DEKALB, Ill. – Jao Ituka (Gaithersburg, Md./Gaithersburg) scored 19 points off the bench, leading four Huskies in double figures, as the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team topped ULM, 102-82, on Monday night (Nov. 3) in the MAC/Sun Belt Challenge at the NIU Convocation Center. 

Gustav Winther (Roskilde, Denmark) had 18 points and 10 rebounds while Gianni Cobb (Chicago, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor) scored 14 points with 10 assists and zero turnovers, marking the first time two Huskies have posted double-doubles in the same game since Feb. 11, 2023, against Western Michigan. 

Makhai Valentine (Munhall, Pa./Steel Valley) added 16 points and eight rebounds. 

NIU's 102 points are its most against a Division I opponent since defeating Chicago State, 106-64, on December 23, 1996. 

"After the first four minutes our guys really settled in on both ends of the floor," said NIU head coach Rashon Burno. "Initially, we had the jitters … after that first TV timeout we got our bearings and started to play our style of play on both ends of the floor and guys made shots."

The Warhawks jumped out to a 15-4 lead in the opening four-and-a-half minutes of the contest. 

Valentine ignited a 9-0 Huskie run with a bucket as the Huskies pulled within a pair. JJ Taylor (Chicago, Ill./San Ysidro) added a basket and Ituka scored the next five as NIU cut the ULM advantage to 15-13 with 13:40 to play before the intermission. 

A triple from Ituka gave NIU its first lead of the night, 18-17, before the Warhawks answered with a pair to go back in front.

Carlos Coronado (Coolidge, Ariz./Supreme Academy) canned a corner triple to jump start a 12-0 Huskie burst. Winther added a half-dozen during the run and Ituka made his second triple of the contest as the NIU advantage grew to 30-19 with 9:14 to play in the half. 

Coronado finished with eight points. 

The Warhawks trimmed the NIU lead back to a half-dozen, 38-32, before a four-point play from Valentine pushed the Huskie advantage back to double figures with 3:05 left in the opening stanza. 

NIU took a seven-point lead, 45-38, into halftime. Winther had a dozen points at the break on 5-of-5 from the field with six rebounds. Ituka had 11 first half points while Krystian Lewis paced ULM with 11. 

The Huskie lead was five in the early stages of the second half before Daemar Kelly's (Pittsburgh, Pa./Penn Hills) second triple of the half and a layup from Winther pushed the NIU lead to 58-48. 

Kelly's trifecta started a 12-2 Huskie run as the NIU lead ballooned to 65-50 just six minutes into the second half as the Huskies coasted home to the victory. 

NIU shot 65.6 percent (21-of-32) from the field in the second half, including 50 percent (7-of-14) from three. The Huskies outrebounded ULM, 44-18, including 19-6 on the offensive end, which led to a 31-10 advantage in second chance points. 

Lewis finished with 22 points to lead the Warhawks. Przemek Hartman added 16 points and Dylan Diaz chipped in 13. 

NIU will return to action on Friday, Nov. 7, when the Huskies head to Madison to take on Wisconsin. Game time against the Badgers is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and will be available on Big Ten Network.