MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team begins a four-game homestand as the Northern Illinois Huskies visit ICCU Arena on Friday, Dec. 2. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

How to Follow 
Idaho vs. Northern Illinois // Dec. 2 at 6 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen
Tickets: GoVandals.com/Tickets

Last Time Out
Idaho (2-5) capped off the California Thanksgiving Jam last Friday (11/25) with a 84-81 win over Pacific at the Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton, CA. In a tight game with seven ties and seven lead changes, the Vandals prevailed late after a crucial three at the buzzer from Nigel Burris and the final four points coming from guard Divant'e Moffitt to close it out.

Isaac Jones' scoring remained superb after shooting 11-of-14 and finishing with a career-high 31 points, helping him earn Big Sky Men's Basketball Player of the Week honors. Moffitt scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half to lead Idaho in the backcourt, while Burris had a breakout game with a personal best 18 points off the bench. 

As a team, the Vandals shot an impressive 55 percent (32-of-58) from the field and took control down low, scoring more than half of their points in the paint (44). Idaho snapped its four-game losing streak and earned its first win over the Tigers since 2002-03.

Scouting the Huskies
Northern Illinois travels to Moscow carrying a 3-5 overall mark and 1-3 road record. The Huskies are coming off a road loss this past Saturday at Northern Iowa (11/26) and a 90-70 victory over Eastern Illinois (11/30). NIU's other two wins were over Purdue Northwest (99-73) and LIU (86-61). 

Three NIU guards lead the Huskies in scoring with double-digit averages - Keshawn Williams (18.6), David Coit (14.6), and Zarique Nutter (12.7). Williams is averaging the fifth highest point per game total in the MAC, while shooting 47.4 percent (54-of-114) from the field. Coit is one of the Huskies best sharpshooters, as he knocks down an average of 3.3 from three per game - third most in the league. 
 
Series History 
The Vandals are 0-3 all-time against the Huskies. Northern Illinois' last win over Idaho came in 2016-17 by a score of 63-49 in DeKalb, Ill. 

Notables

• Two of the most efficient scorers in the conference reside in Moscow, as forward/center Isaac Jones and guard Divant'e Moffitt are first and second, respectively in field goal percentage in the Big Sky. Jones posts an outstanding mark of 76.1 percent (51-of-67) from the field in six games of action - the fifth highest shooting percentage in the nation. Moffitt is making 53.3 percent (40-of-75) of his shots. 
• After averaging 25 ppg on 73 percent shooting and 6.5 rebounds over two games at Cal Poly and Pacific, Jones was selected as the Big Sky Player of the week for the first time in his career. 
• Jones, a Spanaway, WA native ranks first in scoring (20.2) and field goal percentage. The junior big man has scored in double figures in each of the six games he has appeared in and posted at least 20 points in three contests. He has shot over 76 percent in four games and above 83 percent in two games. 
• Not only is Moffitt a top four scorer in the conference at 16.6 ppg, he's also a top three passer with an average of 5.4 assists per game. The fifth-year guard from Spanaway has scored 20-plus points in three games this season for the Vandals and tallied six or more assists in three contests. 
• The Vandals continue to be efficient on the offensive end, leading the Big Sky and ranking 15th in the nation in field goal percentage (50.5). In seven games, the Silver and Gold have shot at least 53 percent in four games, including a season-high 64 percent mark over Walla Walla. 
•  Idaho is rated third in the league in assists per game (13.7), assist/turnover ratio (1.09) and turnovers per game (12.6).
• Yusef Salih leads the team with 15 made threes on an average of 2.1 per game. The Gainesville, Va. native has made two or more shots from behind the arc in six of seven games. He averages nine points per outing. 
• Nigel Burrises 18-point effort over Pacific was the most by a true freshman since Salih had 19 points in a win over Montana (2/17/22). Burris is shooting a team-high 44 percent (8-of-18) from three. 
• Jones cleans up the glass for Idaho, averaging a team-high 7.3 rebounds a game - the sixth most in the conference. He has secured at least 10 boards in two games this season. 

Up Next
Idaho will welcome the Fighting Hawks of North Dakota (5-4) to ICCU Arena on Tuesday, December 6 at 6 p.m.