 The Broncos can claim sole possesson of first place with a win and a BSU loss
Central Michigan (9-16, 5-7 MAC) at Ball State (12-13, 6-6 MAC)
7 p.m. • Ball State leads series 51-29
• Central Michigan heads to Mid-American Conference West Division co-leader Ball State tonight as the Chippewas will be searching for their third straight victory. CMU won the earlier meeting this season in Mount Pleasant, 71-65...A win would give the Chippewas 10 or more wins in three straight seasons for the first time since 1990-91-92...The Chippewas have held nine straight opponents under 70 points and BSU ranks 11th in the MAC in scoring with an average of just 57.4 ppg... The Cardinals are coming off of a 59-55 victory over Tennessee Tech in the ESPNU BracketBusters event Saturday... Freshman forward Jarrod Jones leads active Cardinals in scoring at 11.1 points per game and in rebounding at 7.4 boards per contest. Jones is coming off of a 16-point effort against Tennessee Tech... Ball State is averaging 60.0 points per game during its 11 wins compared to 55.1 points per game in its 13 losses ... Also, the Cardinals’ defense holds opponents to 52.9 points per game in the victories and 65.6 points per game in the losses.
Western Michigan (9-17, 6-6 MAC) at Northern Illinois (8-17, 3-9 MAC)
8 p.m. • Western Michigan leads series 45-27
• The Huskies will be looking to salvage a season-split versus the Broncos, having dropped a 71-52 decision in Kalamazoo, Mich., on Jan. 17. NIU is coming off a 97-73 win over host Southeast Missouri in last Saturday’s ESPNU Bracket Buster contest in Cape Girardeau, Mo...For the second time this season, two of the MAC’s most prolific scorers will go head-to-head when the Huskies and Broncos meet at the Convocation Center. WMU junior guard David Kool (17.3 ppg), the league’s second-leading scorer, and NIU sophomore guard Darion “Jake” Anderson (16.3 ppg), who ranks fourth in the conference in scoring, will lead their respective backcourt lineups. Kool’s 12 points edged Anderson’s 11-point effort in the previous meeting (Jan. 17, 2009)...The Broncos enter Wednesday’s game tied atop the West Division with Ball State. WMU has dropped six-of its last eight contests, including Saturday’s 59-57 home loss versus visiting Eastern Illinois. The Broncos are 3-7 on the road this season... In the last meeting between WMU and NIU, the Broncos hit 14 three-pointers, tied for the second most in a game in school history. Coincidentally, both times WMU hit 14 triples came against NIU, once in DeKalb and most recently in Kalamazoo.
Toledo (5-22, 3-9 MAC) at Eastern Michigan (4-23, 2-10 MAC)
7 p.m. • Toledo leads series 45-37
• The Rockets continued their recent success against the Eagles earlier this season with a 69-57 triumph in Savage Arena on Jan. 17. UT has now won eight of the last nine meetings between the two schools... Toledo is averaging less than 60.0 points per game for the second straight season and just the third time since 1955. UT averaged 59.8 ppg with a 39.6 FG% in 2007-08 and is averaging 58.2 ppg with a 42.1 FG% this year...Eastern Michigan has lost 10 of its 11 contests since facing the Rockets. The Eagles’ lone win was a 65-57 triumph at Bowling Green on Feb. 15...EMU ranks last in the MAC in scoring (57.0 ppg) and three-point FG% (29.4)... EMU redshirt sophomore Brandon Bowdry saw his 19-game double-figure scoring streak snapped when he tallied just seven points in a 63-58 loss to Georgia State Saturday, Feb. 21. Bowdry has scored in double figures 24 times this season and has led the team in scoring 19 times while finishing as the top rebounder in 15 contests.
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