Tuesday, March 5
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
7:00 p.m. ET
Central Michigan University
20-10, 9-8MAC
86
vs
89
Northern Illinois
14-16, 7-10MAC
1
2
F
Northern Ill.
37
52
89
Central Michigan
40
46
86
Chippewas Edged by NIU
3/5/2019 11:22:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Shawn Roundtree Jr. earns his 1,000th career point
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- The Central Michigan men's basketball team made 12 3-pointers and shot 83 percent from the free throw line but could not overcome a late second-half deficit and narrowly fell to Northern Illinois Tuesday night in McGuirk Arena.
CMU is 20-10 overall and 9-8 in the MAC. The Huskies improve to 14-16 overall, 7-10 in the MAC.
"We're obviously disappointed but credit NIU," said CMU junior forward David DiLeo. "They came in and were ready to play. We have to watch the film, figure some things out and move on, because we have a big rivalry game against Western (Michigan on Friday)."
HOW IT HAPPENED
A 6-0 NIU run put the Chippewas behind 78-69 with 2:14 remaining. CMU responded with a 6-1 run of its own, which included four points from Larry Austin Jr. and a Matt Beachler layup off a steal of an in-bounds pass with 1:09 remaining, setting up a nail-biting finish.
The game's final minute-plus was marked by fouls and was played mostly at the line, with 13 of the last 15 total points coming from free throws.
Central Michigan pulled within one point at 85-84 with 15 seconds remaining thanks to two made free throws by Shawn Roundtree Jr. NIU's Eugene German and Levi Bradley followed by each making a pair, which was countered by two from Dallas Morgan.
Morgan heaved a potential game-tying, half-court shot as time expired but it was just off target, providing NIU with the 89-86 victory.
LEADERS
Shawn Roundtree Jr. finished with a team-high 23 points, going 6-for-6 from the free throw line and shooting 50 percent (3-of-6) from 3-point territory.
Austin flirted with a triple-double for the second time in three games, totaling 19 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
David DiLeo contributed 17 points, with 14 scored in the first half, while Dallas Morgan posted 16 points in his third-career and third-consecutive start.
NIU forward Levi Bradley finished with a game-high 26 points, going 13-of-14 from the free throw line. Lacey James registered 16 points and 19 rebounds.
ROUNDTREEÂ HITS 1,000 CAREER POINTS
With a free throw at the 7:03 mark of the second half, Roundtree became the 34th player in CMU program history to score 1,000 career points, reaching the milestone in only two seasons with the Chippewas.
"(Roundtree) can do just about anything," CMU head coach Keno Davis said. "It's been a pleasure to coach him for a couple of years. We're going to try and find another Shawn Roundtree out there, that's for sure."
AUSTIN CHASING RECORDS
Larry Austin Jr. tied one record and climbed into the top-five on another Tuesday.
With a steal against the Huskies, Austin tied Dave Grauzer (1978-79) for the CMU single-season record.
Austin also moved into fifth place on the single-season assists list with 172. Grauzer holds the record with 196, accomplished during the 1977-78 season.
NEXT UP FOR THE CHIPPEWAS
The Chippewas play their regular season finale against Western Michigan at 7 p.m. Friday in Kalamazoo. CMU defeated WMU 85-64 Feb. 2 in McGuirk Arena.
CMU is 20-10 overall and 9-8 in the MAC. The Huskies improve to 14-16 overall, 7-10 in the MAC.
"We're obviously disappointed but credit NIU," said CMU junior forward David DiLeo. "They came in and were ready to play. We have to watch the film, figure some things out and move on, because we have a big rivalry game against Western (Michigan on Friday)."
HOW IT HAPPENED
A 6-0 NIU run put the Chippewas behind 78-69 with 2:14 remaining. CMU responded with a 6-1 run of its own, which included four points from Larry Austin Jr. and a Matt Beachler layup off a steal of an in-bounds pass with 1:09 remaining, setting up a nail-biting finish.
The game's final minute-plus was marked by fouls and was played mostly at the line, with 13 of the last 15 total points coming from free throws.
Central Michigan pulled within one point at 85-84 with 15 seconds remaining thanks to two made free throws by Shawn Roundtree Jr. NIU's Eugene German and Levi Bradley followed by each making a pair, which was countered by two from Dallas Morgan.
Morgan heaved a potential game-tying, half-court shot as time expired but it was just off target, providing NIU with the 89-86 victory.
LEADERS
Shawn Roundtree Jr. finished with a team-high 23 points, going 6-for-6 from the free throw line and shooting 50 percent (3-of-6) from 3-point territory.
Austin flirted with a triple-double for the second time in three games, totaling 19 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.
David DiLeo contributed 17 points, with 14 scored in the first half, while Dallas Morgan posted 16 points in his third-career and third-consecutive start.
NIU forward Levi Bradley finished with a game-high 26 points, going 13-of-14 from the free throw line. Lacey James registered 16 points and 19 rebounds.
ROUNDTREEÂ HITS 1,000 CAREER POINTS
With a free throw at the 7:03 mark of the second half, Roundtree became the 34th player in CMU program history to score 1,000 career points, reaching the milestone in only two seasons with the Chippewas.
"(Roundtree) can do just about anything," CMU head coach Keno Davis said. "It's been a pleasure to coach him for a couple of years. We're going to try and find another Shawn Roundtree out there, that's for sure."
AUSTIN CHASING RECORDS
Larry Austin Jr. tied one record and climbed into the top-five on another Tuesday.
With a steal against the Huskies, Austin tied Dave Grauzer (1978-79) for the CMU single-season record.
Austin also moved into fifth place on the single-season assists list with 172. Grauzer holds the record with 196, accomplished during the 1977-78 season.
NEXT UP FOR THE CHIPPEWAS
The Chippewas play their regular season finale against Western Michigan at 7 p.m. Friday in Kalamazoo. CMU defeated WMU 85-64 Feb. 2 in McGuirk Arena.
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Team Stats
NIU
CMU
FG%
.449
.410
3FG%
.278
.444
FT%
.846
.828
RB
46
32
TO
10
8
STL
2
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
6
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
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