Jan. 30, 2012

DEKALB, Ill. -- The Northern Illinois men’s basketball team has been paired with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in its 2012 Sears BracketBusters contest to be played on Saturday, Feb. 18. The Huskies and Cougars have met once previously, a 90-69 NIU victory on Dec. 9, 1985 in DeKalb.

NIU will be playing in its eighth all-time BracketBuster game, last season the Huskies hosted Seattle in the BracketBusters, falling 60-48 to the Redhawks. The Huskies have a 1-6 record in BracketBuster contests, with their lone win coming on Feb. 21, 2009 at Southeast Missouri State, 97-73. NIU will be playing its sixth road game in its eight BracketBuster appearances.

The Huskies will be playing their third BracketBuster game against a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. In addition to the 2009 victory at Southeast Missouri State, NIU also met an OVC foe in 2010, falling 73-70 at Eastern Illinois.

SIU Edwardsville has a 5-13 overall record, 3-6 in the OVC; the Cougars are on the road tonight playing at Tennessee Tech. SIU Edwardsville is playing its fourth season as a member of NCAA Division I and its first full conference schedule in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Cougars will be eligible for postseason competition beginning next season.

NIU will be back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 1, as the Huskies host Ohio University at the NIU Convocation Center, tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.