Sunday afternoon, men’s basketball will face a squad that represents an athletic governing body that caters to specifically small schools.

The Huskies (0-2) will play host to the NAIA school Judson University (1-5). The NAIA is like the NCAA, except it represents smaller schools, nearly 300 of them to be exact.

Come game day, however, coach Mark Montgomery is still only focusing on what his team is capable of.

“We want to get a better offensive flow,” Montgomery said. “We still have to work on getting out in transition. We have both ends we have to work on.”

Both teams will come into the game with just one player a side in double figure scoring. For the Huskies, that scorer is junior forward Aksel Bolin, who averages 10.5 points a game. For Judson, that roles goes to senior forward Jason Roy, who averages 12 points a game.

Montgomery said in his team’s last game against Valparaiso the Huskies didn’t give all their effort the entire time. He is looking for the team as a whole to compete, as opposed to one player stepping up.

“Everyone knows in college basketball it’s hard to win on the road,” Montgomery said. “We’ve had two road games versus pretty good teams. We want our guys to share the ball on offense, get a better understanding of the offense, keep attacking the offensive glass, and make sure we contain the dribble on defense. If they can do more in those areas we’ll be happy.”

NIU, while laden with underclassmen in the first place, may be without the experience of redshirt junior guard Antone Christian. Montgomery is unsure at this time whether he can play or not.

Despite the possibility of being a man down, the Huskies will still have a decidedly literal “big” advantage come game day, in that they have a size advantage.

Sophomore forward Keith Gray believes that playing from within the post helps the team operate better as a unit, and allows for easier looks and better scoring opportunities.

With the game a home opener and the chance to secure the first win of the season, Montgomery likes the factors in the Huskies’ favor but knows there are no guarantees.

“You just have more confidence at home,” Montgomery said. “It’s no gimme though, you still have to earn it. We’re just trying to build on not just games, but make sure we’re practicing the right things and then carry it over into games.”