MUNCIE, Ind. – The Northern Illinois University men's basketball team trailed by as much as 20 early in the second half but rallied to force overtime before falling to Ball State, 89-83, on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 15) at Worthen Arena. 

Quentin Jones (Chicago, Ill./Marian Catholic) led NIU with 21 points, nine rebounds and six assists, James Dent Jr. (Springfield, Ill./Springfield Southeast) had 20 points and Tsvet Sotirov (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) scored 14 points, all of which came after halftime. 

Ball State went 34-of-50 (68 percent) from the free-throw line while NIU was just 18-of-21 (85.7 percent) from the charity stripe.

"It was a better second half that first, in the last few minutes of the first half we went from down six to down 18, giving up four threes," said NIU head coach Rashon Burno. "They shot 50 free throws, there was no flow, so it might have been a fun game to watch as a fan, but it was extremely frustrating to coach or play.

"We are going to compete, these guys are not going to quit, on the road, at home, these guys are extremely competitive, we just have to figure out how to start better."

After a 16-5 run late in the second half helped propel the Huskies into overtime, NIU took its first lead since the first half early in the extra session when Steven Tipton (Brookfield, Wis./Brookfield Central) knocked in a triple. Ball State scored the next four before Joe Munden Jr. (Harlem, N.Y./ Monsignor Scanlan) hit a jumper with just under two minutes left to get the Huskies back within one, 82-81.

Munden and Tipton each scored nine points in the contest, with Tipton going a perfect 4-of-4 from the foul line. 

The Cardinals scored on the next possession and then converted a Huskie turnover into two more points as the Ball State lead ballooned to five, 86-81, with under a minute to play, helping the home team hang on for the victory. 

Five players scored in double figures for the Cardinals, led by 24 points from Juanse Gorosito. Mickey Pearson Jr. added 15 points, Jeremiah Hernandez added 14 while Ethan Brittain-Watts scored 13 and Jermahri Hill netted a dozen. 

Triples from Jones and Dent helped give NIU a 6-4 lead in the early going but Ball State answered with the next 10 to take a 14-6 lead with 11:53 to play in the half. 

Jones ended the run with a three but the Cardinals scored the next five to push the Ball State lead to 19-9 at the midway point of the half. 

NIU (5-20, 1-11 MAC) scored the next six to cut the Ball State lead to just four. Quaran McPherson (South Jamaica Queens, N.Y./Link Year Prep) opened the run with a bucket before Ethan Butler (Toronto, Ontario/Southwest Academy) added two at the rim, both off feeds from Jones, as the Huskies trimmed the Cardinal lead to 19-15. 

Ball State scored five of the next six as the Cardinal lead grew to 24-16 with 4:56 to play in the half. 

The Cardinals closed the half on a 14-3 run to take a 38-20 lead into halftime. Hernandez and Gorosito each had 10 points to pace Ball State in the opening stanza, Jones led NIU with seven points. Ball State went 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from beyond the arc in the first half while holding NIU to just 4-of-16 (25 percent) from three and 7-of-28 (25 percent) from the field overall. 

A pair of triples from Sotirov and a three by Munden early in the second half helped NIU trim the Ball State lead to 44-31. Dent then added a trifecta as the Huskies cut the Cardinal advantage to just 10 with 14:57 to play in the half. 

Sotirov's third triple of the half brought NIU within nine, but Ball State answered right back with a three of its own to lead 50-38 with 13:39 left. 

The Huskies started the second half 5-of-8 from three-point range. 

Ball State's lead grew to 15 before Tipton finished in the lane and Jones knocked in a corner three to bring the Huskies back within 10, 59-49, with 7:52 to play. 

A 16-5 run brought the Huskies within just one, 66-65, with 4:12 left. Munden ignited the run with a pair of buckets, Dent and Sotirov had triples during the burst before Sotirov finished at the rim and Tipton made a pair of free throws to bring NIU within one. 

Ball State (13-12, 6-6 MAC) made a pair of free throws to go back up three before Tipton made two more at the line to cut the Cardinal lead to 68-67 with 3:14 left. 

The Cardinals scored the next four until an old-fashioned three-point play by Dent trimmed the hosts lead to two, 72-70, with 1:14 left. Two free throws for Ball State, followed by a layup from Dent, kept it a two-point game with 21 seconds remaining. 

Ball State then split a pair of free throws to lead by three, but NIU came up empty on its next possession. After the Cardinals split a pair at the line, Dent made two to bring the Huskies within two, 76-74, with 6.2 seconds left. 

The Cardinals then missed two at the line and, not knowing the situation, fouled Jones with 1.9 seconds left. The Chicago native calmly made a pair from the line to tie the game at 76, forcing overtime. 

NIU shot 57.1 percent (16-of-28) from the field in the second 20 minutes, including 50 percent (8-of-16) from three. 

The Huskies will be back on the road on Tuesday, Feb. 18, when they travel to Akron. Tip time against the Zips is slated for 6 p.m. CT.