Xavier Silas’ brief tenure as the nation’s leading scorer and the addition of NIU quarterback DeMarcus Grady highlighted winter break for the NIU men’s basketball team.

Silas shot to the top of the nation’s Division I scoring list in the Huskies’ first of nine winter break games. The senior guard dropped a Convocation Center-record 40 points against Illinois-Chicago. The performance pushed the guard’s points-per-game average one-tenth of a point past UCONN’s then-leader Kemba Walker.

Following sub-par performances against Southern Illinois and Missouri, however, Silas dropped from the top spot. The senior guard currently sits in fourth place, with a scoring average of 23.6 points per game.

While Silas enjoyed his time as the nation’s scoring leader, he made sure never to put his scoring above the team.

“It’s a good accomplishment, but it doesn’t really mean anything for the team,” Silas said. “But as far as a scorer, to look on there and see that no one else is better than you… that’s something you can always have.”

Less than a week after Silas made headline news, NIU head coach Ricardo Patton announced the addition of Grady. A backup quarterback on the NIU football team, Grady joined the basketball team as a guard two days after the football team knocked off Fresno State in the uDrove Humanitarian Bowl.

Grady has dreamt of a return to the hardwood ever since his days on the East Grand Rapids High School basketball team. The junior quarterback saw his opportunity with the hiring of Dave Doeren as head football coach.

“I haven’t even met [Doeren], but I gave him a phone call and gave him a little bit of background about who I was,” Grady said. “I spoke with him about playing basketball this year as well as playing football next fall and he was okay with it.”

Grady appeared in two basketball games over winter break, but tallied no points in eight cumulative minutes against Missouri and Iowa State. Patton believes it won’t be long before Grady can contribute on a regular basis.

“He hasn’t played in the last few games, but he’s certainly crossed my mind as possibly putting him into the game,” Patton said. “It’s just a matter of him continuing to show in practice that he knows the offense and is ready to get in the games.”

Following an 80-78 win over UIC, the Huskies lost consecutive contests to Temple, Southern Illinois, and Missouri. NIU got back on the winning track in a New Year’s Eve win over Utah Valley.

NIU then traveled to Iowa State on Jan. 3, paying a visit to former Huskie Jake Anderson. Playing NIU for the first time since being released from the Huskies last year, Anderson netted 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting in a 72-63 Cyclones win.

Sporting a 4-8 non-conference record, the Huskies entered MAC play against Ball State on Jan. 8. NIU lost to the Cardinals, but has since won its past two conference games over Eastern Michigan and Toledo. More than past years, Patton believes in the potential of the 2010-11 Huskies (6-9, 2-1 MAC).

“We’ve approached games from the standpoint that there are lessons to learn everywhere we play,” Patton said. “We have played to the last whistle in nearly every game and that’s what you need to do to win.”