An 11-1 run late in the fourth quarter helped the Eastern Michigan University women’s basketball team cut a 13-point deficit against Northern Illinois with just 45 seconds left — but ultimately, it was too little, too late for the Eagles.
The Huskies hit a late field goal and three crucial free throws in the closing seconds to ultimately defeat Eastern Michigan 78-70. This improved their record to 8-10 on the season (2-5 MAC), while the Eagles fell to 1-16 (0-7 MAC), accumulating their 11th straight loss.
Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius) continued her dominant start to the season with 17 points and six rebounds, while Olivia Westphal (Bethel Park, Pennsylvania/Bethel Park/Duquesne) and Mackenzie Amalia (Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania/Blackhawk/Canisius) also both reached double figures for the Eagles with 17 and 11 points respectively.
Despite the loss, head coach Sahar Nusseibeh remained proud of her team’s effort on Mental Health Awareness Night at George Gervin GameAbove Center. She cited the squad’s resiliency in continuing to fight despite the bleak 2024-25 campaign start.
“I think it’s really easy to quit when things get hard,” Nusseibeh said. “And I’m really, really proud of the fact that this is a group of women that are showing the resiliency that they’re capable of — that’s what it is, is being tough through hard [times]."
On the sideline, Nusseibeh wore a green Adidas jersey released as part of The Hidden Opponent collection, a nonprofit designed to support student athletes’ mental health, instead of her usual business suit. She commented on Mental Health Awareness Night by offering insight into how seriously the Eastern Michigan women’s basketball program takes the concept.
“It’s huge in terms of letting people know that it’s okay to not be okay. It’s okay to struggle. At some point, everyone has struggled, and we are really big on education and resources for anyone - particularly our student-athletes and team,” she said.
The Eagles' next game will be Saturday, Jan. 25, a road test against the Ohio Bobcats at 1 p.m. Viewers can stream the game live on ESPN.
