DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University men's basketball team welcomes Akron, one of the Mid-American Conference's two remaining unbeatens, to the NIU Convocation Center on Tuesday night, January 14. Tipoff between the Huskies and Zips is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be available on ESPN+. 

Tickets for all remaining home games, including flex passes, are available now at NIUHuskies.com/tickets or by calling 815-753-PACK (7225).

Tuesday is Welcome Back Students Night as NIU Athletics will host pre-game basketball competitions beginning at 5 p.m. in Victor E. Court for the chance to win exclusive prizes. 

NIU (9-7, 2-1 MAC) is coming off a 71-68 victory over Eastern Michigan on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 11). Senior Noah McCarty (Rock Falls, Ill./Sterling Newman) tied a career-high with 14 points against the Eagles to continue his strong start to conference play. McCarty is currently averaging 9.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game in league contests. 

Senior Eugene German (Gary, Ind./21st Century Charter) scored a game-high 17 points against the Eagles, he now has 1,896 career points and is just 100 behind T.J. Lux (1995-2000) for the NIU career record. German, who is averaging 20.4 points per contest, is ranked 22nd in the nation in scoring. 

The Zips bring a 13-3 overall record to DeKalb, including a 3-0 mark in conference. Akron is one of two schools, along with Kent State, that is still unbeaten in league play. Akron has four players scoring in double figures, led by 16.6 points per game from Loren Cristian Jackson. Tyler Cheese adds 15.1 points per game, Xeyrius Williams is scoring 14.3 points per contest and Channel Banks is averaging 11.8 points per game.

Last year, the Huskies and Zips split their season series, with both teams winning at home. Tuesday night's contest is the only regular season meeting between NIU and Akron this season. 

Following Tuesday's game, the Huskies will travel to the State of Ohio for a pair of games, beginning at Bowling Green on Saturday, January 18.