SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The Northeastern men's basketball team will kick off a three-game West Coast swing on Wednesday with a matchup against Cal Poly at the 48th Cable Car Classic at the Leavey Center at 10 p.m. (EST).
The Huskies will also face tournament host Santa Clara on Dec. 20, before wrapping up the California trip on Dec. 22 at St. Mary's.
STORY LINES• Northeastern and Cal Poly will meet for the second time on Wednesday in the 48th edition of the Cable Car Classic. The Mustangs defeated the Huskies, 89-73, in the teams' only prior meeting in the third-place game of the Coors Light Classic on Nov. 30, 1996 in Fresno, California.
• The Huskies are making their second appearance in the Cable Car Classic. Northeastern is 2-0 all-time at the tournament, having previously won the title in 2009 with victories over Santa Clara (62-50) and Kent State (61-58).
• Northeastern is making its first appearance in the state of California since winning the 2009 Cable Car Classic. The Huskies are 5-8 all-time in games played in the Golden State.
• The Huskies will face a Big West opponent (Cal Poly) for the first time since Nov. 21, 2012 when NU knocked off UC Riverside, 61-52, in the Great Alaska Shootout.
Quincy Ford led Northeastern with 14 points and five rebounds in the win.
• Northeastern is 4-3 all-time against current members of the Big West. The last time NU faced a Big West opponent in the state of California was on Nov. 25, 2005 in a 102-81 victory over Cal State Northridge at the Golden Bear Classic in Berkeley, Calif.
• The Huskies are 5-0 this season when holding opponents to less than 50-percent shooting from the field. In its two losses, NU allowed UMass to shoot 53-percent, and allowed Harvard to shoot 52-percent.
• Northeastern is in the midst of a three-game stretch against teams that appeared in last season's NCAA tournament. The span includes games against league champions Harvard (Ivy), Western Michigan (MAC), and Cal Poly (Big West). Factoring in the Huskies' games against Manhattan and Massachusetts, the unforgiving stretch includes five 2014 NCAA participants in six games.
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Bill Coen's Huskies are off to one of the best starts in school history. Northeastern opened the season 5-1 for just the 11th time in the program's 95-year history, and for just the fourth time since the NCAA went to a three-division format following the 1972-73 season. NU's win over Fairfield on Nov. 29 secured the program's first-ever five-win November.
• NU captured its first in-season tournament title in five years in November, defeating Navy and Manhattan in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off. The previous in-season tournament championship came in 2009 at the Cable Car Classic.
• The Huskies have registered assists on 64-percent of their made field goals, and are averaging 14.4 assists per game (third-most in the CAA).
A WIN WOULD...• Give Northeastern its first-ever victory over Cal Poly
• Give NU its best nine-game start (7-2) since 1985-86 (started 13-2)
• Improve NU's record to 6-8 all-time in the state of California
• Give the Huskies their third win this season over a team that advanced to last year's NCAA tournament (Manhattan, WMU)
LAST TIME VS. CAL POLYIn the only prior meeting between the two teams, Cal Poly played to an 89-73 win over Northeastern in the third-place game of the Coors Light Classic on Nov. 30, 1996 in Fresno, California. Harold Miller led NU with 17 points, while Shanta Cotright poured in 24 points for Cal Poly. The Mustangs scored 51 points in the first half and knocked down 27-of-31 free throws, compared to just 9-of-20 from Northeastern.
FEELING CHARITABLEThe Huskies rank sixth in the nation in free throw shooting this season with a 77.1-percent clip. Northeastern converted a season-high 23 free throws (23-for-26) against Western Michigan on Dec. 6. The last time NU made 20+ free throws in a game was on March 8, 2014 when the Huskies knocked down 32-of-44 foul shots in the CAA tournament vs. Drexel.
CLEANING THE GLASSNortheastern ranks first in the CAA in rebounding defense with 27.9 rebounds allowed per game. In addition, NU's +6.6 rebounding margin ranks second in the conference behind Towson (+11.1).
EATHERTON APPROACHING CENTURY MARKSenior
Scott Eatherton will appear in his 98th career game on Wednesday vs. Cal Poly. The Hershey, Pennsylvania, native played in 57 games with St. Francis (Pa.) from 2010-12, and will be making his 41st appearance in a Huskies' uniform on Wednesday. Between the two schools, Eatherton has amassed 1,155 total points in 97 career games (11.9 points per game).
STUFFING THE STAT SHEETSSenior
Scott Eatherton currently ranks eighth among the NCAA's active career leaders in double-doubles with 26. Eatherton posted 19 double-doubles last season and added his 20th as a Husky in Northeastern's 81-69 win over Western Michigan on Dec. 6. Eatherton is one of just 17 active players in the country with at least 20 career double-doubles.
MODEL OF CONSISTENCYSenior
Scott Eatherton has scored 10 points or more in seven straight games entering Wednesday's contest with Cal Poly. The Hershey, Pennsylvania, native has scored in double figures in 64-percent of his total games (62 of 97 contests).
GETTING GOOD LOOKSSenior
Scott Eatherton leads all CAA players in shooting percentage with a 55.9-percent clip. Eatherton is one of only six CAA players to own a shooting percentage of 50-percent or higher this season.
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