MAC Conference play has been rough for both teams in tonight’s men’s basketball matchup.

NIU has lost its last three MAC games, while Buffalo has yet to win in conference play.

The Huskies (5-15 overall, 2-6 MAC) are coming off a 73-55 alumni–day loss to Ohio in which they allowed 23 points off turnovers.

“The turnovers we have to eliminate are the unforced errors,” NIU head coach Ricardo Patton said. “The ones where we just make poor decisions.”

Turnovers, however, are not the only thing the Huskies will need to be wary of. With junior Jarvis Nichols’ recent injury, Patton only has four players on the bench.

Patton said the lack of players hurts the team because it’s harder to rest guys on and off the court. He also said the small bench affects the way he is able to motivate his players to perform better.

“The best motivator is the bench,” Patton said. “But unfortunately, with a short roster, we can’t motivate them the way I would normally motivate them.”

Even with prevalent injuries, freshman Jake Anderson and junior Sean Smith have stepped up in their new starting roles.

Smith led the team with 19 points in the contest between the Huskies and the Bobcats over the weekend. Anderson played hard on both sides of the ball, scoring 16 points and grabbing eight boards.

“Anderson has really separated himself from the other freshmen in the program,” Patton said. “He is tough enough and very competitive. I think he is going to be a terrific player.”

Anderson said the team needs to improve on both sides of the ball but thinks his teammates have stepped up well in the face of an injury-plagued season.

“In the game of basketball, there is always going to be a lot of injuries,” Anderson said. “I think the team is doing good, but it needs to get better. The team as a whole, we have to do better, no matter what the circumstance is.”

Buffalo (6-14, 0-8) is coming off a weekend loss to Central Michigan.

Despite the loss, Buffalo has proven to be a defensive team, outrebounding most of its opponents throughout the season. The Bulls have not won a road game since Nov. 27, 2006, when they beat Temple. Between the last two seasons, Buffalo has dropped 19 straight road games.

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