DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University men's basketball team will finish its two-game trip to Northeast Ohio on Tuesday afternoon, February 16, as the Huskies visit Akron. Game time against the Zips is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT and will be available on ESPN3. 

NIU returned to the court for the first time in four weeks on Saturday (Feb. 13) when it fell at Kent State, 80-58. Sophomore Tyler Cochran (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) and junior Trendon Hankerson (Novi, Mich./Novi) each scored 13 points to pace the Huskies. Senior Nathan Scott (Naperville, Ill./Olney Central College) grabbed a career-best nine rebounds and junior Chinedu Kingsley Okanu (Gary, Ind./Vincennes University) also had a career-high with seven rebounds. 

Over the last five games, NIU is shooting 40.7 percent from three-point range. Hankerson is shooting 39.4 percent (13-of-33) during that stretch, junior Anthony Crump (Inkster, Mich./Middle Tennessee) is shooting 50 percent (4-of-8) and junior Zool Kueth (Gallatin, Tenn./Pratt CC), who has played in four of the last five, is shooting 55 percent (11-of-20).

The Zips come into Tuesday's contest with a 12-4 overall record, 10-3 in Mid-American Conference play, after topping Miami, 83-76, on Friday night (Feb. 12). Two players are scoring in double figures for Akron, led by Loren Cristian Jackson's 21.6 points per game. Bryan Trimble Jr. adds 12.5 points per contest. Akron has the top scoring defense in the MAC, allowing just 69.0 points per game.

NIU is looking for the season sweep of the Zips, having topped Akron, 67-65, on January 12 in DeKalb on Darius Beane's pullup jumper with one second left. The Huskies are looking for their first season sweep of the Zips since the 1990-91 season and their first win in Akron since February 12, 2008. 

Following Tuesday's contest, NIU will return home for the first time in over a month as the Huskies host Miami on Saturday, February 20. Tipoff against the RedHawks is scheduled for 5 p.m. and will be the second half of a doubleheader with the NIU women's basketball team hosting Kent State at 1 p.m.