Box Score | Season Stats | Infographic

BANGOR, Maine – Even with a dominant, 18-point outing by sophomore Gabby Giacone, the Northeastern women's basketball team had trouble navigating Maine's defensive unit on Wednesday night as the Huskies were handed a 68-49 loss at the Black Bears' Cross Insurance Center.
 
Giacone was responsible for half of the Huskies' made field goals, guiding in nine of her 15 attempts, all within the paint. The six-foot native of Delmar, New York, matched her career scoring high from Nov. 13, 2016, against Canisius, adding nine rebounds and an assist.
 
Claudia Ortiz kept a balanced stat line for Northeastern (2-7) with 15 points, four boards, four assists, and two steals, hitting three 3-pointers from behind the line as well. Seven more NU players combined to produce the Huskies' remaining 16 points.
 
Fouls put Northeastern at a disadvantage early on as Francesca Sally and Loren Lassiter both picked up their third personal fouls before halftime. Sally, who scored a season high, 23 points, during the Huskies' last outing on Dec. 1, received her fourth personal foul at the 7:36 mark in the third quarter and was limited to four minutes of action during the second half. Despite this, Sally and Lassiter combined for 13 of Northeastern's 47 rebounds – a total that ties for the Huskies' season high (Nov. 20).
 
Maine (4-5) witnessed three players reach double-figures in scoring, including two starters. Laia Sole led the Black Bears with 16 points on six-of-10 shooting, while Sigi Koizar finished with 14 points, benefiting from four 3-point makes during the opening half. Julie Brosseau recorded 11 of Maine's 27 bench points, hitting three long-range baskets as well. Overall, the Black Bears doubled up the Huskies in 3-point field goals, 10-5.
 
QUARTER RECAPS
 
• First quarter: Despite NU winning the opening tip, Maine dove in front courtesy of five straight points by Sigi Koizar during the Black Bears' first two possessions. After Gabby Giacone had banked in her first bucket of the night near the five-minute mark, Koizar rattled in another 3-pointer before Maine capitalized on a midcourt turnover by the Huskies, forcing Northeastern to call timeout down, 13-4, with 4:10 on the clock. Maine continued its hot shooting down the stretch, finishing the first quarter at 64 percent (nine-of-14) while building a 23-11 lead.
 
• Second quarter: Giacone followed her six-point opening quarter with a basket coming in the lane roughly 90 seconds in. Controlling the offensive glass, Northeastern kept the ball for the better portion of three minutes to start the quarter and pulled to within eight points, 23-15, on another post move by Giacone. However, Blanca Millan would connect on a 3-pointer that put the Black Bears up double-digits again, where Maine would stay for the remainder of the first half. Maureen Taggart infused Northeastern's offense with a 3-pointer coming with 4:33 to go, but NU would hit only two more field goals before the half as it faced a 15-point deficit.
 
• Third quarter: With the Huskies' offense running through Giacone, the sophomore forward tacked on two more points to begin the second half, cleaning up a missed shot by Sally. Ortiz sparked a 7-0 run for Northeastern with a 3-pointer from the left wing, reducing the gap to 11 points with 4:45 remaining in the quarter. However, Julie Brosseau sandwiched a quick five points around a backcourt steal by the Black Bears, raising Maine's advantage to 47-31. Zwerling joined the Huskies' 3-point club inside of three minutes to play and two last-second free throws by Ayanna Dublin helped NU maintain the halftime margin of 15 points at 53-38.
 
• Fourth quarter: Maine stormed out to a 7-0 run to begin the fourth quarter, sending the Huskies into a timeout at the 7:37 mark. NU earned six of its 11 points from the foul line and sprung a 10-2 run during a 4:47 stretch midway through the period.
 
UP NEXT
 
Northeastern is off for 11 days and will take the floor next on Sunday, Dec. 18, in a true road game against Michigan State (12 p.m. tipoff). The Huskies will then continue on to Denver on Tuesday, Dec. 20 (2 p.m. EST), before returning to Cabot Center on Wednesday, Dec. 28, to host Siena at 2 p.m.