If basketball were more like boxing, Saturday’s NIU men’s basketball game might have a name like “the battle by the bay,” or “the Mid-Con clash II.”

But if any game this season doesn’t need any extra hype, it’s Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. road match against Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The Huskies have lost only twice this season, at Minnesota in early December and against UW-GB (16-6, 8-3) in mid-January. The 63-57 UW-GB victory is NIU’s only blemish this season at home.

If that isn’t enough incentive for the Huskies (20-2, 11-1) to play well against the Phoenix, the fact that an NIU win would clinch at least a tie in the Mid-Continent Conference race should be.

“If we are going to have any chance for a conference championship, this is a very important game,” UW-GB head coach Dick Bennett said. “This is the last chance to put pressure on Northern.”

NIU boss Jim Molinari, while acknowledging the importance of Saturday’s game, downplays any revenge factor.

“This game has a lot of meaning, (but) I don’t focus on revenge because the bottom line is that (revenge) won’t decide the game,” Molinari said. “What’s important is that if we can win there, we’ll keep our (eight-game winning) streak going.”

Revenge factors and getting an edge on the competition going into the M-C Tournament at Green Bay in March is not on Bennett’s mind either. “I’m not into those things,” he said. “This game stands by itself.”

Although both squads exemplify the team concept of basketball, both feature exceptionally talented individuals who could prove to be the key Saturday.

“(Donnell Thomas and Donald Whiteside) are very special,” Bennett said. “But the other kids are so good you can’t let them beat you. It’s a matter of trying to make people earn what they get.”

UW-GB counters with the coach’s son, Tony Bennett, who leads the M-C in scoring and assists.

In the teams’ first meeting the Phoenix shot 53 percent, the best performance by an NIU opponent all season, and pulled out the hard-fought win in front of a sellout crowd of 6,060 at Chick Evans Field House.

The Huskies haven’t lost since. “The success is a credit to (the players),” Molinari said. “They’re still hungry.”

For now, a win over UW-GB would satisfy the Huskies’ appetite.