N. Illinois builds big lead early, tops Chicago St. 95-77 (Dec 02, 2017)

CHICAGO (AP) Eugene German scored 26 points and Northern Illinois jumped out to a double-digit lead midway through the first half and cruised to a 95-77 victory over Chicago State on Saturday.

German was 10 of 16 from the field and Levi Bradley added 14 points for Northern Illinois (5-3). Rod Henry-Hayes had 13 points, Justin Thomas finished with 11 and each made three 3-pointers. The Huskies shot 52 percent from the field and made 11 of 22 from beyond the arc.

Fred Sims Jr. scored 19 points to lead Chicago State (2-9). Jelani Pruitt added 12 points and Rob Shaw had 10.

Three straight 3-pointers, two from German and another from Bradley, capped a 31-19 surge to open the game as the Huskies built a 53-34 halftime lead. German scored 16 points and Bradley had seven in the first half. The Cougars pulled to 69-54 with 12:38 left but didn't get closer.