GAME NOTES: A 29-game home winning streak is on the line for the third-seeded Louisiana Tech Bulldogs as they defend Thomas Assembly Center against the sixth-seeded Central Michigan Chippewas in the first round of the National Invitational Tournament.

The winner of this first-round clash advances to take on either second-seeded Texas A&M or seventh-seeded Montana in the second round.

Central Michigan pulled off a huge turnaround from a dismal 2013-14 campaign and ended up with the top seed in the Mid-American Conference Tournament. However, the Chippewas were ousted in the title game by Buffalo, 89-84. This is their second appearance in the NIT; their last came during the 1979 season.

Louisiana Tech is looking to extend the nation's fourth-longest home winning streak to 30 games with this clash with Central Michigan. The Bulldogs took on UAB in the title match of the Conference USA Tournament, and fell to the Blazers by a 72-62 overtime margin. This is LaTech's ninth NIT appearance, as the Bulldogs own a 10-8 record all-time in the tournament.

This meeting between Central Michigan and Louisiana Tech will be just the second in history. The Bulldogs took down the Chippewas back in 1992, 104-85, in Ruston.

Neither Central Michigan nor Buffalo played much defense in the MAC Tournament title game over the weekend. Five Bulls netted a scoring total in double figures, while the Chippewas connected on an even 50 percent of their field- goal attempts. Despite 27 points and nine assists from Chris Fowler, CMU came up five points too short in the disappointing ending to a strong NCAA Tournament run. Braylon Rayson chipped in with 13 points in the defeat, while John Simons added 13 of his own with nine rebounds. Luke Meyer scored 10 in the defeat.

Central Michigan built a strong offensive foundation this season, led by the sophomore Fowler, who is averaging 16.0 ppg, and also has a team-best 188 assists. Simons (12.5 ppg) and Rayson (10.7 ppg) round out a trio of double- digit scorers for the Chippewas, who as a unit are scoring 78.2 ppg on 46.8 percent shooting. Defensively, Central Michigan is allowing 67.7 ppg to opponents, still creating a double-digit scoring margin for CMU. Simons leads the team on the boards, averaging 6.5 rpg.

Louisiana Tech seniors Kenneth Smith, Raheem Appleby and Michale Kyser will be looking for their 100th career victory in the game against Central Michigan. The team nearly got to that mark over the weekend in the Conference USA final, but UAB had different plans in the overtime bout. The Blazers held the Bulldogs to 1-of-11 shooting in the extra session, including an 0-of-5 mark from distance to earn the league title. Smith tallied 13 points with five rebounds to pace Louisiana Tech in the loss, while Alex Hamilton added 10 points before fouling out of the clash. The Bulldogs went a dismal 3-of-24 from beyond the arc in the loss.

Appleby and Hamilton are right up at the top of the scoring chart for Louisiana Tech, each netting over 15 points per outing. Appleby is the team leader with 15.2 ppg, while Hamilton sits at 15.1 ppg. Erik McCree chips in 11.8 ppg to level off a trio of double-digit scorers. Smith and Kyser were both named to the C-USA All-Defensive Team after Smith notched a team-high 65 steals, and Kyser led the way with 95 blocked shots. Smith's role of floor general is highlighted by his whopping 241 assists to just 79 turnovers. As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 72.7 ppg and are giving up only 64.7 ppg to opponents.

It will be a tough task for the Chippewas to go into Ruston and try to end the nation's fourth-longest home winning streak, but CMU's potent offense may be the unsolvable answer. The Bulldogs will stick to a strong defensive effort and control the tempo of the game, leaving Central Michigan with limited opportunity.