MBB

Massachusetts 68, at Northern Illinois 70

Saturday, January 17, 2026 · Final · Mid-American

Mid-American 1 2 PTS

Massachusetts Minutemen

17-16 · L1 · #210 (1224 ELO -23)

33 35 68

Northern Illinois Huskies

9-21 · L5 · #345 (890 ELO +23)

40 30 70

Convocation Center (Northern Illinois) · DeKalb, IL

Attendance: 1,535

Officials: Greg Langsdorf, Kenneth Moreland, Mason Siler

Valentine Leads Northern Illinois to Narrow Victory Over Massachusetts

DEKALB, Ill. (Interstat) — Makhai Valentine scored 27 points and the Northern Illinois Huskies survived a furious second-half rally and a last-second shot to edge the Massachusetts Minutemen 70-68 in a Mid-American Conference men’s basketball game on Saturday. In a contest defined by turnovers and missed opportunities, the Huskies (6-11, 1-3 MAC) built a commanding 40-33 halftime lead by capitalizing on 13 Massachusetts turnovers, converting them into 24 points. The Minutemen (11-8, 2-2), who entered as heavy favorites, struggled to find any offensive rhythm early, shooting just 33.3% from the floor in the opening period. Valentine, a guard from Munhall,… Read more...

Top Statlines

Makhai Valentine NIU 37m 27p 4r 3a
Leonardo Bettiol MASS 28m 25p 7r 1a 1b
Marcus Banks MASS 31m 16p 2r 3a

Forecasting

ELO Probability MASS 83.8%

Spread MASS -8

Money Line NIU +305/MASS -390

Over/Under 154 (Under)