Despite a 2-11-2 record, NIU men’s assistant soccer coach Ian Clerihew thinks that nobody wants to play the Huskies.

After a 1-0 loss to No. 12 Akron Friday, NIU coach Steve Simmons said the Huskies are peaking at the right time.

“It’s now a three-game season,” Simmons said. “We’ve put ourselves in a good spot to win lately.”

The Huskies (1-3-0 MAC) host Buffalo at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Huskie Soccer Field, which will be one of two remaining regular season games for NIU before the conference tournament. The Huskies’ final game also is at home, against Kentucky.

However, NIU will have to go the rest of the season without leading goal scorer Tony Deldin. The sophomore, who leads the Huskies with three goals, injured his knee against Western Michigan Sunday.

NIU has played its strongest at home, defeating Western Illinois in its last home game. The Huskies scored 11 of their 13 goals on the season, and posted a 2-2-2 record at Huskie Soccer Field.

Buffalo (1-9-1, 0-4-0) comes to DeKalb on a six-game losing streak, having scored just one goal those six contests.

Simmons said the final two games of the road trip were much better, in which NIU also lost 1-0 to Western Michigan after the Akron game, leading him to think the team is ready to take the next step as far as preparation for the next game goes.

“We’ve finally learned the importance of preseason preparation and training,” Simmons said. “Any quality team watching film knows all the things they have to do to compete, and we’re just starting to get to that point.”

The Huskies will hold a ceremony to honor the three seniors -Matt Stukenberg, Jason Sullivan and Brandon Smick before the game against Buffalo.