that lead and entered the second quarter down 22-15.
The Eagles and Huskies then played an even second quarter making the halftime score 31-24 in favor of Northern Illinois.
The Huskies continued to increase their lead after halftime, building a 54-42 advantage before EMU went on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Smith, to trim its deficit to 54-47 with 29 seconds to go in the third. NIU countered and stretched its lead to 56-47 heading into the fourth. The Green and White played well near the basket, scoring 14 of its 23 points in the paint.
Northern Illinois kept widening its lead in the fourth, constructing a 73-57 advantage before Eastern Michigan went on a 6-0 run, finished off by Elena Cabello's (Málaga, Spain- IES Mediterraneo) three, to shrink the deficit to 73-63 with six seconds to go in the contest, a score which would hold for the rest of the game. The Eagles took advantage of its opportunities in the post, scoring eight of its 16 points in the paint.
Game Notes
» With its 15 points in the opening stanza against the Huskies, March 1, the Green and White have scored at least 15 points in the opening quarter of a contest 15 times in the 2022-23 season.
» Austin recorded a team-leading 16 points. It marked the 23rd contest in which the sophomore has dropped double-digit points and the ninth leading the Green and White in scoring. Additionally, her eight made field goals tied her career high, set in three other occasions.
» EMU saw three players score in double-digit figures against the Huskies, March 1, highlighted by Austin's 16, Eke's 12, and Smith's 10. The group's 38 collective points accounted for 60 percent of the team's scoring output. Additionally, it was the 20th game in which the team has registered three or more players in double figures, topping last season's 17.
» With her 10 points, it was Smith's 10th career contest hitting the double-digit mark, and her 12th leading the team in triples with two makes from beyond the arc.
» Smith connected on two shots from beyond the three-point line in the game against NIU, March 1. It marked her 49th season make from the three-point line making the rookie just 21 threes' shy of cracking EMU's top-10 in single-season three-pointers made. Holding the 10th spot is former Eagle Cha Sweeney who made 70 treys in the 2015-16 season.
» Ozzy-Momodu led the team with seven rebounds. The senior has led the Green and White in rebounds in seven contests this season totaling 149 rebounds this season, good for third on the team.
» In addition to her team-leading seven rebounds, Ozzy-Momodu blocked four shots in the contest for a season high, topping her previous three set against Ohio University, Feb. 1. One other Eagle has recorded four blocks in a single game in Eke who accomplished the feat against both Southern Indiana, Dec. 10 and Ball State, Feb. 8.
» In just her eighth game collecting at least one block, Austin added a single stop to the team's total five blocks marking the 14th contest in which the Green and White have earned five or more blocks.
Historical Notes
» Tonight's matchup marked the 61st meeting between Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois. Despite the loss, EMU leads the all-time series, 32-29.
» EMU has registered a total of 120 blocks in the 28 games played (4.3 blocks per game). A season ago, the Green and White earned 88 blocks in 27 games (3.3 blocks per game). Not only did the Eagles surpass the previous season's total in almost half the amount of games, but they are on pace to have the most successful blocking average in program history.
Up Next
With only one contest remaining in the regular-season, the Eagles will travel to Athens, Ohio, to face the Bobcats of Ohio University once more this season, March 4, for a 1 p.m. tip. The game is slated to broadcast on ESPN+ and would be the determining factor on who goes to the MAC tournament.
