The Northern Illinois Huskies and Marquette Golden Eagles face off on Monday in a college basketball showdown to kick off the season at the Fiserv Forum.
Quiet Confidence Around Northern Illinois Program
If you listen to the coaches around Northern Illinois there is quiet confidence surrounding this team. The good news for this Huskies team is that the top three scorers from last year's squad are back. David Coit, Zarique Nutter, and Keshawn Williams combined for 45.9 points last year and they are all going to be keys for this team this year. Williams is coming off a torn ACL so they could ease him back into this season slowly, especially against a team like Marquette, but he’s a person to watch as the season goes on. Northern Illinois was also busy bringing in Philmon Gebrewhit came in from DePaul, Ethan Butler from Oregon, and Quaran McPherson from Nebraska.
Can Marquette Win the National Championship?
Marquette is highly regarded heading into this season, and there is a buzz that this team has what it takes to win the National Championship this season. The good news heading into this season is they return eight of their top nine scorers from a team that was so good last season. Tyler Kolek is back this season after averaging 12.9 points and 7.5 assists last year. Guard Stevie Mitchell is also back and his focus again this year will be on defense. He was an elite defender last year that did a good job of turning the ball over. In this game, I would expect there to be a ton of defensive pressure and they are going to really try to put the pressure on Northern Illinois. Marquette didn’t play any recorded games heading into this one.
Shane’s Free Pick
Marquette is no doubt talented, but this is a game where Northern Illinois is going to stick around. This Northern Illinois squad is returning a lot of talent last year, and they have the offensive production to keep this game close. Look for Northern Illinois to deal with the press of Marquette, and their defense is also going to step up. They will still probably lose by 15 or 20 points, but they will keep it inside the number. Back Northern Illinois against the spread.