DEKALB, Ill. -- In a game that included 10 ties and 10 lead changes, Eastern Michigan made the final run, outscoring the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team 17-10 in the final seven minutes to earn a 75-69 win over the Huskies on Saturday afternoon at the NIU Convocation Center. 
    
Junior Eugene German (Gary, Ind./21st Century Charter) scored a game-high 22 points and senior Levi Bradley (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) added 14 but NIU was unable to overcome a +19 rebounding advantage for Eastern Michigan. Bradley set a new school-record in the contest, playing in his 127th career game; he has never missed a game in his Huskie career. 

"This was one of those typical NIU-Eastern Michigan games where it was a slugfest for both halves," said NIU head coach Mark Montgomery. "We had foul trouble, and the weirdest lineups in, in the first half, but we made due. The second half it was anyone's game, it seemed like we couldn't make a three, but we kept pounding it (inside). What is disappointing, what cost us the game, is they outrebounded us 45-26. (Eastern Michigan) had 19 offensive rebounds and it is awfully tough to win that way."

German scored NIU's first seven points and Bradley added a bucket as the Huskies took a 9-3 lead in the opening four minutes of the contest. 

Eastern Michigan (14-15, 8-8 MAC) used a 9-2 burst to take a three-point lead, 14-11, but NIU answered back with a 13-2 burst as the Huskies moved in front by eight. German opened the run with a triple, Senior Dante Thorpe (Washington, D.C./Triton College) scored the next seven and freshman Austin Richie (Glenwood, Ill./Don Bosco Institute) capped the burst with a trifecta as NIU went in front, 24-16, with 9:27 to play before the intermission. 

Thorpe finished with nine points and a career-high tying seven assists. 

The Eagles scored the next seven and NIU responded with five-straight before Eastern Michigan once again netted seven-straight as the Eagles took a 30-29 lead with just under four minutes to play in the opening half. 

A basket by junior Noah McCarty (Rock Falls, Ill./Sterling Newman) evened the contest as 33, the two teams then traded triples before Eastern Michigan made a pair of free throws with eight seconds left in the half to take a 38-36 lead into the break. 

McCarty scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds and was credited with five blocks, the most by a Huskie in a game since Marin Maric recorded six February 27, 2016, against Western Michigan. 

German scored 18 points, including five triples, to lead NIU at the half. James Thompson IV scored 11 points, and grabbed seven rebounds, to lead the way for Eastern Michigan. 

NIU (13-16, 6-10 MAC) opened the second half with a 12-2 burst, including the opening eight of the half, as the Huskies took an eight-point lead, 48-40. Bradley scored six of the Huskie dozen to begin the second stanza. 

Eastern Michigan came right back with the next eight to pull even. Bradley then made a free throw and Richie converted a layup, off a dish from Thorpe, as the Huskies took a 51-48 lead with just under 12 minutes remaining. 

After Eastern Michigan had tied the game at 56, three-straight points from sophomore Rod Henry-Hayes (Zion, Ill./Zion-Benton Township) pushed the NIU lead back to three with just over seven minutes remaining. 

The Eagles answered with a 6-0 burst, taking a 62-59 lead with 5:39 left to play. A basket by McCarty trimmed the lead back to one, but Eastern Michigan answered with an old-fashioned three-point play. Bradley then scored to cut the Eagle lead to just a pair, but another three-point play followed as EMU led 68-63 with 3:46 on the clock. 

Eastern Michigan, who came into the game shooting 62.4 percent as a team from the free-throw line, went 23-of-28 (82.1 percent) in the game, 15-of-17 (88.2 percent) in the second half, and 11-of-12 (91.7 percent) in the final seven minutes to claim the road win. 

Paul Jackson led the Eagles with 19 points, Thompson scored 15 points with 17 rebounds, Boubacar Toure scored 12 points with 16 rebounds and Kevin McAdoo chipped in 10 points for Eastern Michigan. 

NIU will finish the regular season with a pair of road games beginning Tuesday night, March 5, at Central Michigan. Game time against the Chippewas is slated for 6 p.m. CT and will be available on ESPN+.