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NIU wins MAC opener with school record

DEKALB, Ill. -- Senior Travon Baker  scored a career-high 25 points, including 13 in the final three minutes, as the Northern Illinois University men’s basketball team defeated Ohio, 80-69, on Wednesday night in the Mid-American Conference opener at the NIU Convocation Center.

Sophomore Marin Maric  tied a career-high with 22 points and 14 rebounds as he posted his fifth double-double of the season in a contest that featured 10 ties and 18 lead changes.

The win improved the Huskies to 12-2 on the season and gave NIU its 12th consecutive home win dating back to last season, setting a new school record.

Junior Aaric Armstead  scored 14 points and added nine rebounds while freshman Laytwan Porter set a new career-high with 13 points and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds.

“It was a typical MAC game,” said NIU head coach Mark Montgomery. “Tough defense, efficient offense. Ohio is a very well-coached team; you just have to find a way to get multiple stops, score some baskets and survive. I thought our freshmen really got a feel for what it is like to play in a conference game.

“I thought both teams were locked in from beginning to end. We were efficient at the free-throw line and shooting threes, we had more assists than turnovers; our guys were very focused and that is why we came away with the win.”

A triple by Treg Setty gave Ohio a one-point lead, 53-52, just before the midway point of the season half but Armstead answered with the next three to push the Huskies back in front, 55-53.

After Ohio split a pair of free throws, Maric scored the next six to push the NIU lead to seven, 61-54, with just over six minutes to play.

The Bobcats climbed back within six, 65-60, with 3:53 left before Baker took over, scoring NIU’s next 13 points. The senior from Detroit knocked down a triple with just over two minutes left to push the lead to eight and, after an old-fashioned three-point play from the Bobcats, scored the next six in the game to give NIU a 74-63 lead in the final minute, propelling the Huskies to the win.

NIU held Ohio to just 27.6 percent (8-of-29) shooting from the field in the second half; the Huskies shot 45.5 percent (10-of-22) after the break, and also went 20-of-24 (83.3 percent) from the free-throw line.

Jaaron Simmons scored 19 points to lead the way for Ohio; Kenny Kaminski and Treg Setty each added 15 for the Bobcats.

Ohio led by one in the early going until a triple from Armstead gave the Huskies a two-point advantage, 13-11. With NIU leading by one, Armstead split a pair of free throws and made a layup to give the Huskies a four-point lead, 19-15, with 11:45 to play in the first half

Armstead scored nine of his 14 points in the first eight minutes of the contest to fuel the Huskies early.

The Bobcats responded with a 9-0 run to take a 24-19 lead just past the midway point of the opening half. Baker ended the Ohio run with a triple to cut the Bobcat lead to just a pair, 24-22.

NIU and Ohio traded the lead over the final eight minutes of the first half. A pair of free throws from Porter pushed the Huskies in front, 36-35, with 1:35 left before the intermission and Maric split a pair at the line in the final minute to give the Huskies a 37-35 lead at the break.

Armstead and Maric each scored 11 to pace the Huskies in the opening 20 minutes; NIU shot 54.5 percent (12-of-22) from the field, including 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from three-point range.

Ohio scored eight of the first 10 out of the intermission to take a four-point lead, 43-39. NIU answered on a layup by Porter off an offensive rebound and a triple from Baker to swing the lead back to the Huskies, 44-43, with 15:21 remaining.

The two teams traded leads until just past the midway point of the second half when Armstead’s three-straight points put the Huskies in front for good as NIU outscored Ohio, 28-16 in the final 10 minutes.

NIU returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Eastern Michigan in the second half of a doubleheader with the NIU women’s basketball team. The Huskie women host EMU at 5 p.m., with the men’s game following at approximately 7:30.

NIU FOOTBALL

DeKALB, Ill. – Two familiar faces will return to lead the Northern Illinois University offense and defense in 2016 as Head Coach Rod Carey announced the hiring of Mike Uremovich as the Huskies’ new offensive coordinator while Kevin Kane will take over as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

Uremovich spent the last three seasons as offensive line coach at North Carolina State after serving as NIU’s running backs coach and special teams coordinator in 2012 in his second stint as a Huskie.  Kane was on NIU’s staff from 2011-2014, including three seasons as linebackers coach, before leaving in 2015 to coach linebackers at his alma mater, Kansas.

A native of New Lenox, Illinois, Uremovich was a member of the NIU coaching staff that led the Huskies to the 2012 Mid-American Conference Championship and a berth in the Orange Bowl before leaving for N.C. State, where he helped lead the Wolfpack to a pair of bowl berths. He was also a part of two MAC West Championship teams at NIU as a graduate assistant on NIU Hall of Fame coach Joe Novak’s staff in 2001 and 2002.  

“We’re really happy to have Mike, his wife Katie and their family back at NIU,” Carey said. “I really believe he’s one of the finest coaches in the nation and I’m excited for him to lead our offense along with the rest of our offensive staff in [assistant coaches] Joe Tripodi, Thad Ward, Craig Harmon and Kelton Copeland.  I feel like we’ll have one of the finest offensive staffs in the country.

“As an Illinois native who has been at NIU previously, the recruiting aspect is a vital part of this hire.  His familiarity with our current staff and current players will help make the transition seamless.”

Prior to joining the NIU staff in 2012, Uremovich served as head coach at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, Ill. for seven seasons (2005-11).  In 2011, he led the Saints to their most successful season in school history as USF won a school-record 10 games and claimed their first win over an NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) team when they defeated Georgia State. The Saints advanced to the NAIA Playoffs for the first time in 24 years and captured their first playoff victory.

Uremovich said his return to NIU and the state “feels like coming home.”

“My family and I are really excited to come back to NIU,” he said. “I’m still familiar with a lot of players on the team and also feel really comfortable with the offensive staff. I know or have worked with everyone on that side of the ball, so it’s going to be an easy transition. I’ve spent the bulk of my coaching career in Illinois and recruiting Illinois. I can’t wait to get back and start working with the Illinois high school football coaches to get more great players to NIU.

“I’m excited to be calling plays again and to work with all of the players we have coming back on offense. We’ve got talented players that can run it, catch it and throw it. I’m looking to build on what NIU has been - a fast, physical, balanced offensive football team.”

Kane returns to the defense he helped construct from 2012-14 after spending his initial season at NIU coaching the tight ends and fullbacks in 2011. Kane also coordinated the Huskies’ special teams his final two seasons. In all, he was a part of three MAC Championship teams in DeKalb before leaving following the 2014 campaign to return to his alma mater. 

Carey said bringing Kane back as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach was a “no-brainer.”

“It’s great to have Kevin, his wife Theresa and their family back as part of our Huskie family,” Carey said. “With his familiarity with our program and players after just one season away, it was a no-brainer to bring him back. I’m excited for this opportunity for him and have no doubt he’s going to be a top-notch defensive coordinator.

“Kevin brings great leadership, on and off the field, to our program and to our defense.  He, along with Brett Diersen and Kelvin Sigler, give us an excellent defensive staff.”  

Kane came to NIU in 2011 after working on the football staff at the University of Wisconsin from 2008-10 where he was a graduate assistant for the 2008 and 2009 seasons before serving as the Quality Control Assistant for the UW defense in 2010. A former standout linebacker for the Jayhawks, he began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at KU.

The Kansas City native said his familiarity with the program and opportunity to become defensive coordinator were big factors in his return. 

“I’m excited to be back in DeKalb with the team I know so well that has had so much success,” he said.  “Coach Niemann [former defensive coordinator] has done a great job over the past five years at NIU. I studied under him, learned under him and we want to continue the success that NIU has had.

“I can’t wait to get my foot in the door and be back in DeKalb calling the defense. One of the things I love about coming back is I know all the players there already. I get to coach the linebackers I helped bring to the school, with a defensive line and defensive backs, as well as a coaching staff, that I know. Being away, I’ve learned a lot and hope to incorporate some of the things I’ve learned and just continue the winning tradition that’s been built.”

NIU is coming off an 8-6 season that saw the Huskies win their sixth consecutive MAC West Championship and play in a bowl game for the eighth consecutive year. 

 

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