March 4, 2012

Live Stats l Game Notes in PDF l MAC Tournament Bracket

Northern Illinois Huskies (4-25, 3-13 MAC) at Eastern Michigan Eagles (14-17, 9-7 MAC)
2012 FirstEnergy MAC Men's Basketball Tournament
Date: Monday March 5, 2012
Tipoff: 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET)
Location: Convocation Center • Ypsilanti, Mich.
Radio: WLBK 1360-AM in DeKalb and WJOL 1340-AM in Joliet
Live Stats: EMUEagles.com

The Match-Up
The No. 12 seed Northern Illinois will begin the 2012 FirstEnergy MAC Men's Basketball Tournament on Monday when it travels to meet No. 5 seed, and MAC West Division champion, Eastern Michigan. The Huskies enter the tournament following an 11-point loss at Ball State where NIU shot 48.1 percent in the first half but just 27.8 percent in the second half.

About Eastern Michigan
The Eagles enter the MAC Tournament with a 14-17 overall record, 9-7 in conference play. The fifth-seeded Eagles saw their three-game winning streak snapped in the regular season finale at Toledo, 76-51. Darrell Lampley leads Eastern Michigan averaging 13.3 points per game; he is the only Eagle scoring in double figures. Eastern Michigan, under first-year head coach Rob Murphy, is the best defensive team in the MAC allowing just 58.8 points per game.

Against the Eagles
Northern Illinois leads the all-time series against Eastern Michigan, 49-31. The Eagles have won each of this season's two meetings, taking the pair by a combined 10 points. EMU earned a 47-40 victory in DeKalb on Jan. 7 and a 48-45 win in Ypsilanti on Feb. 22. All-time in Ypsilanti, the series between the Huskies and Eagles is tied, 20-20. NIU has met Eastern Michigan once previously in MAC Tournament play, a 65-59 Eagle victory in Ypsilanti in the first round of the 2010 Tournament.

MAC Tournament History
Northern Illinois enters the 2012 MAC Tournament looking to snap a nine-game tournament losing streak. NIU's last victory in the MAC Tournament was a 75-63 win over Western Michigan in the quarterfinals of the 2003 Tournament. The Huskies are 8-16 all-time in MAC Tournament play; NIU won the 1982 MAC Tournament, defeating Ball State in the championship game, 79-75, in Ann Arbor, Mich. NIU is the No. 12 seed in the tournament for jus the second time, the Huskies were the 12-seed in 2004, falling at Buffalo in the first round. Northern Illinois has never won a road game in the MAC Tournament.

Nader States His Case
Abdel Nader has made a strong case for MAC Freshman of the Year honors, posting his 17th double-figure scoring game last time out against Ball State (March 3). Nader is second in the MAC in scoring among freshmen, 10.8 points per game, and second in rebounding among rookies, 4.2 boards per contest. The Skokie, Ill., native also ranks fifth in the league in steals among freshmen, seventh in assists among freshmen and leads MAC freshmen in blocks. Nader has scored in double figures in five-straight games, averaging 14.8 points per game during that period.

Nader has 312 points thus far during his freshman season, 30 points behind Darion "Jake" Anderson (2007-08) for the fourth-most points scored by a freshman in NIU history. Anderson was the 2008 MAC Freshman of the Year.

Looking Ahead
The winner of Monday night's NIU-Eastern Michigan game will advance to the second round of the FirstEngery MAC Men's Basketball Tournament where they will play the winner of the Western Michigan-Ball State first round game on Wednesday, March 7 at 7 p.m. ET at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.