Ball State University Athletics
Men?s Basketball Visits NIU Tuesday on ESPN3
February 09, 2015 | Men's Basketball
Ball State at Northern Illinois
Tuesday, Feb. 10; 7 p.m. CT (8 p.m. ET)
NIU Convocation Center (DeKalb, Ill.)
Video: ESPN3
Radio: 104.1 WLBC
The Ball State men's basketball team will complete its first swing through the Mid-American Conference with Tuesday's game at Northern Illinois.
With the conference schedule just past the midway point, the Huskies are the only MAC team Ball State has not yet faced. The Cardinals' final seven games are comprised of a second trip through the MAC West Division and second meetings against crossover opponents Bowling Green and Kent State.
Franko House has been the driving force for Ball State recently. The sophomore forward is averaging 17 points per game on 69.6 percent shooting over the past three games. He has needed only 23 field goal attempts to score 51 points over that stretch.
House now leads Ball State in conference play at 13 points per game. His .617 field goal percentage in league action is the best of any MAC player.
Ball State (7-14, 2-8 MAC) will look to get back to its winning ways against Northern Illinois (9-12, 3-8 MAC). The Cardinals won seven straight against the Huskies until NIU took both meetings between the teams last season, including an overtime heartbreaker in Muncie.
Northern Illinois crashes the boards as well as any team in the MAC, leading the league in both offensive rebounds per game (13.5) and rebounding margin (+3.9).
The Cardinals will need to hold their own on the glass and also regain their shooting touch. Ball State ranks 37th in the country with eight 3-pointers per game. The Cardinals made nearly that many per game over their two contests last week but needed too many attempts to do it. A team that entered the week at 37.5 percent from long range made just 26.3 percent (15 for 57) against Buffalo and Toledo.
The Cardinals lost both of those games at homes to teams that are contending for the MAC championship. Northern Illinois split two games last week with a road win at Miami and a home loss to Bowling Green.
Following Tuesday's contest, Ball State will return home to host Bowling Green as part of a Saturday men's/women's doubleheader at Worthen Arena. The women's game will tip at 2 p.m., with the men's game to follow at 4:30 p.m.
