Box Score • Season Statistics • Infographic • Press Conference CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Despite a strong effort, the Northeastern Huskies fell to the Boston College Eagles 66-56 on Wednesday, Dec. 31.
The team closes out the 2014 calendar year with a 3-7 record, and now turns its attention to conference play starting next week.
Northeastern (3-7, 0-0) led Boston College (8-5, 0-0) by three at halftime, 30-27, but the Eagles opened the final stanza with a 10-1 run to take an eight-point lead. The Huskies would battle back, tying the game at 40-40 -- behind points from four different Huskies -- but another 10-2 run from the Eagles would prove to be too much for NU to overcome.
Kelly Cole's squad would cut the lead to just six points with less than one minute left, but BC converted on its free throw attempts down the stretch to secure the victory.
The Huskies were paced by senior guard
A'lece Mark's 18 points in the setback. This is the fifth time this season the Springfield, Massachusetts, native has led the Huskies on the stat sheet and the second consecutive game. She had two blocks, two steals and five rebounds when the game ended.
Along with Mark, Northeastern relied on
Samantha DeFreese and
Francesca Sally on the offensive end. DeFreese scored 12 points in the setback, but also grabbed seven boards and recorded one blocks. Sally also contributed in a major way by grabbing 14 rebounds – tying a season high – while registering eight points, three assists, and three blocks.
NU finished its day shooting 33 percent from the floor, connecting on 22-of-66 shots. They outscored Boston College in the paint, 32-20, generated 18 points off turnovers, and scored 13 second-chance points. Northeastern struggled, however, from downtown where the team finished making just four-of-20 attempts.
The Huskies and Eagles played a classic back-and-forth first half that ended with NU ahead, 30-27, despite NU going just one-of-eighth from downtown. Both teams made 12-of-33 from the floor and grabbed 20 boards. The difference, however, was the Huskies discipline to not put the Eagles on the free-throw line, while NU went five-of-five from the charity stripe.
Northeastern was paced by DeFreese's 10 points. She also corralled four rebounds and a block in her first start in two games. Along with the junior, Northeastern received solid production from Mark, who had nine points, and
Tiffany Montagne with five. Sally won the rebound battle, grabbing a first half-high eight boards.
Cole and her team will now prepare to start an 18-game conference slate, starting on Sunday, Jan. 4 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, against Drexel. The team then heads to Hempstead, New York, for a showdown with Hofstra. The following weekend its a return to Cabot Center when the Huskies welcome James Madison on Friday, Jan. 9 and Delaware on Sunday, Jan. 11.
Game Notes• Francesca Sally tied a season high with 14 rebounds
• A'lece Mark has paced the Huskies in scoring five times this season
• The Huskies are now 13-14 all-time against the Eagles
For complete coverage of Northeastern women's basketball, follow us on Facebook (GoNUwbasketball), Twitter (@GoNUwbasketball), and Instagram (@GoNUwbasketball). The Huskies also run their own blog, The Husky Huddle, for fans eager to learn more about the team and hear from the coaches and players directly.
Check out exclusive live and on-demand videos of Northeastern Athletics at GoNU.com/xstream and behind-the-scenes content on Instagram (GoNUathletics), Twitter (@GoNUathletics) and Facebook (GoNUathletics). For tickets, visit GoNU.com/tickets or call (617) 373-4700. .
