BOSTON — The first-place Northeastern Huskies will travel to Hempstead on Wednesday to face Hofstra in the first game of a three-game road swing. Tip-off at the Mack Sports Complex is set for 7 p.m.
Northeastern (14-8, 9-1 CAA) is off to one of its best conference starts in program history and has won nine of its last 10 games, including a 59-52 victory over Drexel on Saturday. Hofstra (5-17, 2-7 CAA) has lost five straight games and six of its last seven. NU defeated the Pride, 65-60, on Jan. 16 in Boston.
The programs will be meeting for the 33rd time in series history. Hofstra leads the all-time series, 17-15, but NU has won three straight head-to-head meetings and seven of the last 10.
WRBB radio will carry the game live on 104.9 FM and WRBBsports.com with David Kroopnick and Jake Fischer on the call.
Storylines
> Northeastern's 9-1 CAA start is its best since opening league play 10-1 in 2008-09
> NU has won nine of its last 10 games
> Playing in his 87th career game,
Jonathan Lee scored his 1,000th career point in the second half of Saturday's win against Drexel; Lee is the 32nd NU player and the sixth under
Bill Coen to reach the 1,000-point mark
>
Joel Smith has scored in double figures in seven straight games; he has either led the team or been second in scoring in each of the last seven games
> NU has scored more points off turnovers than its opponent in nine of 10 CAA games
> All five of Hofstra's wins have come at home this season; HU is 5-5 at the Mack Sports Complex
Scouting the teams
NORTHEASTERN completed the season sweep of preseason favorite Drexel on Saturday and has won nine of its last 10 games. NU has lost just two games in the last 49 days.
Joel Smith (16.5 ppg) leads four NU players averaging in double figures. Smith has either led the team or been second in scoring in each of the last seven games.
Jonathan Lee (13.2 ppg),
Quincy Ford (12.5 ppg) and
Reggie Spencer (10.8 ppg) also pace the Huskies. Spencer (6.2 rpg) leads the team in rebounding. NU leads the CAA in six statistical categories—scoring offense, FG percentage, 3FG percentage, assists, turnover margin, and assist/turnover ratio—and is second in five other categories.
HOFSTRA has lost six straight games and seven of eight. The Pride, though, have played their best ball at home, going 5-5 overall and 2-2 in CAA games. Sophomore guard Taran Buie leads Hofstra with 14.4 ppg, while backcourt mate Stevie Mejia is contributing 10.5 ppg. Stephen Nwaukoni has been a force on the glass, pulling down 7.6 rpg. Hofstra is last in the conference in scoring offense (59.4 ppg), but ranks third in 3-point FG percent defense (.316).
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.
Conference start among best in NU and CAA history
Northeastern opened the CAA schedule 8-0, posting the best start since joining the conference in 2005 and the fourth-best all-time in program history. The hot start also tied for the fifth-best in CAA history. The 2006-07 VCU team and the 1985-86 Richmond team both started 11-0, while James Madison started 9-0 in 1990-91 and 1991-92. Old Dominion in 2004-05 and Richmond in 1988-89 also opened 8-0.
Joining the club
Senior co-captain
Jonathan Lee joined the 1,000-point club on Feb. 2 in the Huskies' win over Drexel. Lee reached the milestone late in the second half on a trademark driving layup. He is the 32nd player in Northeastern history and the sixth player during
Bill Coen's tenure at NU to reach the 1,000-point mark. Fellow senior co-captain
Joel Smith accomplished the feat earlier this season, on Dec. 21, in a win at Central Connecticut.
Standing firm in the first month
January has been kind to the Huskies in the
Bill Coen era. Since 2006-07, Coen's first season on Huntington Avenue, NU has won 64 percent of its games in the month (44-25). Since 2008-09, NU has been even more dominant, three times losing just once in January and winning at a 73-percent clip (36-13).
The nation takes notice
Northeastern's 8-1 run in the month of January garnered national attention. The Huskies moved into the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. After a win to open February, NU checks in at No. 24 in the latest poll.
Sharing the rock
Northeastern has tallied at least 15 assists in eight of 10 conference games this season after hitting that mark just three times in 12 non-conference contests. The Huskies lead the CAA, averaging 14.2 assists per game.
Deep threat
More than a quarter of the Northeastern offense is coming from beyond the arc. The Huskies average 6.7 made 3-point field goals per game, which is second in the CAA. In league play, the number jumps to 7.5. NU, which made a season-high 11 3-pointers on Jan. 30 against Georgia State, is shooting 37.5 percent from long-range on the season, which is first in the league, and an impressive 44.9 percent in conference games.
Generating offense
Northeastern has outscored opponents in points off turnovers in nine of 10 conference games.
Davey delivers
Freshman
David Walker continues to be a steady presence on the floor for the Huskies. In 328 minutes of CAA action, the 6-6 guard has committed just 10 turnovers—a rate of just one turnover per 33 minutes of playing time. His assist-to-turnover ratio in conference play is an impressive 3.7-to-1.0.
Coen ranks among best in career CAA wins
Bill Coen continues to establish himself as one of the most highly regarded coaches in the CAA. 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, 2002-2013) 148
3. Bruiser Flint (Drexel, 2002-present) 133 *
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) 72 *
10. Tony Shaver (William & Mary, 2003-present) 63 *
* active
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 59 percent (80-56) 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).
Limited pine time
NU's Feb. 2 game against Drexel was the 111th game of
Joel Smith's career. The Leander, Texas, native has appeared in 89 straight games, dating back to Feb. 23, 2010, and has made 68 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).
Shooting star
Senior co-captain
Joel Smith is posting impressive shooting numbers. Smith currently leads the CAA in free throw percentage at 87.5 percent. He is second in 3-point field goal percentage at 41.5, and seventh in overall field goal percentage at 48.2.
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Up next
Northeastern will play the second game of a three-game road trip when it visits Old Dominion on Saturday. Game time in Norfolk is set for 4 p.m. Comcast SportsNet will televise the game throughout the East Coast.
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