The team, led by head coached by Ricardo Patton, are members of the Mid-American Conference and played their homes game at the Convocation Center.

In the opening loss to Northwestern, Xavier Silas went down with a fracture on his shooting hand, an injury that would sideline him for one month.

The loss was a tough blow for NIU, because Silas was expected to be a key contributor to the team after averaging double figures in scoring during his two years at Colorado.

In his first two games back, Silas shot the ball poorly, showing clear signs of being rusty after sitting out for a whole month.

After winning only their second game of the season, NIU prepared to face their first ranked opponent at home in a long time.