Someone had to fill the scholarship opened up by Sean Ezell’s departure, and Anthony Maestranzi was more than happy to oblige.

A 5-10, 165-pound freshman point guard out of nearby Bartlett High School, Maestranzi was scheduled to attend NIU as a preferred walk-on before a spot opened up.

“We had promised Anthony the first available scholarship, and when he committed this situation wasn’t going to happen,” NIU coach Rob Judson said.

“He was going to pay his own way, but that scholarship will go to Anthony. He was going to come to Northern regardless.”

Maestranzi helped Bartlett to a third place finish in the Upstate Eight Conference. He led the league in points per game (23), free-throw percentage (91 percent), three-point percentage (52 percent), three-pointers made (4.6 per game) and assist to turnover ratio (3.23).

“It was a real big surprise to get the scholarship,” Maestranzi said. “I thought I was going to get it in my second year, but now I’m just going to make the best of it and try to contribute to the team.”