CHAMPAIGN - The No. 1 statistical goal for Mike Davis has little to do with upping his scoring average.

He wants to average 10 rebounds per game, something that hasn't been done at Illinois since Nick Weatherspoon averaged 12.3 boards in 1973.

The junior forward is off to a commendable start. No. 23 Illinois didn't play well, but Davis did, and the Illini left the Assembly Hall on Tuesday with a 80-61 win against an overmatched squad from Northern Illinois.

Davis had a career-high 17 boards. That followed a season opener in which he grabbed 10 rebounds.

On Tuesday, the bouncy forward scored his second double-double of the season and 11th of his blossoming career. He had 14 points on 4-for-9 shooting.

Brandon Paul dropped jaws in the first half, scoring 20 points. He didn't score the rest of the way. Even so, that makes 42 points for the freshman in his first two games. Demetri McCamey added 10 points, five rebounds and eight assists for Illinois (2-0). Mike Tisdale and Dominique Keller had 10 points apiece.

NIU (0-2) played with top scorer Xavier Silas, who suffered a broken hand last week and said he's sidelined for two-to-three weeks. But the Huskies turned in a game performance and cut a 19-point deficit to three points early in the second half.

8:00 left in second half - Illinois 67, NIU 57

-Mike Tisdale's first point came at 10:06 in the second half. Brandon Paul hasn't scored since 3:45 remained in the first half, a scoreless stretch of about 16 minutes. Dominique Keller doing a superb job off the bench (10 points, three boards).

-Wayne McClain had the scouting report tonight. You'll often notice the assistant (or associate head coach in this case) in charge of the scout is more animated on his game nights. McClain just gave Keller an earful.

-Ricardo Patton is more reserved than what I remember at Colorado. Klee used to attend his games with the Buffs at the Coors Events Center, and he was usually very animated on the sideline. Not so much tonight.

-NIU doesn't have a player in double figures - but 10 guys have scored. Remember, the Huskies have kept this a 10-point game despite not having their best player.

Back in a few.

Klee

12:47 left in second half - Illinois 57, NIU 48

-Wofford beat Georgia 60-57 tonight, in game between two future (and mediocre) Illini opponents.

-Sports info wizard Derrick Burson thinks Demetri McCamey's behind-the-back assist to Tyler Griffey was the first behind-the-back assist on a fast break since Frank Williams.

-NIU is out-toughing the Illini. That's something Cory Bradford said could be an issue early in the season. I've written before, this team isn't tough enough yet.

-Solid start for Tyler Griffey: eight points (3-for-5 FGs).

Back in a few.

Klee

15:56 left in second half - Illinois 53, NIU 46

-NIU cut a 19-point deficit down to three points, partly because Illinois didn't protect the ball. The Illini found out quickly they can't have Demetri McCamey - their only dependable ballhandler - on the bench for very long.

-After watching Clemson run Liberty into the ground today, it makes you wonder how the Illini will handle Clemson's pressure. It's slightly more intense than NIU's.

-The hyperextended elbow clearly is bothering D.J. Richardson, who has only attempted two shots in over 20 minutes. He led the Illini in scoring in the two exhibition games, but injured the elbow prior to the season opener.

-Another double-double for Mike Davis (10 points, 11 boards). That's his second of the season and 11th of his career.

Back in a few.

Klee

Halftime - Illinois 49, Northern Illinois 41

That's the score. Taking a quick break.

-Brandon Paul had 20 in the first half. That follows his 22-point debut.

Here's what former Illini guard Cory Bradford had to say about Paul:

"He reminds me of Jason Richardson that played at Michigan State, with his athleticism, long arms," Bradford said. "Jason wasn't quite that shooter in college. But Brandon's consistently stepping up there and making three after three after three."

High praise from Bradford, who added this: "Hopefully he doesn't get a streak going and break my record (of consecutive games with a 3)."

Other Big Ten scores:

Gonzaga 35, No. 2 Michigan State 30 - halftime.
Iowa 8, Duquesne 7 - early.

Back in a few.

Klee

6:40 left in first half - Illinois 36, Northern Illinois 24

-Mike Davis has been very active tonight. Eight points, three boards, and forcing the NIU frontcourt into fouls. He's also at the front of the UI press when they pick up 'em up fullcourt.

-Tyler Griffey with a smooth jumper from the left corner. He looks more comfortable than in the opener, probably a result of his improved health.

-Class balance from Illinois. UI veterans: 14 points. UI freshmen: 22 points.

-Demetri McCamey is still the engine, with five early assists.

-Someone asked about the Matto numbers from the opener. Brandon Paul, Demetri McCamey, Bill Cole and Tyler Griffey each had four Matto points to lead the Matto scoring.

Back in a few.

Klee

11:16 left in first half - Illinois 21, Northern Illinois 18

-Richard Semrau is the third guy off the bench. Weber likes what Semrau has been bringing to practice lately - and the Illini really don't have another 6-9, 240-pound big guy.

"I met with Coach. He said do four things: Play harder than everybody else, be more physical, rebound and screen, and then you'll play," Semrau told me yesterday. "That's really all I'm focusing on right now, nothing else. I'm just keeping it simple."

Semrau also is the team's best cook. He's been grilling a lot of salmon lately.

"I buy it fresh from County Market," he said. "Put some lemon pepper on it. Put it with some pasta."

-It's the Brandon Paul show, part two. Freshman has 14 points and is 4-for-5 on threes.

Back in a few.

Klee

15:54 left in first half - Illinois 11, Northern Illinois 8

-Mike Tisdale's getting bullied under the basket by another Colorado transfer, Sean Kowal, who's originally from St. Louis. Kowal stands 6-foot-7, 207. The Illini's 7-footer actually has shown a better base in practice - and in the three early games - and has done a fine job on the boards. He has two rebounds.

-Dominique Keller and Alex Legion again are the first reserves off the bench. Keller earned a quick three-point play.

-The crowd is much lighter tonight. I'd say 10,000, but we'll check with our attendance expert at halftime.

-B. Paul leads everyone with six points on a pair of threes.

Back in a few.

17:11 left in first half - Illinois 6, Northern Illinois 6

-NIU is without its best player, Xavier Silas. The 6-foot-5 transfer from Colorado broke his hand on Friday. He's wearing a brace over on the NIU bench. Silas said before the game he's probably out for two to three weeks, and I'm not sure NIU will win a game without him.

-Brandon Paul hit another early 3. But Bruce Weber did not like his shot selection on his next three-point attempt, which missed. "Now they've got transition!" Weber yelled.

Back in a few.

Klee

Live Report - Tipoff - Northern Illinois at No. 23 Illinois

Tyler Griffey hasn't had a chance to put his best foot forward yet. The freshman was really slowed by a flu bug in the two exhibition games - especially the second exhibition game - and said yesterday he wasn't 100 percent until Sunday's practice.

Griffey knows bad illnesses. He had pneumonia twice in high school, when he was a freshman and a junior.

"It wasn't that bad (as pneumonia), but I was in bed and on the couch for 48 hours straight," he said of his recent sickness.

He lost 10 pounds due to the illness. Griffey said he doesn't think it was the H1N1 virus - Bruce Weber had guessed that was the cause of the illness - but it kept him bedridden for several days. He stayed at his uncle's house in C-U over the weekend - his uncle used to be a 6-foot-7, 310-pound lineman with the Raiders and Redskins - to get healthy.

"I think during the first exhibition game I was feeling the symptoms coming on. The night before the (second) exhibition game was terrible," Griffey said. "I didn't tell anybody (because) I wanted to play. Then, that night, it got bad. I called coach and said something's wrong."

The ironic part: Griffey and D.J. Richardson were the two playes selected to get a flu shot during a press campaign at Ubben Basketball Complex. I watched him get a flu shot, so it really did happen. He probably won't be getting another one any time soon.

"My uncle is kind of the organic health nut. He was kind of ticked off at me. He doesn't want me to get another flu shot, ever. He swears by that," Griffey said. "Ironically, two weeks later I get the flu. He says that's proof enough right there."

Klee strongly agrees, for whatever that's worth.

-Mike Davis' parents just sat down here at the Hall. They're in town from the D.C. area. His father Steve worked with Mike on his jumper quite a bit in May, before the junior forward broke his ankle in June.

-Following us on Twitter? We'll have some postgame updates on Twitter.

Back in a few.

Klee

Live Report - 15 Minutes Until Tipoff - Northern Illinois at No. 23 Illinois

-Alex Legion and Mike Tisdale were the first players on the court tonight. Legion shot jumpers with his godfather, Tim Green, who handled much of his recruitment out of Detroit Country Day and Oak Hill.

-Same starting lineup as the opener: Demetri McCamey, D.J. Richardson, Brandon Paul, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale.

Back in a few.

Klee

Live Report - 30 Minutes Until Tipoff - Northern Illinois at No. 23 Illinois

Good evening everyone, Paul Klee joining you from the Assembly Hall tonight. We'll be here throughout the game. No TV tonight - it's only on ESPN360.

-Just got off the pregame show with Steve Kelly and Loren Tate. Former Illini Cory Bradford stopped by for a minute. Bradford, who is playing professionally in Colombia, spent time at the Illini's shootaround today. He'll be on with Tate at halftime.

-Frank Williams is now playing in Argentina. More on that here.

-Director of basketball operations Sean Harrington also stopped by for a minute. He was an assistant at NIU, so he knows a thing or two about the Huskies program. (He was not, however, on the current staff of Ricardo Patton and Co.).

Harrington said most of the NIU players arrived after Rob Judson's tenure, but Judson did get the commitment of sophomore guard Mike DiNunno, who is projected as a starter tonight.

-Tonight's projected starting lineups and a prediction: click here.

Back in a few.

Klee