Chippewas Host NIU in Home Regular Season Finale

GAME PREVIEW
• Central Michigan (20-9, 9-7 MAC) will play its final regular season game in McGuirk Arena on Tuesday, March 5 when it hosts Northern Illinois (13-16, 6-10 MAC) in a MAC West division game at 7 p.m.
• The Chippewas fell to Toledo, 80-68, on Saturday while Northern Illinois came up short at home against Eastern Michigan, 75-69, in its last outing.
• Central Michigan currently resides in lone possession of second place in the MAC West standings and is in position to serve as the No. 4 seed for the MAC Tournament and receive a first round bye with two regular season conference games remaining.
• Central Michigan owns a 12-3 home record this season, including five wins in MAC play, while Northern Illinois is 3-9 on the road in 2018-19, with five of those losses coming against conference foes.
• The Chippewas possess a 53-57 record in the all-time series versus Northern Illinois but have won five of the last six meetings in McGuirk Arena.
• Central Michigan took the first meeting between the teams earlier this season, 78-69, in DeKalb, getting 21 points from Shawn Roundtree Jr.

CHIPPEWAS TO WATCH
• Senior guard Larry Austin Jr. leads CMU and ranks No. 5 in the MAC in scoring, averaging 16.9 points per game. He has scored in double figures in 26 of 29 games. The three-time MAC West Player of the Week also ranks first in the MAC in assists (5.7) and second in steals (2.1).
• Senior guard Shawn Roundtree Jr. is the Chippewas' top scorer in MAC play, posting 16.8 points per game.
• Junior forward David DiLeo leads the Chippewas (4th in the MAC) with 74 3-pointers and is fourth on the team in rebounding (4.9 rpg). He is having a standout season from the field, shooting .424 overall and .416 from 3-point range, both career highs.
• Junior Kevin McKay ranks first on the team in rebounding (No. 7 in the MAC, 7.8 rpg) and averages 11.7 points per game. He leads all active Chippewas with 12 career double-doubles.
• Junior forward Rob Montgomery has been a force in MAC play, ranking third on the team in scoring, averaging 13.0 points per game, while collecting 6.3 rebounds.

TRENDING
• Central Michigan has posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since the mid-1960s (1965-66, 1966-67).
• CMU has guaranteed itself a fifth consecutive .500 or better season, the program's longest such streak since the early 1970s (1969-75).
• Central Michigan has recorded double-digit wins at home for five consecutive years, totaling 62 during that time frame. CMU is 12-3 in McGuirk Arena this season.
• Shawn Roundtree Jr. needs 14 points to become the 34th player in CMU program history to reach 1,000 career points. He would become just the third Chippewa to reach that milestone in two seasons, joining Trey Ziegler and Ervin "Lightning" Leavy.
• With 62, Larry Austin Jr. needs two steals to break the Central Michigan single-season record, held by Dave Grauzer (63, 1978-79). He is currently tied for second with Kevin McKay (2017-18) and Dave Grauzer (1977-78).
• Kevin McKay, who ranks No. 2 in the MAC in offensive rebounding (3.3 rpg), is one of only three guards in Division I to record 19 or more rebounds in a game this season.
• Central Michigan ranks prominently nationally in four major statistical categories -- No. 3 in free throw attempts (776), No. 11 in free throws made (517), No. 16 in 3-point field goal defense (30.1) and No. 18 in scoring offense (82.4).
• Larry Austin Jr., who leads the MAC in assists (5.7 apg), recently moved onto the CMU single-season top 10 list, currently ranking eighth with 164 assists.

SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
• Led by eight-year head coach Mark Montgomery, Northern Illinois enters Tuesday's contest having lost seven of its last eight games, including a 75-69 setback to Eastern Michigan on March 2.
• The Huskies are tied with Ball State for fourth place in the MAC West and currently holds the No. 9 seed for the MAC Tournament.
• Northern Illinois is led by junior guard Eugene German, senior wing Levi Bradley, and senior guard Dante Thorpe.
• German is the MAC's second-leading scorer, averaging 19.8 points per game. He tops the team in 3-pointers (72), steals (30), assists (78) and is third in rebounding (5.2 rpg).
• Bradley ranks second on the team in points per game (14.0) and rebounding (5.4). He shoots a team-best .805 from the free throw line.
• Thorpe scores 13.6 points per game and leads NIU in shooting percentage (.528).
• Senior forward Lacey James, who goes 6-9, 240, is the Huskies' leading rebounder (6.7 rpg) and shot blocker (19).
• Sophomore guard Rod Henry-Hayes, who has started 27 of 29 games, averages 4.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per game.
• Senior forward Jaylen Key (3.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg) and sophomore guard Gairges Daow (2.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg) are also consistent contributors, having played in 28 and 29 games, respectively.

UP NEXT FOR THE CHIPPEWAS
• Central Michigan will conclude regular season play on Friday, March 8 when it visits Kalamazoo to renew its rivalry with Western Michigan (8-21, 2-14 MAC) in a 7 p.m. game at Read Fieldhouse/University Arena.
• The Chippewas dominated the first meeting this season with the Broncos, winning 85-64 in Mount Pleasant.
• Western Michigan has dropped three straight games, all by five points or fewer, and visits Toledo before hosting the Chippewas in the regular season finale.
• Western is led by senior center Seth Dugan (16.0 ppg, 9.5 rpg), sophomore guard Michael Flowers (15.7 ppg, 95 assists, 60 3-pointers) and senior guard/forward Josh Davis (11.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg).
• Based on the outcome of the final two regular season games around the MAC, Central Michigan will either receive a bye and advance directly to Cleveland as the No. 4 seed or host a first round MAC Tournament game on Monday, March 11.

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Players Mentioned

Larry Austin Jr.

David DiLeo

Kevin McKay

Rob Montgomery

Shawn Roundtree Jr.

Central Michigan University Athletics