Teams › Horizon · Compare Northern Illinois with another team
Northern Illinois
Northern Illinois returns 63% of last season's minutes and rates #331 on offense and #300 on defense of 365 teams. 80% range: -16.5 to -1.9.
Why we have them here
Northern Illinois's preseason projection of -9.2 (No. 333 of 365) starts from the roster: its players' ratings, weighted by projected minutes, add up to a roll-up worth -3.6, more than the -5.5 typical of teams ranked near it. Last season's rating (No. 337 at the end of 2025-26) adds -2.4, about its neighbours' -2.1; the program's level two and three seasons back and the roster's experience and shape add -3.6. It returns 63% of last season's minutes, less than teams ranked near it (74%). The projection leans most on Uzziah Buntyn (+1.0), Jack Daugherty (+0.7) and Taj Walters (+0.2); the newcomer who matters most is Uzziah Buntyn, a transfer from South Dakota, at +1.0. Its 80% range, -16.5 to -1.9, is about as wide as that of teams ranked near it.
Generated from the published projection's own terms, not written by hand. "Teams ranked near it" are the thirty nearest in the preseason order. Preseason projection frozen 2026-10-23; how the projection is built.
Roster
Returning 60% · Transfer 37% · Other newcomer 4%
| Rank | Player | Pos | Ht | D1 yrs | Group | From | MPG | Rating | Contrib. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 913 | Jack Daugherty | F | 6-8 | 2 | Transfer | Illinois State | 12 | +2.2 | +0.7 |
| 933 | Uzziah Buntyn | G | 6-1 | 1 | Transfer | South Dakota | 26 | +1.5 | +1.0 |
| 1444 | Taj Walters | G | 6-5 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 26 | +0.2 | +0.2 |
| 1620 | David Douglas Jr. | G | 6-5 | 3 | Transfer | Fresno State | 15 | +0.1 | +0.0 |
| 2091 | Mykolas Ivanauskas | F | 6-8 | 2 | Transfer | Mercyhurst | 19 | -0.4 | -0.2 |
| 3120 | Gustav Winther | F | 6-10 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 19 | -1.1 | -0.5 |
| 3737 | Lataevyon Taylor | F | 6-0 | 0 | Other newcomer | 7 | -2.3 | -0.4 | |
| 4027 | Max Laskey | G | 6-5 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 4 | -3.8 | -0.3 |
| 4492 | Jaylen Wharton | F | 6-9 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 6 | -3.7 | -0.6 |
| 4599 | Isaiah Washington | G | 6-5 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 7 | -3.8 | -0.7 |
| 4669 | JJ Taylor | F | 6-8 | 3 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 14 | -2.9 | -1.0 |
| 4689 | Ladji Kante | F | 6-7 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 7 | -3.9 | -0.7 |
| 4902 | Carlos Coronado | G | 6-3 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 8 | -4.5 | -0.9 |
| 5104 | Hassan Washington | F | 6-8 | 1 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 13 | -4.5 | -1.5 |
| 5204 | Daemar Kelly | G | 6-5 | 3 | Returning | Northern Illinois | 16 | -5.3 | -2.1 |
A player's rating is points per 100 possessions better than an average Division I player while he is on the floor. Contribution weights it by the share of a rotation slot he is projected to play, so a star on the bench and a role player who never sits both read right. Rank is among all 5,249 rated players. MPG is the projected share of a rotation slot times 40. "From" is last season's team. The bars are contribution, the player's rating times his projected share; their sum is the roll-up the projection starts from.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Proj. margin | Win prob. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Nov 02 | N |  Grambling #302 | -1.7 | 44% | |
| Thu Nov 05 | at |  Tulsa #82 | -17.8 | 7% | |
| Sat Nov 07 | at |  Dayton #74 | -18.6 | 7% | |
| Sat Nov 14 | at |  Bellarmine #305 | -7.0 | 29% | |
| Wed Nov 18 | at |  Marquette #47 | -22.5 | 4% | |
| Sat Nov 21 | at |  Bowling Green #266 | -9.0 | 23% | |
| Wed Nov 25 | at |  SIU Edwardsville #234 | -9.8 | 21% | |
| Sat Nov 28 | at |  Eastern Illinois #324 | -5.8 | 32% | |
| Thu Dec 03 | at |  Green Bay #281 | conf | -4.7 | 35% |
| Sat Dec 05 | vs |  Milwaukee #242 | conf | -2.1 | 43% |
| Sat Dec 12 | at |  Lindenwood #258 | -9.4 | 22% | |
| Sat Dec 19 | vs | Eastern Illinois #324 | +4.4 | 64% | |
| Mon Dec 21 | at |  Arizona #3 | -31.4 | <1% | |
| Wed Dec 30 | at |  Youngstown State #215 | conf | -7.3 | 28% |
| Sun Jan 03 | at |  Robert Morris #113 | conf | -11.1 | 18% |
| Thu Jan 07 | vs |  Cleveland State #207 | conf | -3.3 | 40% |
| Sat Jan 09 | vs |  Wright State #165 | conf | -4.6 | 35% |
| Thu Jan 14 | at |  Detroit Mercy #312 | conf | -3.2 | 40% |
| Sun Jan 17 | vs | Green Bay #281 | conf | -0.6 | 48% |
| Thu Jan 21 | at |  Northern Kentucky #270 | conf | -5.7 | 32% |
| Sat Jan 23 | at | Wright State #165 | conf | -8.8 | 24% |
| Wed Jan 27 | vs |  Oakland #159 | conf | -5.1 | 34% |
| Sat Jan 30 | at | Milwaukee #242 | conf | -6.6 | 30% |
| Thu Feb 04 | at |  IU Indianapolis #279 | conf | -5.7 | 33% |
| Sun Feb 07 | vs | Northern Kentucky #270 | conf | -1.1 | 46% |
| Wed Feb 10 | vs | Youngstown State #215 | conf | -3.0 | 40% |
| Sat Feb 13 | at |  Purdue Fort Wayne #212 | conf | -7.7 | 27% |
| Wed Feb 17 | vs | Detroit Mercy #312 | conf | +0.8 | 53% |
| Sun Feb 21 | vs | Robert Morris #113 | conf | -6.9 | 29% |
| Wed Feb 24 | at | Cleveland State #207 | conf | -7.9 | 26% |
| Sat Feb 27 | vs | IU Indianapolis #279 | conf | -0.9 | 47% |
Projected margin is from Northern Illinois's side, with home court where the game is not neutral (N). Games are the schedule as posted; tournaments and late additions appear as they are listed. Predictions are as of 2026-10-26 and reflect the roster as the model has it on that date.