The Eastern men’s basketball team will be on the road this Wednesday at 7 p.m. to face off against Northern Illinois for what will be the home opener for the Huskies.  

The Huskies are currently 1-5 on the season under first season head coach Rason Burno. The last time the Panthers and the Huskies faced off was in 2014 with the Panthers winning 59-54. 

The Huskies are led by senior guard Trendon Hankerson who is averaging 11.2 points ger game and sophomore guard Keshawn Williams who is averaging 10.7 points per game.  

Last Saturday’s game against Marquette proved to be a challenge for the Huskies despite having four players in double figures, resulting in an 80-66 loss. Williams led the team with 17 points, followed by Zool Kueth with 14 points, and Kaleb Thorton with 12 points.  

As of now, the Huskies are shooting 36 percent from the field and are averaging 57 points per game. Against the Golden Eagles, the Huskies shot 44.1 percent from the field and had 40 points in the paint. 

The Panthers will head into Wednesday with a 1-6 record putting them at last place in the OVC. Their sixth loss of the season came at the hands of Evansville who beat the Panthers 70-54. The Panthers had three players in double digits: Forward Sammy Friday IV with 12 points, followed by Kejuan Clements with 11 points, and Kashawn Charles with 10 points.  

The Panthers currently rank second in the OVC in team field goal percentage, holding their opponents to 41.7 percent per game. They have held two opponents this season below 40 percent with Rockford shooting a season low of 36 percent against the Panthers.  

The starting lineup has varied six times this season with sophomore guard Henry Abraham being the only player to start all seven games. Abraham is averaging 7.9 points per game and has scored a total of 55 this season. 

Friday IV is currently second in the OVC in field goal percentage with 67.5 percent and is averaging 11 points per game, leading the Panthers. Junior forward Jermaine Hamlin ranks second in the OVC in blocks with 17, averaging 2.4 blocks per game.  

Clements has started six games this season and is averaging 7.4 points per game. Sophomore guard Chris Robinson made his first career start against the Aces finishing with seven points, four rebounds, and two assists.  

Freshman forward Rodolfo Bolis currently leads the Panthers in rebounding with 5.7 per game which ranks 14th in the OVC. He has a total of 40 offensive rebounds this season which ranks ninth.  

Autumn Schulz can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].