DEKALB, Ill.  – After dispatching of Ohio in the first round on Monday, the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team continues play in the Mid-American Conference Tournament on Thursday evening, March 14, as the Huskies meet second-seeded Toledo at 5:30 p.m. CT in the quarterfinals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. All four of Thursday's quarterfinals, including the matchup between the Huskies and Rockets, will be available on ESPN+. 

NIU (16-16) stormed out of the gates against the Bobcats in the tournament opener, shooting 62.1 percent (18-of-29) in the first half, including 8-of-10 from beyond the arc, to build a 16-point halftime lead as NIU cruised to an 80-61 win. The victory over the Bobcats propelled the Huskies to Cleveland for the first time since 2016 

Junior Eugene German (Gary, Ind./21st Century Charter) scored a game-high 23 points in the win over Ohio, in the process becoming just the eighth player in NIU history to eclipse the 1,500-point plateau.

The Huskies head to Cleveland with a three-game winning streak, having won their final two games of the regular season at Central Michigan (March 5) and Ball State (March 8), in addition to Monday's conference tournament opener. During the current win streak, NIU is committing just 7.7 turnovers per game while holding its opponents to just 41.7 percent shooting from the floor, and just 27.1 percent from three-point range. 

Four Huskies are scoring in double figures during the current three-game win streak, led by 19.0 points per game from German. Senior Levi Bradley (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) is averaging 18.7 points per game, senior Dante Thorpe (Washington, D.C./Triton College) is adding 16.3 points per contest while senior Lacey James (Grand Rapids, Mich./Rider) is averaging a double-double over the last three with 10.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. 

Toledo comes to Cleveland with a 25-6 overall record, 13-5 in conference play, and as outright champions of the MAC West Division. The Rockets, who average 77.3 points per game as a team, are led by Jaelan Sanford at 15.4 points per contest. Nate Navigato adds 12.5 points per game, Marreon Jackson is averaging 11.5 points per contest and Luke Knapke is scoring 10.5 points per game. 

The Rockets won each of the regular season meetings against the Huskies. In the first meeting in DeKalb (Feb. 2), NIU trailed by just one near the midway point of the second half before an 18-2 Toledo run helped the Rockets to a 69-55 victory. Toledo won the return meeting (Feb. 23) in the Glass City, 57-54. The Huskies led the second meeting for over 30 minutes but were unable to withstand a late run by the Rockets. 

The winner of Thursday's quarterfinal will advance to meet the winner of the Bowling Green-Ball State quarterfinal on Friday, March 15, in the semifinals at 8 p.m. CT.