Ohio led most of the game, but it wasn’t anything close to a blow out. The first half was tight, with Ohio going on a little run to take the lead at the half, 39-32.
After the break, Ohio stretched the lead to 9 with 16:53, before Northern Illinois was able to tie it up 57-57 with 6:52 to go thanks to a nifty ball fake and drive by Eugene German. On the next possession, Marin Maric was able to gather the rebound off his own miss and the finish gave Northern Illinois their first lead since early in the first half.