“Mo” (as in head-Huskie Jim Molinari) does know basketball. Molinari is one victory away from tying Ralph McKinzie’s modern record for wins by a first-year NIU coach (16 in 1940-41). If the Huskies manage to win their remaining games, Molinari would equal the immortal Roland Cowell’s record of 18 victories by a freshman coach in 1926-27 and would be a serious contender for some “coach of the year” honors.

The Huskies have some catching up to do when they meet DePaul on March 7 at the Rosemont Horizon. DePaul, Molinari’s former stomping grounds as an assistant coach, holds a 17-3 series lead against the Huskies. The Blue Demons beat NIU 78-51 in their last meeting in 1986. Although most of the players from that game are gone, the most noticeable difference may be that Molinari is now sitting on the bench with the guys wearing Cardinal and Black.

With three games remaining, it has already been a record- breaking season for the Huskies. NIU’s fifth nationally-ranked defense is the highest rating for a Huskies team since 1971-72’s squad finished third in scoring offense. And not since the 1981-82 season has an NIU team surpassed the 15-victory total of this year’s squad.

Donnell “D-Train” Thomas continues to pace the Huskies in scoring with a 17-point average. Thomas’ accomplishment is especially impressive considering: NIU as a team is averaging only 61.8 points per game on the season, the Huskies tempo-controlling offense doesn’t lend itself to high scoring, and NIU’s inconsistent outside shooting allows opponents to sag back and double-team the Huskies’ All-America candidate. Thomas has overcome these obstacles to account for 27 percent of NIU’s scoring this season.

One of the Huskies’ weaknesses this season has been their perimeter game, which could change next season with the arrival of highly-touted recruit Mike Lipnisky. The 6-3 Rolling Meadows’ guard is among the leading scorers in the state and has shot around 90 percent from the free-throw line in leading his team to a conference title.

Although NIU has had its fair share of unusual opponents on its schedule, The Huskies, as recently as the 1970’s, played teams like Indiana, Notre Dame, UNLV and Iowa to go along with the epic battles against Steubenville, Buffalo and San Franciso State.

With Monday night’s 66-59 win over Eastern Illinois, NIU has built a 7-1 record againt in-state rivals. The Huskies only loss to an Illinois team was against 23-6 Southern Illinois at Carbondale.

It has been feast or famine for NIU when it has faced an opponent twice this season. The Huskies lost both outings to Northern Iowa, beat Eastern Illinois twice and split against Florida International, losing a tough three-point game in their first meeting and coming back to blow-out the Golden Panthers in the rematch at Chick Evans Field House.