LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Uzziah Buntyn (Round Rock, Texas/Stony Point) scored all 19 of his points in the second half as the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team topped Bellarmine, 72-64, on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 14) at Knights Hall. The Huskies overturned a four-point halftime deficit as they shot 65.2 percent (15-of-23) in the second half, including 46.2 percent (6-of-13) from three-point range in the second stanza.
Brayden Gross (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville HS) posted his second consecutive double-double with 14 points and a career-high tying 13 rebounds while
Max Weisbrod (DeForest, Wis./DeForest) added 14 points.
With the win, NIU has its first three-game win streak since winning five consecutive games early in the 2023-24 season (Nov. 11-Nov. 25).
Bellarmine (1-4) scored the opening six points of the contest before a triple from Weisbrod and a layup on the break from
Nino Carter-Smith (Detroit, Mich./Warren De La Salle) brought the Huskies back within one. After a free throw from the Knights, Carter-Smith connected on a triple to give NIU its first lead, 8-7, four minutes into the contest.
The Carter-Smith triple ignited a 9-3 Huskie run as NIU led 14-10 with just under 11 minutes to play in the opening half.
NIU's lead reached seven on a transition triple from
David Douglas Jr. (Park Forest, Ill./Yorkville Christian), but Bellarmine answered with the next seven as the Knights pulled even at 21 with 6:21 left until the intermission.
A pair of free throws from Gross gave the lead back to the Huskies before Bellarmine scored the next seven as the hosts led, 28-23, with a little over two minutes to play before halftime.
Bellarmine took a 31-27 lead into halftime. The Knights shot 47.8 percent (11-of-23) in the opening 20 minutes, holding NIU to just 31 percent (9-of-29) shooting and just 3-of-17 (17.6 percent) from three-point range.
Mykolas Ivanauskas (Chicago, Ill./Sunrise Christian Academy) scored first to begin the second half as NIU opened the period on a 7-0 run. Weisbrod added a triple before
Trevor Polite (Mequon, Wis./Homestead) made a pair of free throws, giving the Huskies a 34-31 lead.
Bellarmine used a 9-0 burst to move in front by six, 40-34. Gross ended the Knights run with a bucket, followed by a
Bennett Basich (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) triple and another basket from Gross as NIU went back in front, 41-40, with 12:19 left.
The lead swung back-and-forth as Bellarmine scored the next three to lead by two. Buntyn then converted an old-fashioned three-point play to give the Huskies a one-point lead, 44-43, and the Knights answered with a score to reclaim the lead with 8:30 to go.
Buntyn then made a trio of triples to help NIU take a 55-50 advantage with a little under five minutes remaining.
With Bellarmine within three, Buntyn scored all seven for the Huskies in a 7-2 burst that gave NIU a 64-55 lead with 1:40 left as NIU closed out its second consecutive road victory.
NIU (3-2) held Bellarmine to just 37.9 percent (11-of-29) shooting in the second half. Four players scored in double figures for the Knights, led by 15 points from Kenyon Goodin. Tyler Doyle and Grant Neal each added 14 points while Sam Donald netted 10 for Bellarmine.
The Huskies will return to the road on Wednesday, Nov. 18, when they travel to Milwaukee, Wis., to take on Marquette. Game time against the Golden Eagles is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., and will be available on ESPN+ as well as WDKB 94.9 FM.
