Scouting: Northern Illinois at DePaul

Northern Illinois (2-3) at DePaul (1-4)

When: 7:30 p.m. at Allstate Arena Thursday

TV: Channel.56; Radio: WSCR 670-AM

Skinny: After a four-year hiatus (perhaps because NIU won the games in 2005 and 2006), the Huskies and the Blue Demons renew acquaintances. From the jump, check to see whether DePaul adopts Boise State's defensive strategy of getting the ball out of Xavier Silas' hands at all costs. Silas (24.8 ppg) took just 9 shots in Monday's 80-51 home loss to the Broncos. Conversely, pay attention to whether NIU plays zone and forces DePaul to win from the perimeter. The Demons are shooting just 22.1 percent on 3-pointers, which ranks 342nd out of 345 Division I teams. Despite their poor shooting, the Demons took Oklahoma State and Stanford to the wire at last week's 76 Classic in Anaheim. Don't forget to stick around after the game when the Jay Goedert Memorial Award is presented to the MVP. The effervescent Elgin High School graduate served as an assistant coach at both schools.