CHICAGO (AP) -- Luckily for DePaul, its starting point guard has a high tolerance for pain.

Otherwise, Rashon Burno would be sitting on the bench, and the Blue Demons would be lost without him.

Quentin Richardson scored 20 points Thursday night and Bobby Simmons added 19 points and 11 rebounds as DePaul (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 24 AP) beat Northern Illinois 82-61.

DePaul (8-3) was most pleased by the return of Burno, who injured his right knee nine days ago. He was expected to miss 3-5 weeks but was back after only sitting out one game. Wearing a knee brace but showing no noticeable limp, Burno hit his first shot, a 3-pointer, and had three points and five assists in 23 minutes.

"As soon as our medical staff told me his return would be based on how much Burno could tolerate the pain, I knew it would be quicker than 3-5 weeks," said DePaul coach Pat Kennedy. "He works his behind off."

Burno strained a ligament in his right knee in the second half against St. John's on Dec. 14.

"Sitting out is one of the worst feelings," Burno said. "I felt I could have played against UCLA (Dec. 18). I still can't really move laterally the way I want to, and it was a little stiff, but it felt all right."

UCLA pounded DePaul by 22, as the Blue Demons were never able to get into offensive sets without their starting point guard.

Kennedy said Burno would be evaluated from game to game, but was ahead of schedule medically not only because of his will, but also his body type.

"He's got such strong legs, it's supporting his injury well," Kennedy said. "His legs are strong and short."

DePaul took an 18-9 lead eight minutes into the game after a rebound and putback from Lance Williams. The Blue Demons led 42-29 at the break.

A thunderous dunk by Paul McPherson and a 3-pointer by Richardson put DePaul up 59-40 with just under 12 minutes left.

The Huskies cut it to 13 five minutes later, but consecutive dunks by Steven Hunter and a layup from Richardson put DePaul up 76-56 with just over two minutes left.

DePaul outrebounded Northern Illinois 41-28 and Northern Illinois coach blamed it for the defeat.

"I knew it would be a battle of the boards, and they lived up to their reputation," Huskies coach Brian Hammel said. "And they're a hard team to play catch-up with."

T.J. Lux scored 20 to lead Northern Illinois (7-3), which had won three straight.

Hunter had 12 points for DePaul, which has won four of five games.