German scores 17 to lead N. Illinois over Kent St. 76-69

KENT, Ohio (AP) — Eugene German scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Northern Illinois held off Kent State 76-69 on Tuesday night, handing the Golden Flashes their first home loss of the season.

Lacey James scored 16 points and made two steals and Darius Beane added 14 points with eight boards for the Huskies (10-9, 3-3 Mid-American Conference), who outrebounded the Golden Flashes 45-28. Trendon Hankerson scored nine points and Tyler Cochran had six rebounds.

Danny Pippen hit 3 of 8 3-pointers and scored 18 points and had nine rebounds and two blocks for Kent State (13-6, 3-3), which has lost three straight. C.J. Williamson scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds and blocked three shots and Antonio Williams added 13 points with three assists.

Senior Philip Whittington scored eight points for Kent State, including his 1,000th career point, and Anthony Roberts had nine points.

Northern Illinois plays Western Michigan at home on Saturday. Kent State faces Buffalo on the road on Friday.