Who's Playing

Northern Illinois @ Kent State

Regular Season Records: Northern Illinois 13-18; Kent State 25-6

What to Know

The Northern Illinois Huskies have quite the challenge ahead of them as they're expected to be blown off the court. They and the Kent State Golden Flashes are set to clash at 4 p.m. ET March 9 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tourney. The Huskies and Kent State are even-steven over their past 12 head-to-heads (6-6).

NIU had enough points to win and then some against the Eastern Michigan Eagles last week, taking their matchup 85-66. NIU relied on the efforts of guard Zarique Nutter, who had 19 points, and guard Kaleb Thornton, who posted a double-double on 17 points and 11 assists along with six rebounds.

Meanwhile, Kent State didn't have too much breathing room in their contest with the Akron Zips last Friday, but they still walked away with an 89-84 win. Guard Sincere Carry was the offensive standout of the game for Kent State, picking up 35 points.

A pair of numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: The Huskies are stumbling into the game with the 26th most turnovers per game in college basketball, having accrued 14.2 on average. To make matters even worse for NIU, the Golden Flashes enter the game with 16.1 takeaways on average, good for 21st best in college basketball. So the cards are definitely stacked in Kent State's favor.

How To Watch

  • When: Thursday at 4 p.m. ET
  • Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse -- Cleveland, Ohio
  • TV: ESPN Plus
  • Follow: CBS Sports App

Odds

The Golden Flashes are a big 12-point favorite against the Huskies, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 12-point spread, and stayed right there.

Over/Under: -110

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Series History

Kent State and Northern Illinois both have six wins in their last 12 games.

  • Jan 24, 2023 - Northern Illinois 86 vs. Kent State 76
  • Mar 01, 2022 - Kent State 63 vs. Northern Illinois 55
  • Jan 11, 2022 - Northern Illinois 65 vs. Kent State 63
  • Feb 13, 2021 - Kent State 80 vs. Northern Illinois 58
  • Feb 07, 2020 - Northern Illinois 57 vs. Kent State 54
  • Jan 21, 2020 - Northern Illinois 76 vs. Kent State 69
  • Jan 19, 2019 - Kent State 78 vs. Northern Illinois 68
  • Mar 05, 2018 - Kent State 61 vs. Northern Illinois 59
  • Jan 02, 2018 - Northern Illinois 75 vs. Kent State 61
  • Jan 24, 2017 - Kent State 73 vs. Northern Illinois 66
  • Jan 10, 2017 - Northern Illinois 74 vs. Kent State 70
  • Feb 09, 2016 - Kent State 75 vs. Northern Illinois 74