NIU Head Coach Rashon Burno
DEKALB, Ill. – A second half surge helped Ball State claim a 79-43 victory over the Northern Illinois University men’s basketball team on Saturday afternoon at the NIU Convocation Center. The Cardinals led by seven at the intermission before an early second half run put the game out of reach.
Ball State shot 50 percent (30-of-60) from the field, including 44 percent (11-of-25) from three-point range while holding NIU to just 25.6 percent (11-of-43) and 23.5 percent (4-of-17) from three.
“This was an extremely disappointing performance,” said NIU head coach Rashon Burno. “We weren’t ready to play. We lacked discipline, toughness … our guys are pretty beat up about our performance. I thought they had the right intentions; we just couldn’t execute anything from start to finish.”
Tied at three in the early going, Ball State used a quick 9-0 burst to lead, 12-3, with 16:29 to play in the opening half.
A triple from Dylan Ducommun ended the Ball State run, but the Cardinals scored the next seven after as the visitors took a 19-6 lead with 14:32 remaining before the intermission.
Ball State (10-19, 5-11) led 24-9 when NIU went on a 7-0 run. Daemar Kelly opened the run with a basket, Gustav Winther finished at the rim and Kelly added a triple to bring the Huskies back within eight with 7:31 left before halftime.
Following a basket for the Cardinals, Kelly made a pair of free throws and Taj Walters knocked in a triple to cut the Ball State advantage to just five, 26-21, with a little over four minutes to play before the break.
Kelly finished with a team-high nine points for the Huskies.
The Cardinals went in front by a dozen, 33-21, before NIU (9-19, 4-12 MAC) closed the half on an 8-3 spurt as Walters made a basket, Gianni Cobb went 4-of-4 from the line and Makhai Valentine closed the scoring as Ball State took a 36-29 lead into halftime.
Davion Hill led all scorers with 10 first half points for Ball State, Kelly and Walters paced the Huskies with seven points each.
Ball State scored the first 21 points to start the second half as the Cardinals took a 57-29 lead. The Cardinal shot 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from the field in the second half while holding the Huskies to just 14.3 percent (3-of-21).
Hill finished with 17 points to lead the way for Ball State. Armoni Zeigler added 13 points, Elmore James and Kayden Fish each chipped in 12 while Devon Barnes scored 11.
NIU will be back home for the final time this season on Tuesday, March 3, when the Huskies host Kent State. Tipoff against the Golden Flashes is scheduled for 7 p.m..
DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women’s basketball team led the whole way on Saturday in a 70-61 win over the Eastern Michigan Eagles at the NIU Convocation Center for Cram The Convo.
“I’m really proud of our effort for 40 minutes today,” said head coach Jacey Brooks. “We talked about setting the tone in the first five minutes and we did that. It’s the most complete game we’ve played this year which is encouraging. It’s the end of February and that’s when you want to play your best basketball.”
NIU (6-22, 3-13 MAC) had four players score in double figures Saturday, led by Nevaeh Wingate’s game-high 21 points. Maria Serracanta became the first Huskie since Dec. 4, 2021 to have a points and assists double-double. The senior had 12 points and a career-high 11 assists, going 5-for-5 from the field.
“I was finding my teammates open in the first half, and once they took that away I was more aggressive offensively,” Serracanta said after her first career double-double. “The coaches have all the confidence in me so I just go out there and play.”
Emilie Sorensen (Waukee, Iowa/Waukee) made three three-pointers on her way to 15 points. She also pulled down a team-high six rebounds. Sa’Mahn Johnson had 10 points, scoring in double figures for the third straight game.
The Huskies opened the game on a 10-4 run in the first 2:37, getting three-pointers from Sorensen and Nadechka Laccen. The lead grew to nine at the 4:38 mark of the first quarter after threes from Wingate and Serracanta put NIU ahead 18-9. Sisi Eleko led Eastern Michigan’s charge back in the game, scoring the first six points in an 8-0 run that made the score 18-17 with 2:39 to go in the quarter.
NIU scored the final five points of the first quarter to take a 23-17 lead, then got back-to-back threes from Sorensen to start the second and go up 29-17. The Huskies took their largest lead of the game at the 5:03 to go in the first half when a Laccen three-pointer and Wingate layup made the score 34-19. NIU led 41-28 at the half, going 9-for-15 from the three-point line and shooting 48.3 percent from the floor.
“Our three-point looks were open,” said Brooks about NIU’s long range shooting in the first half. “We were able to get some dribble penetration. We knew they were going to collapse on them, and we were able to find the open shooter. That showed with our 18 assists today.”
Eastern Michigan (12-15, 5-11 MAC) held NIU to 2-for-12 from the field in the third quarter, getting within four at 49-45 going into the fourth quarter. NIU got the lead back up to 10 in the final period, scoring the first six points in 2:40 to go up 55-45 on baskets from Serracanta, Sorensen and Cyra Conwell (Chicago, Ill./Butler College Prep). The Eagles responded with a 7-1 run over the next 1:42 as an Eleko three-point play got EMU within four at 56-52 with 5:41 to go. Serracanta scored seven of NIU’s next nine points to give NIU a 65-54 lead with under four minutes to go. Eastern Michigan only got as close as six points the rest of the way.
NIU shot 45.3 percent from the field and was 13-for-16 from the free throw line. The Huskies had a season-high 18 assists on its 24 field goals. Eastern Michigan outrebounded NIU 42-28 but turned the ball over 19 times which led to 20 Huskies points. Eleko led the Eagles with 20 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Huskies host Buffalo on Wednesday, March 4 at 6 p.m. for the final home game of the regular season. The Huskies will honor the five seniors on the team – Teresa Mbemba, Nadechka Laccen, Maria Serracanta, Marta Hermoso and Reagan Barkema – for Senior Night.
February 28, 2026