Northern Illinois Huskies vs Buffalo Bulls Picks and Prediction for Tuesday February 17 2026

By: Dylan Hellebrand Published 02/17/2026, 12:40 AM ET

On Tuesday, the Northern Illinois Huskies (8-16) face off against the Buffalo Bulls (15-10) at Alumni Arena in Buffalo, New York. This game will air on ESPN+. Keep up to date with all the NCAAB action, with our College Basketball predictions.

Northern Illinois vs. Buffalo Game Information

February 17, 2026
6:30pm EST
Alumni Arena
ESPN+

Buffalo Form & Recent Results

Buffalo heads into this matchup riding a one-game winning streak, although their recent form has been a bit uneven, with three losses in their last five games. They most recently picked up a 63–53 win over Ball State in Muncie on Wednesday, and Tim Oboh was a big reason why, leading the way with 20 points in that game. Even with that result, the Bulls will be looking to build more consistency as the season moves along, especially against conference opponents.

Daniel Freitag has been Buffalo’s most reliable scoring threat this season, putting up 20 points per game to lead the team, while Ryan Sabol has also been a strong secondary option at 18 points per contest. Noah Batchelor has been Buffalo’s top rebounder, averaging 4.7 rebounds per game, and Freitag also sets the tone as the team’s main playmaker with 3.9 assists per game. Defensively, the Bulls have had their struggles lately, giving up about 76 points per game over their last five games. Buffalo has dropped seven of its 12 MAC games so far, but they’ll hope that their recent conference win against Ball State can provide some momentum as they try to string together another league win when they return home to welcome Northern Illinois on Tuesday night.

Northern Illinois Form & Recent Results

Northern Illinois heads into this game in a bit of a slump, having lost two straight and three of its last five. The Huskies are coming off a rough 88–53 loss at Central Michigan on Saturday in Mount Pleasant, a game that got away from them early and never really turned around. Makhai Valentine led the way in that matchup with 13 points, and he’s been the most consistent scoring option for NIU all season, pacing the team at 14 points per game. Dylan Ducommun has been the next most reliable contributor on the scoring end, putting up 11.8 points per game so far this year, giving the Huskies a solid one-two punch when their offense is clicking.

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Outside of scoring, Northern Illinois has leaned on Taj Walters to do the dirty work on the glass, as he leads the team at 5.4 rebounds per game this season. Gianni Cobb has been their primary playmaker, setting the table with an average of 4 assists per game. Still, the Huskies have struggled to consistently get stops, giving up about 76 points per game over their last five games, which has made it tough to climb the standings. They’ve lost nine of their 12 conference games, so this road game against Buffalo feels like an important opportunity to steal a win and build some momentum. Buffalo sits two games ahead in the conference race, but with both teams lingering near the bottom of the MAC, Northern Illinois will see this as a chance to close the gap and change the tone of its season.

Key Players

Northern Illinois’ Makhai Valentine this season: 14 points per game
Buffalo’s Daniel Freitag this season: 20 points, 3.9 assists per game

Betting Odds & Market Overview:

BUF -8.5; O/U 147.5

Northern Illinois vs. Buffalo Picks and Prediction

Buffalo might be sitting two games ahead of Northern Illinois in the MAC standings, but the reality is that both programs are still hovering near the bottom of the conference. The Bulls have been up-and-down at home all season, going 6–6 in their twelve games in front of their own fans. Now they’ll try to tip that home record into the positive by putting together a solid league performance and picking up an important conference win against the Huskies. Final Score Prediction, Buffalo Bulls win and cover the spread, 82-70.

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