NORTHERN ILLINOIS 66, AKRON 63
YPSILANTI, MI – Buffalo extended its winning streak to five games as UB never trailed in its victory over Eastern Michigan on Thursday afternoon, 83-69. With the win, Buffalo improves to 15-8 on the year and 9-4 league play.
The win was highlighted by a career milestone for senior Ronaldo Segu, who became the 25th player in school history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark for his career. The milestone basket came on a driving layup with 7:20 left in the first half.
Leading by just a point five minutes into the opening period, the Bulls went on a 9-2 run, capped off on a three from Keishawn Brewton, extending the advantage to 20-12. The Eagles would cut the deficit to three, but the Bulls answered with nine more points, including a three from senior Maceo Jack, who had three triples in the opening half. The 12-point lead was Buffalo's largest of the first half as they took an eight-point lead into the break.
Eastern Michigan cut the deficit to as little as six in the second half, but the Bulls answered with a three from Tra'von Fagan. A three from senior Jeenathan Williams with 5:09 left extended the lead back to 12 and UB led by double figures for the remainder of the game, getting their lead up to as many as 17.
The Bulls placed four players in double figures, led by a second straight double-double from Josh Mballa, who finished with game highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds. Williams finished with 18 points and Segu had 16 points, six assists and three steals, while not turning it over.
Jack scored 11 points, all in the first half, while David Skogman finished with six points and 10 rebounds.
Curtis Jones had five points and four boards off the bench, while Fagan also added five points. Brewton chipped in three points.
UB shot 55% from behind the arc in the game, its second highest shooting total from three overall. Six different players connected from long distance.
The Bulls again held a big advantage on the glass, outrebounding Eastern Michigan, 46-35. Defensively, EMU shot just 25% from behind the arc as Buffalo continued its trend of leading the MAC in 3-pt field goal defense.
Noah Farrakhan led EMU with 14 points, while Nate Scott contributed 13.
NORTHERN ILLINOIS 66, AKRON 63
AKRON, OH -- Anthony Crump's layup with 1:15 remaining broke a 59-all tie, and Northern Illinois went on to post a 66-63 win over Akron Thursday night at James A. Rhodes Arena.
It was the second straight victory for NIU (8-16, 5-9 MAC). Akron, which edged the Huskies 70-74 Feb. 8, dropped its third straight and fell to 16-9 (9-6 MAC).
Northern Illinois had a balanced scoring attack with five Huskies in double figures. Keshawn Williams led the way with 15 points, followed by Kaleb Thornton (12), Chinedu Kingsley-Okanu (11), Trendon Hankerson (10) and Zool Kueth (10).
The Huskies hit 47.2 percent from the field, giving them five more field goals (25-20) overall. UA had one more trey and sent 18 of 27 from the line. Northern Illinois sank 12 of 16 from the stripe.
Ali Ali came of the bench to score a team-high 20 points to lead Akron. Greg Tribble (10) was the only other Zips in double figures. Enrique Freeman registered eight points with 11 rebounds.