DEKALB, Ill. -- The Northern Illinois University men’s basketball team trailed by just three with three minutes to play, but a 9-0 Ohio run helped the Bobcats claim a 78-69 road victory over the Huskies on Saturday afternoon at the NIU Convocation Center. Senior Marin Maric led four Huskies in double figures with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Freshman Eugene German added 15 points while sophomores Levi Bradley and Jaylen Key each chipped in 11 points.
“I thought (Ohio) controlled the tempo in the first half,” said NIU head coach Mark Montgomery. “A couple of their role players, who are now starters or playing more minutes, were the different. (Jason) Carter and (Mike) Laster; Carter comes in instead of (Antonio) Campbell, he has 15 points and 12 rebounds, an unbelievable performance.
“We still had our chances. I liked how our guys bounced back, took a lead in the second half, unfortunately we didn’t close the game.”
After trailing by as much as nine early in the second half, NIU rallied to take its first lead of the second half, 59-57, on a put-back from Maric with 6:21 to play. The basket capped a 7-0 Huskie burst that was fueled by five points from German.
Ohio answered with a triple to move back in front and, after a free throw by senior Dontel Highsmith (Dowagiac, Mich./Dowagiac) tied the game at 60, the Bobcats scored the next five to take a five-point lead with 4:21 left.
Highsmith finished with eight points and a team-high four assists.
NIU cut the Ohio advantage back to three on a basket by Key with 3:14 remaining, but the Bobcats went on a 9-0 to lead 76-64 and put the game out of reach.
Jaaron Simmons led all scorers with 23 points for Ohio; Jason Carter added 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds while Jordan Dartis and Mike Laster each scored 14 points.
Ohio scored the first four points of the contest and NIU answered with a 10-2 run to take a four-point lead of its own, but then neither lead led by more than three in the first half until back-to-back triples pushed the Bobcats in front by six.
A jumper from senior Aaric Armstead tied the game, 23-23, with 5:31 to play before the intermission before Carter and Dartis gave Ohio a six-point lead with those consecutive triples.
Baskets from German and Key trimmed the Ohio advantage back to just a pair, but the Bobcats outscored the Huskies 10-5 in the final three minutes of the half to take a 39-32 lead into the intermission.
Ohio shot 55.2 percent (16-of-29) from the field in the opening 20 minutes; including 50 percent (5-of-10) from three-point range.
With Ohio still leading by seven, 49-42, in the second half, a pair of free throws from Highsmith started a 6-0 burst that pulled the Huskies within one with just over 11 minutes left. Freshman Justin Thomas made a driving layup and Bradley knocked down a baseline jumper as the Huskies trimmed the Bobcat lead to 49-48.
A free throw from Gavin Block and a bucket from Simmons gave Ohio a five-point lead, 57-52, before the 7-0 burst that pushed the Huskies in front for the first time in the second half.
NIU will closed its current three-game homestand on Tuesday, Jan. 24, when the Huskies host Kent State. Game time against the Golden Flashes is scheduled for 7 p.m.
