Gameday Information: Game No. 5 at Massachusetts
When	Wednesday, Nov. 26  |  2 p.m.
Where	Mullins Center  |  Amherst, Mass.  |  Tickets
Broadcast and stats	Live stream  |  Live Stats  |  Radio: WRBB (104.9 FM)  |  Audio: GoNUxstream
Game Notes	Northeastern (PDF)
Social media	@GoNUmbasketball facebook.com/GoNUmbasketball instagram.com/GoNUathletics Join the conversation, use #GoNU

BOSTON—Northeastern and Massachusetts will meet for the 55th time in series history on Wednesday in men's basketball action at the Mullins Center in Amherst. In anticipation of a winter storm that is expected to blanket much of New England, game officials moved tip-off on Wednesday to 2 p.m. (Read more about the schedule change.)

The Huskies (4-0) are off to one of the best starts in program history and captured the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off championship on Sunday with a 65-51 victory over Manhattan. The Minutemen (4-1) are coming off an impressive 75-69 win over Florida State.

The Atlantic-10 Digital Network will offer a live stream of the game (UMassAthletics.com). GoNUxstream will provide a free live audio broadcast (GoNU.com/xstream), and WRBB (104.9 FM, WRBBsports.com) will carry the action live.

Story lines
• The Minutemen lead the all-time series, 36-18, but the Huskies have won eight of the last 14 head-to-head meetings.

• At 4-0, head coach Bill Coen's Huskies are off to one of the best starts in program history. NU has opened a season 4-0 only three other times since the NCAA went to a three-division format following the 1972-73 season.

• NU captured its first in-season tournament title in five years over the weekend, defeating Navy and Manhattan in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off. The previous in-season tournament championship came in 2009-10 at the Cable Car Classic. NU played arguably its best 20 minutes of the season in the first half against Manhattan, scoring 44 points on 67 percent shooting en route to a 20-point halftime lead.

• Scott Eatherton was named CAA Player of the Week on Monday. The senior forward averaged 19.0 points and 6.7 rebounds in NU's 3-0 week, which included a road victory at ACC foe Florida State and wins over Navy and defending MAAC champion Manhattan to capture the Hall of Fame Tip-Off title.

• The Huskies have registered assists on better than 70 percent of made field goals, and are averaging a CAA-best 16.8 assists per game.

• NU was picked to win this year's CAA championship. A league title would be NU's second in three seasons.

About the Huskies
Bill Coen's Huskies, who stormed to the CAA regular season title in 2012-13, are primed for another title run and numerous college basketball analysts from across the nation have the Huskies slotted for an NCAA tournament appearance in 2014-15. The squad, which was picked to win the CAA in the league's preseason poll, returns four starters and welcomes back all-conference selection Quincy Ford, who sat out last season due to injury. Scott Eatherton, the reigning CAA Defensive Player of the Year, is the team's top returning scorer and rebounder, after averaging 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds per game last season. Eatherton earned All-CAA Second Team and CAA All-Defensive Team honors a season ago and was named to the preseason All-CAA First Team this year. Junior David Walker also averaged in double-figures at 11.5 points per game and joined Eatherton on the CAA All-Defensive Team a year ago. Walker earned a preseason All-CAA Honorable Mention nod this year. Reggie Spencer patrolled the paint with Eatherton and was second in rebounds with 6.6 per game, and third in scoring at 9.2 per game. T.J. Williams enjoyed a solid CAA All-Rookie campaign, averaging 6.9 points and 2.0 assists per contest. Zach Stahl surged down the stretch for the Huskies, averaging 11.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game over the final five contests.   

Northeastern improves to 4-0 for just the fourth time in Division I era
Head coach Bill Coen's Huskies are 4-0 on the season, following wins over Boston University, Florida State, Navy, and Manhattan. NU has opened a season 4-0 only three other times since the NCAA went to a three-division format following the 1972-73 season. The Huskies opened the 1980-81 schedule at 7-0 and finished the season 24-6, winning the America East regular season and tournament titles and advancing to the NCAA tournament second round. A year later, the 1981-92 squad started 6-0 en route to a 23-7 campaign that again concluded with conference regular season and tournament titles and  a second round NCAA tournament appearance. In 2005-06, CAA Player of the Year J.J. Barea led NU to a 4-0 start and a 19-11 overall record.

Getting to four faster than before
Northeastern recorded its fourth win of the season on Nov. 23, with a 65-51 victory over Manhattan in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off title game. That equals the program record for the earliest date in the season to win number four—matching the 2012-13 squad, which defeated Belmont, 74-71, on Nov. 23, 2012, to improve to 4-1. That year, the Huskies went on to a 20-13 mark, including a 14-4 CAA record and a regular season conference title.

The nation takes notice
Northeastern has earned the attention of the voters of both the Associated Press Top 25 and  CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 polls. The Huskies, who are off to one of the best starts in program history, are among teams receiving votes in the AP poll and are ranked No. 22 in the latest College Insider poll.

Champions!
The Huskies captured their first in-season tournament title in five years over the weekend, defeating Navy (68-44) and Manhattan (65-51) in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off at Mohegan Sun Arena. NU's previous in-season tournament championship came in 2009-10 at the Cable Car Classic. That year, the Huskies defeated host Santa Clara (62-50) and Kent State (61-58) as part of an 11-game winning streak. NU finished that season 20-13 and earned an NIT berth.

Eatherton emerges; wins CAA Player of the Week, Hall of Fame Tipoff MVP
Northeastern senior Scott Eatherton was named the CAA Men's Basketball Player of the Week, the conference office announced on Monday. Eatherton averaged 19.0 points and 6.7 rebounds in Northeastern's 3-0 week, which included a road victory at ACC foe Florida State (76-73) and wins over Navy (68-44) and defending MAAC champion Manhattan (65-51) to capture the Hall of Fame Tip-Off title. The Hershey, Pennsylvania, native was named Most Valuable Player of the Hall of Fame Tipoff's Springfield bracket following his outstanding tournament performance. He scored 16 points at Florida State, tallied a team-high 19 points and eight boards against Navy, and finished with a season-best 22 points, eight rebounds, and three blocks against Manhattan. He shot better than 50 percent from the floor in each of Northeastern's three games and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line against the Jaspers on Sunday night.

Northeastern picked to win CAA
Northeastern was picked to win the CAA men's basketball championship in 2014-15, according to a vote of the league's coaches, media relations directors, and media members. The Huskies return six of their top seven scorers from a season ago. Northeastern was followed in the voting by William & Mary, Hofstra, and Drexel. James Madison was selected fifth, followed by College of Charleston, Towson, Delaware, UNCW, and Elon. A conference title in 2014-15 would be the Huskies' second in three seasons. Ninth-year head coach Bill Coen, already one of the CAA's all-time winningest coaches, guided NU to the CAA regular-season championship in 2012-13, behind a 20-win campaign and a 14-4 CAA record.

When last we met: UMass vs. NU
Despite holding a six-point advantage late in the second half, the Northeastern men's basketball team could not close out intrastate foe Massachusetts, losing to the visiting Minutemen, 72-66, at Matthews Arena on Dec. 4, 2012. Leading 61-55 with 4:24 remaining, the Huskies fell victim to a host of timely 3-pointers by UMass guard Jesse Morgan in the game's final minutes. Then-sophomore standouts Reggie Spencer and Quincy Ford paced NU with 15 and 14 points, respectively, in the first game played at historic Matthews Arena between the two sides since 1989. Ford grabbed a game-high 10 boards as NU out-rebounded UMass, 41-37, and corralled 19 offensive rebounds. Morgan carried the Minutemen with 18 points. He hit all four of his 3-pointers in the second half. Chaz Williams also finished with 18 points to go along with six rebounds and two steals.

Sharing the rock
Northeastern has played a selfless brand of basketball through four games. The Huskies have registered assists on better than 70 percent of made field goals, and are averaging a CAA-best 16.8 assists per game. Five Northeastern players rank in the top 14 in the league in assists. NU assisted on 17 of 21 field goals (.809) in its last game against Manhattan.

Up next
Northeastern will play its first home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 29, when it welcomes Fairfield to Huntington Avenue. The game will be played at Cabot Center—NU's former home—rather than at the Huskies' usual home venue of historic Matthews Arena. Tipoff between the Huskies and the Stags is set for 3 p.m. Tickets are available at GoNU.com/tickets. A live stream will be available at GoNU.com/xstream, and WRBB (104.9 FM, WRBBsports.com) will carry the action. Fans can also follow the live stats at GoNU.com/livestats.

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