BOSTON — The Northeastern men's basketball team will put its 4-0 CAA record on the line when it hosts Hofstra on Wednesday night at Matthews Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. The Huskies, off to their best CAA start since 2008-09, have won five of their last six games.
The first 500 NU students in attendance will receive a free T-shirt, and admission is free for Northeastern faculty and staff members. “The Spot,” the popular fan gathering area on the arena floor level, will open one hour prior to tip-off.
The Huskies (9-7, 4-0 CAA) defeated Towson, 70-59, on Saturday in Maryland. Hofstra (5-11, 2-1 CAA), has won two of its last three games, including a 70-59 victory over William & Mary over the weekend.
Tickets for the game are available online at
GoNU.com/tickets. Northeastern students can reserve their tickets on
myNEU. Faculty and staff members can secure their free tickets using the myTickets portal on
myNEU.
Fans unable to attend the game can catch all the action live in high definition at
GoNU.com/xstream. WRBB radio also will carry the game live on 104.9 FM and
WRBBsports.com with David Kroopnick and Zolan Kanno-Youngs on the call.
Storylines
> Northeastern is 4-0 in CAA play for the first time since 2008-09 and for just the second time since joining the conference in 2005
>
Bill Coen captured his 100th career victory on Saturday when NU defeated Towson, 70-59; Coen is just the fourth coach in the 93-year history of the program to win 100 games at NU
> Senior co-captain
Joel Smith scored a game-high 21 points at Towson and dished out a career-high six assists; Smith has scored in double figures in 12 games this season and 53 games in his career
>
Demetrius Pollard is shooting 61 percent (8-13) from 3-point range in CAA play after hitting just 28 percent (8-29) in non-conference action
> Northeastern and Hofstra will meet for the 32nd time with the Pride leading the all-time series, 17-14; NU has won the last two meetings and 13 of the last 16
Scouting the teams
NORTHEASTERN has won four straight games and five of its last six. The Huskies defeated two of the top three CAA preseason picks on the road in George Mason and Drexel and collected a home win over UNCW and a third road win over Towson. Senior guard
Joel Smith leads NU with 16.2 ppg. Joining Smith in double figures are senior
Jonathan Lee (13.0), and sophomores
Quincy Ford (12.5) and
Reggie Spencer (11.4). Ford, whose double-clutch, buzzer-beating 3-pointer to force overtime at Drexel was the top play on ESPN's Top 10, leads the team in rebounds (6.4). Smith leads the CAA in FT percentage (.885) while Spencer is second in FG percentage (.555).
HOFSTRA enters Wednesday's game having won two of its last three games. The Pride, who lost eight straight games before CAA play, claimed home wins over Georgia State and William & Mary. Hofstra visits Boston still looking for its first road win of the season (0-7). Sophomore guard Taran Buie leads Hofstra with 14.6 ppg, while backcourt mate Stevie Mejia is contributing 10.7 ppg. Stephen Nwaukoni has been a force on the glass, pulling down 9.3 rpg in CAA play. Hofstra is last in the conference in scoring defense (71.3 ppg), but ranks second in 3-point FG percent defense (.301).
NU opens CAA play at 4-0 for second time
Northeastern is 4-0 in CAA play for the first time since 2008-09 and for just the second time since joining the conference in 2005. The Huskies posted wins at George Mason (84-74), vs. UNCW (68-64), at Drexel (63-58 OT), and at Towson (70-59) to open conference play. In 2008-09, NU raced out to a 6-0 league start en route to a 19-win season and postseason appearance in the CBI tournament.
Coen collects career win 100
Bill Coen, who arrived on Huntington Avenue in 2006, continues to lead a basketball renaissance in Boston. On Saturday, with a 70-59 win at Towson, Coen became just the fourth coach in 93 years of Northeastern basketball to win 100 career games at NU, joining Dick Dukeshire, Jim Calhoun and Karl Fogel.
NU's 100-game winners
Dick Dukeshire - 204-100 (.671) - 1958-71, 13 years
Jim Calhoun - 250-137 (.646) - 1972-86, 14 years
Karl Fogel - 131-103 (.560) - 1986-94, 8 years
Bill Coen - 100-106 (.485) - 2006-present, 7 years
Lee named national finalist for Senior CLASS Award
Northeastern men's basketball senior
Jonathan Lee has been selected as a candidate for the 2012-13 Senior CLASS Award in collegiate basketball. Lee, a graphic design major from Flint, Mich., is one of just 30 candidates nationally. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence—community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Demetrius dialing in
Sophomore guard
Demetrius Pollard is finding his range in conference play. The Virginia Beach, Va., native is shooting 61 percent (8-13) from 3-point range in CAA play after hitting just 28 percent (8-29) in non-conference action. One of his non-conference makes, though, will be long-remembered by Huskies fans. Pollard nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the key with one second remaining to lift NU to a thrilling 65-64 win over city rival Boston University in the season opener.
Ford's heroic shot earns top play on ESPN's Top 10
Quincy Ford's double-clutch, buzzer-beating 3-point shot to force overtime in NU's win at Drexel earned the number one play on ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 plays on Jan. 8. The play also won an ESPN SportsNation “Best of the Best” poll, beating out the hit by South Carolina's Jadeveon Clowney on Michigan's Vincent Smith in the Outback Bowl by a whopping 28-percent margin (64-38). To see Ford's heroic shot, view the video “CAA Minute — Jan. 9, 2013” on CAASports.com/Digital.
Huskies in conference play
Northeastern joined the Colonial Athletic Association before the 2005-06 season. In their eighth season as a CAA member, the Huskies have won 58 percent (75-55) of their regular season games and have finished at or above .500 in conference play in seven of eight seasons. Prior to the CAA, Northeastern was a founding member of the America East Conference and played in the league from 1979 to 2005. (The conference was known as the North Atlantic Conference until 1996.) The Huskies captured the conference championship on seven occasions (1981, '82, '84, '85, '86, '87, '91).
Surging Stahl answers the call
Freshman forward
Zach Stahl poured in 10 of NU's 13 points during a decisive three-minute stretch late in the second half on Jan. 3 to lead the Huskies to a comeback win at George Mason. Stahl, a native of Chanhassen, Minn., registered all of his career-high 15 points in the second half.
High-scoring half
Northeastern poured in 54 second-half points on 64 percent field goal shooting on Thursday at George Mason to secure a come-from-behind victory. The 54-point performance was the third-best ever by NU in a half against a CAA opponent and the fifth 50-plus point half under
Bill Coen.
1,000-point watch
Senior co-captain
Jonathan Lee is on pace to join fellow senior co-captain
Joel Smith in the 1,000-point club. Smith accomplished the feat on Dec. 21 in NU's 82-63 win at Central Connecticut. Lee would become the 32nd player in program history to record 1,000 points.
Lee point watch
Jonathan Lee 81 games 921 points
Limited pine time
NU's Jan. 12 game at Towson was the 105th game of
Joel Smith's career. The Leander, Texas, native has appeared in 83 straight games, dating back to Feb. 23, 2010, and has made 62 consecutive starts, dating to Jan. 15, 2011. He has played in all but six games since arriving on Huntington Avenue in 2009, with all six missed games coming in his freshman season. The program record for career games is 128, achieved by Andre LaFleur (1983-87), Wes Fuller (1983-87) and Matt Janning (2006-10).
Coen ranks among best in career CAA wins
Bill Coen earned his 67th career CAA win in the Huskies' 70-59 win at Towson on Jan. 12. Coen is currently ninth on the CAA's list of all-time winningest coaches. He is one of just three current CAA coaches to have cracked the top 10.
Winningest coaches in CAA play (CAA regular season and tournament games only)
1. Jim Larranaga (George Mason, 1998-2011) 183
2. Blaine Taylor (ODU, 2002-present) 148
3. Bruiser Flint (Drexel, 2002-present) 129
4. Dick Tarrant (Richmond, 1982-93) 106
5. Tom Pecora (Hofstra, 2002-10) 98
5. Charles “Lefty” Driesell (JMU, 1988-97) 98
7. Jerry Wainwright (UNCW, 1995-2002) 97
8. Jeff Capel, Jr. (ODU, 1995-2001) 77
9.
Bill Coen (Northeastern, 2006-present) 67
10. Brad Brownell (UNCW, 2003-06) 61
Shooting stars
Senior co-captain
Joel Smith and sophomore standout
Reggie Spencer are posting impressive shooting numbers. Smith currently leads the CAA in free throw percentage at 85.5 percent. Spencer is second in the CAA in field goal percentage, making an impressive 55.5 percent of his attempts.
Cardiac Canines
The Huskies have had a flair for the dramatic this season, overcoming double-digit deficits in four victories. NU erased a 10-point deficit against Boston University, winning on a last-second 3-pointer by
Demetrius Pollard. The Huskies stormed back from 18 points down in the second half to shock Princeton.
Reggie Spencer delivered the game-winner at Jadwin Gym—a layup off a perfect feed from
Zach Stahl with just two seconds remaining. In the Great Alaska Shootout semifinal, NU twice overcame double-digit margins—including a 16-point second-half gap—to claim victory over previously-unbeaten Belmont. The Red and Black rallied from 12 points down at Towson to claim a 70-59 win on Jan. 12.
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Up next
Northeastern will hit the road for the sixth time in eight games when it travels to Delaware on Saturday, Jan. 19, for a 2 p.m. game. The Blue Hens, at 3-0, are the only other unbeaten team in the CAA.
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