Buffalo is hoping to be the next team to beat up on Northern Illinois when the two teams meet on Tuesday evening. The Bulls had their three-game winning streak snapped in an 80-70 loss to Toledo on Friday. Northern Illinois has been the worst team in the MAC this season, losing nine of its 10 conference games.
Bulls looking to blitz Huskies
Buffalo won three of its first four MAC games before losing three of its next four. The Bulls responded with a three-game winning streak over Ball State, Miami (Ohio) and Western Michigan. They were unable to stay hot on Friday, losing to Toledo by 10 points. The Rockets are sitting atop the conference standings, though, so the loss was expected. Buffalo is currently in fifth place in the standings, but it is just a half-game behind Ohio for the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament. The Bulls have been a decent offensive team, listed at No. 93 in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency ratings.Check out the @TMobile Call of the Game from Friday night's action#UBhornsUP pic.twitter.com/dVEBVwmbbh
— UB Men's Basketball (@UBmenshoops) February 22, 2021
They will be facing a Northern Illinois defense that has been awful, listed at No. 325 in opponent’s effective field goal percentage. Buffalo should have a big advantage on the boards, as it ranks No. 7 nationally in offensive rebounding rate. Junior forward Jeenathan Williams leads the team with 18.0 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He had 19 points and 10 rebounds against Toledo on Friday. Senior guard Jayvon Graves is scoring 14.8 points and is grabbing 5.7 rebounds. Junior forward Josh Mballa and junior guard Ronaldo Segu are both in double figures as well. Segu is dishing out 4.0 assists per game.
Northern Illinois hoping to spring upset
Northern Illinois has only picked up two wins all season. The first one came against Chicago State, which is one of the worst teams in college basketball. The second win came in a stunner over Akron on Jan. 12. Akron is currently second in the MAC standings behind Buffalo, so it was a shocking result. Northern Illinois was off from Jan. 17 to Feb. 12 due to COVID-19 issues. The Huskies have dropped games to Kent State, Akron and Miami (Ohio) since returning to action. They have been equally as bad on the offensive end as the defensive end, ranking No. 330 in effective field goal percentage and No. 301 in turnover rate.We've played Buffalo. pic.twitter.com/e3OK3NqgGf
— NIU Men's Basketball (@GoHuskiesMBB) February 22, 2021
Buffalo’s defense has been solid throughout the season, listed at No. 32 in opponent’s effective field goal percentage. The Bulls’ are the eight-best at defending the 3-point line of any team in college basketball. Sophomore guard Tyler Cochran leads Northern Illinois with 14.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He has only been able to play eight games, but he is currently healthy and playing. Junior guard Trendon Hankerson is scoring 12.7 points and is grabbing 4.5 rebounds. He is coming off a 22-point outing against Miami (Ohio). Junior guard Darius Beane is also in double figures, adding 10.0 points.
Team Trends
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Buffalo is:
- 5-2 ATS in its last seven games
- 10-5 ATS in its last 15 games vs. Northern Illinois
- 8-3 ATS in its last 11 MAC games
Northern Illinois is:
- 3-12-1 ATS in its last 16 games
- 2-5 ATS in its last seven Tuesday home games
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