DePaul Tops Northern Illinois
12/18/2002 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Boxscore
ROSEMONT, Ill. – Playing their first “home” game in Rosemont since the 1995-96 season, the DePaul women’s basketball team held off Northern Illinois, 79-65, on Wednesday evening. DePaul led by as many as 24 points midway through the second stanza before the Huskies cut the lead to five points late in the game.
The Blue Demons held a 9-7 lead until back-to-back-to-back three’s by Northern Illinois pushed them ahead at 13-11 at the 13-minute mark. Charlene Smith tied the game with a jumper in the paint only to see the Huskies take the lead right back on a jumper by Kim Boeding.
Another Smith jumper knotted the game at 15-15 and started an 18-5 run over the next seven minutes to give the Blue Demons a 31-20 lead on a steal and lay-up by Jamie Smith. Charlene Smith fueled the run with six points while Ashley Luke and Laura Sobieszczyk knocked down a pair of three-pointers.
Luke’s third three-pointer of the half gave the Blue Demons their largest lead at 36-24 with 1:45 remaining. After a Northern Illinois bucket, Khara Smith matched DePaul’s largest lead of the first half with a short jumper for the 38-26 halftime score.
The second half started even with DePaul’s lead getting no smaller than 12 points over the first eight minutes. On a Jenni Dant steal and lay-up, the Blue Demons took a 53-36 lead with 13:30 left in the game.
Sarah Kustok’s three-pointer at the 10-minute mark pushed DePaul’s lead over 20 points at 63-41. Over the next 7:35, Northern Illinois went on a 22-5 run cut the DePaul lead to five points with just under three minutes left in the game.
Khara Smith hit a pair of free throws to give the Blue Demons a 70-63 advantage with 2:32 to go in the contest. Following a Charlene Smith free throw and missed jumper by Northern Illinois, Dant hit a jumper in the lane to push the lead back to 10 points at the 1:16 mark.
In the final minute, Luke hit four straight free throws and Jamie Smith added a pair free shots as the lead crept back up for the 79-65 final.
Luke led the way for DePaul with a career-high 24 points. The junior hit four three’s and was 10-for-10 from the free throw line while the Blue Demons went 25-of-30 as a team. Dant and Jamie Smith added 13 points apiece while Charlene Smith added 11 points and Khara Smith scored 10. Karen Knake led the Huskies with 17 points.
With the win, the women’s team is 19-4 all-time at the Allstate Arena. Wednesday’s win also marks the second time DePaul has defeated Northern Illinois in Rosemont.
The Blue Demons close the 2002 calendar with a Sunday afternoon game against George Washington. Tipoff with the 21st-ranked Colonials is set for 2 p.m. at the DePaul Athletic Center.