THE NEED TO KNOWS
NIU (18-7, 11-3 MAC) at Central Michigan (20-6, 12-2 MAC)
Mount Pleasant, Mich. (McGuirk Arena)
Tipoff: Feb. 22, 6 p.m.
Video: ESPN3
Radio: WLBK 98.9 FM/1360 AM
Live Stats: CMUChippewas.com

MATCHUP DETAILS
NIU trails Central Michigan in the all-time series, 30-22; trails in Mount Pleasant, 17-7

FREE THROWS
• NIU is No. 4 in the nation in scoring offense, averaging 87.2 points per game, and have scored at least 90 points 10 times.
• Northern Illinois University is seeking its first win in Mount Pleasant, Mich., since 2009 in the two squads Mid-American Conference opener.
• NIU is unbeaten in its last seven games on the road dating back to Dec. 20 at UMKC. The Huskies nine wins on the road are the most since winning 10 in 1993-94.
• The Huskies are the only team in the country with five players averaging 10-or-more points per game.
• Sophomore Courtney Woods set NIU's single season record for three-pointers versus Ball State, tallying her 81st of the season. She broke the record set by Denise Dove (80) in 1988-89.
• Ally Lehman picked up her second-straight MAC West Player of the Week award and fifth of the season on Tuesday. Lehman averaged 30 points and 8.5 rebounds to pick up her sixth career award, tying the all-time mark for most player of the week awards in a career.
• NIU has overcome deficits of 10-points or larger four times this season and nine times in the last four years, the highest total by a four-year class at NIU in the last 12 years.
• With four regular season games remaining, the Huskies scoring average is currently the fourth-best in Mid-American Conference history and highest clip since Toledo averaged 83.6 in 1996-97.

THE ROAD WARRIORS
• For the first time since 1993-94, NIU has won at least nine road games following its 63-61 win at Miami.
• The victory extended the Huskies streak to seven-straight wins away from the Convocation Center, starting on Dec. 20 at UMKC.
• Five of their road games have been single-digit victories, including a one-point triumph on Jan. 11 at Kent State, 98-97, and a two-point win against the RedHawks, 63-61.
• Sporting an unbeaten clip in MAC road games, NIU is one of 15 teams nationally to open conference play unbeaten on the road, joining the likes of UConn, Maryland, Florida State and Baylor.
• As a team, Northern Illinois University has averaged 86.1 points per game in its last seven road affairs, dishing 16.6 assists per game and shooting 47 percent.
• Ally Lehman has scored 21.3 points per game during the team's road streak, over six points more than her nearest counterpart, Courtney Woods (14.9).
• In fact, in MAC road games, the Nineveh, Ind., native is averaging 22.2 points, 10.3 rebound and 6.0 assists per game while shooting an incredible .547 from the field, accounting for over 25 percent of the team's offense with four others averaging 10-or-more points.
• The 1993-94 Huskies were the last NIU team post at least 10 wins in true road games. The 1989-90 NIU women's basketball team, who won a program-record 26 games and was the first team to reach the NCAA Tournament, claimed an NIU record 12 road victories.

THREE CHEERS FOR COURTNEY WOODS
• Courtney Woods has been one of the Midwest's and Mid-American Conference's three-point shooters this season, amassing a .407 percentage in 199 attempts.
• As a result, Woods set NIU's single season record for three-point field goals made with her 81st make of the season versus Ball State on Feb. 18, eclipsing Denise Dove's record of 80 in 1988-89.
• The Brisbane, Australia native is averaging 3.24 makes per game behind the arc, the eighth-best average in the country, and has made at least three treys in a game 17 times and five-or-more six times.
• Woods could become just the sixth player in MAC history to eclipse the century mark in three-pointers. Ohio's Kiyanna Black mark of 126 in 2015-16 is the conference's standard for three-point field goals.
• Central Michigan's Niki DiGuilio was the first woman in Mid-American Conference history to record 100 three-point field goals in a season, summiting the plateau during the 2013-14 season.

THE FINISHING TOUCHES
• Over the last four games, Ally Lehman has been Northern Illinois University's main source of offense with an average of 30 points per game.
• In that span, the Nineveh, Ind., native has been almost unstoppable in the fourth quarter, averaging close to 12 points and shooting .698 percent from the field.
• However, it's in the final five minutes of play that separates Lehman from the other nine players on the court as she has gone 11-of-14 (.785) from the field and 13-for-16 (.813) at the free-throw line for an average of 8.8 points to close out games. NIU's foes have averaged 13.8 points in the last five minutes.
• Riding a four-game streak with 25 points-or-more, Lehman became just the third player in program history to score at such a rate in four consecutive games, joining NIU Athletics Hall of Famers Lisa Foss and Carol Owens in 1989-90.
• During her incredible run, Lehman accounted for over 50-percent of the team's points in a game, tallying 33 points in the Huskies 63-61 triumph at Miami.
• She has also earned consecutive player of the week honors to extend her single-season record to five such honors in a season.
• Lehman is coming off 27 point performance against Ball State in which she accounted for 17 points in the fourth quarter.
• Until this run of form, she had never scored 20-points in consecutive games.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
• Central Michigan became the first team in the MAC to reach 20 wins this season last Saturday when it defeated Toledo at home, 72-61. The Chips enter the contest with a 20-6 record and a conference-best 12-2 tally in MAC play.
• The Chippewas are a solid 13-1 at McGuirk Arena this season and are currently on a 12-game unbeaten streak as they last fell to Elon on Nov. 19, 71-57.
• In its 14 games this season, CMU is averaging 1,524 fans and eclipsed 2,000 in the meeting with rival Western Michigan on Feb. 11.
• Central Michigan has won its last six games, a feat it has accomplished twice in conference this season, last falling at Toledo on Jan. 28, 74-72.
• Three-point shooter Presley Hudson leads the team with 17.6 points per game while her counterpart on the outside Cassie Green was average 13.7 points. 
• In the post, Tinara Moore leads the scoring with 15.2 points while Reyna Frost is averaging a MAC-best 11.2 rebounds per game.

THE RETURN GAME
• It was only four games ago that the Huskies took on Central Michigan in DeKalb, where the Chippewas defeated NIU, 109-94. 
• This meeting, like the first, will pit the MAC's top two teams. Northern Illinois sat alone atop the standings in the first meeting while CMU is No. 1 in this week's meeting.
• Northern Illinois University was unable to overcome a poor shooting performance in the second quarters the Chips built a 23-point, shooting 48 percent to the Huskies clip of 35 in the stanza.
• While NIU bounced back in the second half, the Chippewas shot 54.5 percent in both the third and fourth quarters.
• CMU finished with a +28 rebounding margin with a 58-30 tally, including a 21-9 edge on the offensive glass.
• For Northern Illinois, Lehman scored 31 points with nine boards and 11 assists while Cassidy Glenn totaled 21 points.
• Both Reyna Frost and Tinara Moore registered double-doubles for Central Michigan.

REBOUNDING WITH URGENCY
• With an average margin of +5 in the last three games, the Huskies key to success has been their ability to rebound the basketball.
• NIU is averaging 49.7 boards in the last three games, pulling down at least 49 rebounds in all three games, and pacing Buffalo and Miami on the glass.
• The team's best performance in that span was its 51 against Ball State last Saturday. Though Northern Illinois University was outrebounded by the Cardinals, 57-51, the size disparity between NIU's post players is significant with BSU's Renee Bennett (6-5) towering over NIU's Cassidy Glenn (5-11) and Kelly Smith (6-1).
• On twelve occasions this season, the Huskies have controlled the glass against foes and own a 10-2 record when losing the battle of the boards. NIU is 7-5 when trailing in rebounds and 1-0 with an even tally.

NEXT UP
• NIU will head to Eastern Michigan for Saturday matinee in Ypsilanti, Mich.
• Tipoff between the Huskies and Eagles on Saturday, March 25 is set for 2:30 p.m. Central at the Convocation Center.