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Western Illinois University Athletics

Morgan Blumer
94
Western Illinois WIU 3-1
96
Winner Northern Illinois NIU 2-1
Western Illinois WIU
3-1
94
Final
96
Northern Illinois NIU
2-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Western Illinois WIU 29 22 27 16 94
Northern Illinois NIU 22 20 27 27 96

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Western Illinois Drops Heartbreaker To NIU On the Road

Morgan Blumer leads way with 32 points for the Leathernecks

DEKALB, Ill. — Western Illinois women's basketball fell 96-94 off a Northern Illinois buzzer-beater for its first loss of the season Saturday (Nov. 18).

The Leathernecks (3-1) were led by the five 3-pointers and 32 points from Morgan Blumer, along with the 21 points and nine assists from Emily Clemens.

Western Illinois jumped out to a 29-22 lead after the first quarter. The Huskies tied the game at 42-42 with 3:08 to go in the third, but a 9-0 Western run made it 51-42 at the half. The Leathernecks held their largest lead of the game (58-44) with 8:36 to go, and held a nine-point lead at the end of the third.

Northern Illinois tied the score at 85-all with 5:20 to go, but a crucial three by Clemens gave Western a three-point lead. The Huskies eventually took a one-point lead with 2:23 to go after draining a three, but Blumer was there to help the Leathernecks retake a 94-92 lead with 10 seconds to go.

A pair of NIU free throws tied the game at 94-94, and eventually took possession for the last shot. With one second to go, the Huskies' Kelly Smith hit the game-winner. Northern Illinois' Courtney Woods led the way with a game-high 39 points, while four others hit double figures. Along with Blumer's 32 and Clemens' 21, Taylor Higginbotham added 13 as the third Leatherneck in double figures.

"Today's game lived up to the hype of two offensive heavyweights going at it," said head coach JD Gravina. "There were a lot of swings both ways with both teams playing up-tempo. I do feel like it's a game we let get away, but credit to NIU for making some big plays down the stretch. Now we will see what this team is really made of and how we bounce back for another big game on the short turnaround."

Western Illinois now shifts it focus to a Monday (Nov. 21) matchup at 7 p.m. against Big Ten opponent Illinois. The Purple and Gold are also in action the following day (Nov. 22) against Chicago State at 7 p.m.

PLAYER NOTES:
-Emily Clemens' 21 points are her 23rd 20-plus point performance of her career… her nine assists also marks her 43rd-career five-plus assist game.
Olivia Braun's 10 rebounds ties her career-high for the second time (10 vs Denver, March 4, 2017).
-Olivia Kaufmann's six assists mark the third five-plus assist game of her career.
-Morgan Blumer's team-high 32 points marks the third 30-plus point performance of her career.
-Taylor Higginbotham's 13 points mark her 47th double digit scoring game of her career.
 
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