When the NIU men’s basketball team was ranked No. 1 in the MAC preseason poll, the stage was set for fans to wonder: Will the basketball team match the success of the football team?

The NIU football team, also picked first in the MAC, began its season with an upset of then-No. 15 Maryland. The basketball team will have a chance for its own upset when it travels to No. 21 Notre Dame on Monday.

“I don’t think any of us will be surprised if they win that basketball game,” NIU football coach Joe Novak said, “but it’ll probably be even a tougher feat than ours because they had to go on the road to do it. It’s more difficult to win on the road, especially a place like that.”

Senior forward Marcus Smallwood said with both Maryland’s football and Notre Dame’s basketball teams being ranked similarly, the basketball game will have a similar feel.

NIU running back Michael Turner said that a win against a top-25 team like Notre Dame would make a statement, but to be ranked as high as the football team was would be more difficult in basketball.

“We only play 12 games, and if you beat two or three top 25 teams, you’re in the top-25,” Turner said. “Basketball is much different. There are a lot more games, and a lot of great basketball teams. It’s easy for teams to drop out of the top 25.”

The Huskies football team was ranked as high as No. 12 this season, but the men’s basketball team doesn’t feel pressured to top the football team’s performance, assistant coach Carl Armato said.

“The success of the football program can only help,” he said. “It certainly brought attention to Northern Illinois and its athletic programs.”

Smallwood said the support fans have given football also will help.

“It just shows that if we put a good product out there, that the students are going to get behind us and support us,” Smallwood said. “We have a lot of support in the community and within the campus, so we just want to continue that.

With all the similarities of the two teams, Armato did note one difference. The basketball team doesn’t have a Turner.

“Fans were pushing ‘Turner for the Heisman’ before the year started,” Armato said. “A player-of-the-year award would probably be the [basketball] equivalent, and I don’t think that’s realistic.”

Not having a star with preseason hype may benefit men’s basketball.

“We’re going to have more than one guy who’s going to contribute on any given night,” Smallwood said. “On one night, you might have one guy who gives a Michael Turner effort, and on another night, you might have another guy give a Turner effort.”

The MAC has received more acclaim and media coverage because of major upsets this year in football, but Armato said he thinks the MAC is just as good a basketball conference.

Kent State made it to the Elite Eight two years ago, and Central Michigan beat Creighton in the first round last year in the NCAA Tournament.

“It’s a great basketball league,” Novak said. “It’s had the kind of success that we’ve had this year in football. I think the whole gist of this thing is that our league is really gaining more respect now. It’s always been a very good basketball and football conference that’s been very unappreciated.”

Under-appreciated or not, Armato doesn’t expect any favors from Notre Dame next week.

“I doubt they’ll present us with any such luck,” he said, “and they certainly won’t be giving us any lucky charms.”