DeKALB — Winning road games in the Mid-American Conference is a tough thing to do, but the men’s basketball team got its second road win of the year, toppling Kent State University, 76-69.

It was the Golden Flashes’ first home loss in 10 games this season, while the Huskies snapped a two-game losing streak, giving them a crucial win that helps them stay in the hunt in the MAC West standings.

The Huskies fell behind early by as many as eight points, but outscored KSU 28-12 over the final nine minutes of the first half to take a 41-33 lead into the break. NIU shot 47% for the first half, while sophomore guard Darius Beane made three of the Huskies’ six 3-pointers in the half. Beane finished the half with 10 points

NIU never trailed in the second half, but saw a 12-point lead cut to just two at 55-53 on a dunk by Kent State senior guard C.J. Williamson with just over nine minutes to go in the game. The Huskies responded with a quick 5-0 burst and stayed at least two possessions ahead for the rest of the game.

Senior guard Eugene German led the Huskies with 17 points and now sits at 1,949 career points. German now heads into a three-game homestand sitting just 47 points behind T.J. Lux on the all-time scoring list. 

Redshirt senior Lacey James tossed in 16 points for the Huskies, while Beane finished with a career-high 14 points. Both German and Beane grabbed eight rebounds apiece. 

Redshirt junior forward Danny Pippen scored a game-high 18 points to lead the Flashes.

With the win, the Huskies improve to 10-9 overall and 3-3 in conference play. The team will take on Western Michigan University at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Convocation Center. The game will be shown on ESPN3.