Men’s basketball defeated Central Michigan University 89-86 Tuesday in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, keeping NIU’s quest to host the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament alive.
The Huskies dominated the interior, out-rebounding the Chippewas 46-32 and converting 26 second chance points to outscore CMU 48-24 in the paint.
Senior forward Levi Bradley scored a game-high 26 points on 6-14 shooting, while senior forward Lacey James recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and a career-high 19 rebounds.
“We had the advantage inside,” Head Coach Mark Montgomery said. “We had more patience on offense to work the ball to make sure those guys got paint touches and if they miss they clean it up on rebounds.