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| Northern Illinois forward Najul Ervin (left) looks to move past Ball State forward Jarrod Jones during the first half of their game on Saturday. The Huskies lost, 71-66. (Rob Winner – rwinner@daily-chronicle.com) |
DeKALB – Saturday evening, a reporter from Muncie, Ind., asked Northern Illinois coach Ricardo Patton who was the team to beat the rest of the way in the MAC West.
The two teams in question were Ball State and Central Michigan.
The fact that Northern Illinois wasn't even a part of the question shows how far and how fast the Huskies continue to fall in conference play.
NIU lost its eighth straight conference game, this time 71-66 to Ball State on Saturday at the Convocation Center. The Huskies are now 8-16 overall and 4-8 in MAC play after a 4-0 start.
"I think it's definitely wearing on us," said NIU guard Xavier Silas. "Any time you lose eight games in a row it's going to wear on you."
Silas scored 30 points, added 10 rebounds and got zero help from his teammates for most of the game.
During NIU's slide, that formula of one or two players performing well and everyone else turning in poor nights has been the one constant.
"If we could ever get our guys to step up on the same night, then we'd be hard to beat," Patton said. "But that's what we haven't been able to do is get everybody to step up on the same night."
In what was a close game throughout, NIU tied the game at 64 with 1:27 left, but couldn't convert again on the offensive end for another 59 seconds. Meanwhile, Ball State (13-11, 7-5 MAC West) hit five of six free throws and forced a Sean Kowal turnover with 13 seconds left and a three-point lead. NIU guard Mike DiNunno missed an open three earlier in the possession that would have tied the game.
Ball State held DiNunno to nine points, Kowal to eight and Jake Anderson to six points.
"At the end of the day, you've just got to have your best players show up," Patton said. "Gameday. Together. Not one. Most of the time not two. You need to have guys that you're depending on to make plays for you make plays."
With the loss, the Huskies are now three games back of the division-leading Cardinals with four conference games to play. Two NIU losses, two Ball State wins or an NIU loss and an Ball State win will officially eliminate NIU from winning the MAC West.
"We were looking to win the West and we were looking to win the tournament," Silas said. "If the West is still possible, then yeah, both of our goals are still possible... I think there's still light at the end of the tunnel."
As for the question Patton was asked about which team was the team to beat in the MAC, the NIU coach replied that both the Chippewas and Cardinals were.
"A lot of it depends on where the game is played," he said. "Most good teams don't lose at home."
