MAINE vs. NORTHEASTERN

Time, site: 7 p.m., Solomon Court, Boston

Records: Maine 11-12 (6-8 in America East), Northeastern 15-8 (11-3)

Series, last meeting: Northeastern leads 60-46, Maine 67-60 Jan. 23

Key players: Maine – 6-2 G Kevin Reed (12.3 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 2.3 spg), 6-10 F Mark Flavin (9.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg), 6-7 G-F Joe Campbell (8.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg), 6-3 G Chris Markwood (7.6 ppg, 4.0 apg); Northeastern – 6-0 G Jose Juan Barea (22.3 ppg, 6.9 apg, 4.3 rpg, 2.0 spg), 6-2 G Marcus Barnes (16.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 1.2 spg), 6-9 F Bennet Davis (8.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.3 bpg), 6-7 F Janon Cole (6.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg), F Shawn James (9.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 5.4 bpg)

Outlook: The Black Bears face a tough test on the road against the league’s No. 3 team. Maine dispatched the talented Huskies at home even without point guard Markwood. This time, Markwood is back, but the Bears will be without another guard: top scorer Ernest Turner. Notheastern looks better as the season wears on, with freshman James – a four-time AE rookie of the week – becoming a big presence underneath. Maine will have its work cut out for it against one the league’s best backcourts and a very solid frontcourt as well. The Huskies are one of the league’s highest-scoring teams with 72.9 points per game, but they’re also giving up 70.4 – despite winning two games by a combined margin of 50 points last week.