DEKALB, Ill. – Following back-to-back wins over Kent State and Eastern Michigan, the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team will host Bowling Green on Tuesday night, Jan. 18. Game time against the Falcons is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be available on ESPN3.
The Huskies topped EMU, 77-70, on Saturday (Jan. 15) for their second consecutive victory.
Keshawn Williams (Chicago Heights, Ill./Tulsa) scored 18 points to lead five Huskies in double figures.
Kaleb Thornton (Bolingbrook, Ill./Iowa Western CC) scored 15 points,
Trendon Hankerson (Novi, Mich./Novi) added 12 points,
Adong Makuoi (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada/Daytona State College) chipped in 11 points and
Anthony Crump (Inkster, Mich./Middle Tennessee) netted 10 points.
NIU's five double figure scorers marked the first time since Nov. 6, 2018, that the Huskies had five players reach double figures. With the win, NIU improved to 2-1 in conference play, third in the MAC behind Ohio, who is 4-0, and Toledo, who has a 5-1 league record.
Thornton is averaging 14.7 points per game in conference play, shooting 50 percent (15-of-30) from the floor and 40 percent (4-of-10) from three. Thornton is eighth in the MAC in assists (3.3 apg), ninth in assist/turnover ratio at 1.25, 18th in scoring and 14th in field goal percentage.
Williams is averaging 16.1 points per game over his last seven games, shooting 47.5 percent (47-of-99) from the field during that stretch. Hankerson is averaging 13.0 points per game over the last two contests, shooting 50 percent (8-of-16) from the field and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from three-point range.
The Falcons bring an 8-8 overall record into Tuesday's contest, including a 1-4 mark in conference play. Bowling Green fell to Toledo, 91-78, on Saturday (Jan. 15). Two players are scoring in double figures for Bowling Green, led by 16.1 points per game from Daeqwon Plowden, who also leads the Falcons with 7.3 rebounds per contest. Joe Reece also scores in double figures at 11.7 points per game.
Bowling Green is the highest scoring team in the MAC, averaging 83.4 points per game, seventh-best in the country.
Huskie basketball tickets are on sale now, including Huskie Flex Plans. Purchase vouchers for $6 each and use them throughout the season to attend Huskie men's and women's basketball home games. Simply redeem vouchers for tickets at the box office prior to the game. Tickets can be purchased online at NIUHuskies.com/MyHuskies or by calling the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).
