Box Score
Post-game press conference (video)

BOSTON, Mass., Jan. 4, 2011 -- Fresh off back-to-back wins at Vermont and Towson, the Northeastern men's basketball team lost to visiting UNCW, 70-62, at Matthews Arena on Wednesday night. The Huskies, who fell behind early in the second half, battled back to take the lead with just over five minutes remaining, but couldn't hold off the Seahawks down the stretch.

Junior Jonathan Lee scored 17 points to lead four Huskies in double-figures. Lee made a career-high five 3-pointers on the evening. Freshman Quincy Ford scored 13 for Northeastern, as Joel Smith added 12 and Reggie Spencer 10. Spencer also pulled down a team-high six rebounds. With the loss, Northeastern falls to 5-8 (1-2) on the season.

Preseason All-CAA selection Keith Rendleman totaled 17 points and 10 rebounds for UNCW (6-7, 2-1), while Adam Smith led all scorers with 19 points for the visitors. The road victory marks UNCW's first-ever win at Matthews Arena and snaps a five-game losing skid against the Huskies.

Tied at halftime, 30-30, UNCW used an early second-half run to build the largest lead of the game at 44-35 with 13:44 to play.

With the Seahawks' stalwart Rendleman forced to the bench with four personals, Northeastern edged its way back into the game, eventually taking the lead, 53-52, on a Lee 3-pointer with 5:12 remaining.

UNCW reestablished control of the contest, however, with Rendleman back on the floor, using a 10-3 run over the next four minutes to take a seven point advantage, 62-55, with 1:31 showing. That margin proved too much for the Huskies to overcome, as UNCW iced the game at the free throw line, claiming a 70-62 victory at the final buzzer.

The final stat line was similar for both sides, with free throws being the major exception. UNCW converted an astounding 24 of its 26 attempts from the line (92.3 percent). Northeastern had just 11 chances from the charity stripe, making seven (63.6 percent). Each team tallied 32 rebounds in the game, and posted nearly-identical shooting clips. The Huskies went 23-for-55 (41.8 percent), with UNCW going 20-for-48 (41.7 percent). From beyond the arc, Northeastern was 9-of-23 (39.1 percent), while UNCW went 6-for-14 (42.9 percent).

Jonathan Lee scored nine of the team's first 13 points as the Huskies jumped out to an initial 13-5 lead. UNCW responded with an 18-4 run to take a 23-17 advantage after the opening 13:07 of action. Northeastern scored the next nine points to pull back in front at 25-23, then traded leads with the visitors the remainder of the half. The two sides found themselves deadlocked, 30-30, at the break. Lee paced the Huskies with nine first-half points, with UNCW's K.K. Simmons leading all scorers with 11 points over the first 20 minutes.

The Huskies continue CAA play on Saturday when they travel to Virginia to square off against the Dukes of James Madison at 2 p.m. in Harrisonburg.

GAME NOTES
> Jonathan Lee has scored in double-figures in 11 of the last 13 contests, and 22 of the last 25
> Lee made a career-high five 3-pointers (5-8, 62.5 percent)
> Freshman Quincy Ford scored in double-figures for the fifth time in the last eight games
> Ford tied a career-high with four steals; he has totaled three or more steals in six of the last seven games
> Freshman Reggie Spencer led the team in rebounds (6) for the fifth time this season
> Ryan Pierson tied a career-high with two blocks
> Wednesday's win was UNCW's first-ever at Matthews Arena and also snapped a five-game losing streak to the Huskies