KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan University women's basketball team is back home this weekend to support an important cause against Northern Illinois.

LAST TIME OUT
The Broncos fell short at Bowling Green, 67-63, at the Stroh Center on Wednesday night. WMU (7-17, 3-10 MAC) battled back to take a 54-50 lead early in the fourth quarter on a triple by Alli Harness. The Falcons responded with an 8-0 run to retake the lead for the remainder of the game. The Brown and Gold got within one point three times during the remainder of the game but were unable to get over the hump.

De'Ahna Richardson led the Broncos with 13 points on 4-of-11 shooting.  Harness had 12 points, all on three-pointers. Kailey Starks finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. Western Michigan shot 20-for-48 (41.7 percent) from the field and 10-for-27 from beyond the arc. The team had a solid night from the charity stripe, shooting 13-for-16 (81.3 percent). WMU's defense held the Falcons to just 36.7 percent from the field, but the Falcons forced 21 WMU turnovers on the night and scored 21 points from them. 

LIGHTING UP BEHIND THE ARC
For the second game in a row the Brown and Gold made double figure three points from the floor. Western Michigan has hit a season-high 10 triples on four separate occasions, all coming during MAC play. The Broncos have been able to exploit conference defenses from long range against Buffalo, Central Michigan, and most recently Bowling Green.

In MAC play, WMU is now fifth in three pointers made, averaging 6.85 through 40 minutes. The Brown and Gold are also eighth in three point field goal percentage at 30.2% among Mid-American teams, improving from their overall percentage of 28.9%. Leading the charge has been Carlson, who averages 2.23 treys in MAC play for fourth in the conference while Richardson is eighth in percentage, shooting 41.0% from behind the arc. 

SHARING THE ROCK
Western Michigan had its best game helping each other score in over a month at the Stroh Center. The Broncos recorded 16 assists in their close loss to Bowling Green, staying three ahead of the Falcons in the category. WMU last recorded 16 or more helpers in its win over Akron on Jan. 7th. The Brown and Gold's season-high came only the game before with 22 assists in their 83-65 win over Buffalo. 

PLAYING FOR A CAUSE
Saturday afternoon's game is the Brown and Gold's annual Pink Out game to recognize women that have battled cancer. Fans who come to Saturday's game against the Huskies will receive a pink Western Michigan t-shirt while supplies last. In-game elements will also recognize different stories around women's health. 

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
Northern Illinois will be visiting University Arena for the final time as a conference opponent this weekend. Before the Huskies depart for the Horizon League they will be looking for their first win in four games on Saturday. NIU has dropped its last three contests to Kent State, Akron, and UMass, with all but the game against the Minutewomen coming down to only a 4.5 point difference. The Huskes are 2-10 in MAC play while just 5-21 overall.

Junior forward Nevaeh Wingate has been the offensive leader for NIU over the past month. She led the team in scoring for the fifth straight game earlier this week and has had six consecutive game scoring in double-figures. In the last six games Wingate is averaging 16.2 points per game, shooting  44.4 percent from the field. Wingate is also the Huskies strongest prescense under the glass, averaging a team-high 5.6 rebounds a game.