DeKALB — Men’s basketball led wire-to-wire against the University of Central Michigan Chippewas and defeated them, 89-66.

The Huskies kept the NCAA’s third best scoring team in the nation at 89 points per game to just 66 and held Marcus Keene, Central Michigan junior guard and also the nation’s leading individual scorer, to 18 points, with half of those coming from the free-throw line.

Coming off of four straight losses, the Huskies (15-13, 7-8 Mid-American Conference) shot nearly 56 percent from the field compared to 36 percent from the Chippewas.

Head Coach Mark Montgomery said it only takes one big win to start something bigger and hopes his team can continue playing like this going forward.

“It’s going to build confidence, and it definitely means a lot,” Montgomery said. “Our guys are resilient, and we’re going to bounce back. [They] showed [that] they have a lot of fight in them.”

Freshman guard Eugene German had another good game for the Huskies as he tallied 16 points and five rebounds.

Montgomery said German has not been playing like a freshman in the most recent stretch of games, given his results.

“He’s a hard worker because he is always in the gym and watching film,” Montgomery said. “He is probably a little ahead of the [learning] curve right now because he definitely leads us.”

The win leaves the Huskies tied with the Chippewas (16-12, 7-8 MAC) for third in the MAC West division.

The Huskies were led by sophomore forward Levi Bradley and senior center Marin Maric. Bradley tallied a team-high 18 points, and Maric added another double-double to his resume with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Montgomery said he liked the way Bradley bounced back from a tough game Saturday afternoon against University of Toledo where he only recorded one point.

“He came out aggressive and stayed aggressive in the offensive end,” Montgomery said. “We needed him tonight, and he came up big for us.”

The Huskies travel to the other side of Michigan 11 a.m. Saturday to take on the University of Eastern Michigan Eagles (13-15, 5-10 MAC) in Ypsilanti, Michigan.