BOSTON - The Northeastern men's basketball team will square off against cross town rival Harvard Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in the Matthews Arena opener.
The Huskies will raise the 2015 CAA Championship and NCAA Tournament banners in a halftime ceremony and fans are encouraged to get there early and participate in a pregame tailgate from 5-7 p.m. in the Matthews Lot where there will be free food, music, giveaways, and more!
The meeting will be the 53rd in the series between the two teams, 10th most in program history, as the Huskies look for Boston bragging rights with a win over the Crimson.
QUICK HITS• This is the 96th season of Northeastern men's basketball. Northeastern has an all-time record of 1,159-1,071 (.520) in 2,229 games.
•
Bill Coen tallied his 150th career win (all at Northeastern) with a 78-77 upset over No. 15/19 Miami on Friday night.
• The Huskies defeated their first ranked opponent in 29 years with the upset of Miami, the first since Nov. 28, 1986
• Harvard and Northeastern have faced each other 52 times in history, the 10th most in Northeastern men's basketball history
• The series between the two teams began in Northeastern's first season as a varsity program, 1920-21
• This year's game will mark the first time since the 1997-00 seasons that the two teams have met for three-straight seasons.
• Two Huskies hail from the Boston, Mass. area, freshmen
Anthony Green (Quincy, Mass.) and
Jeremy Miller (Milton, Mass.)
• The Huskies are 362-244 (.597) all-time in conference play including a 104-74 (.584) record since joining the CAA in the 2005-06 season.
• The Huskies have amassed 12 regular season conference championships and eight tournament titles including last season's title which sent the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 24 years.
A WIN WOULD.... • Improve the Huskies record to 6-1 for first time since the 2005-06 season and the first time under the direction of
Bill Coen• Snap a two-game losing streak against Harvard
• Mark the first win for the Huskies over Harvard since Dec. 10, 2008
• Give the Huskies Boston bragging rights after defeating BU 87-84 in overtime to begin the season
BOSTON BRAGGING RIGHTS• With a win on Wednesday, Northeastern would claim Boston area bragging rights.
• The Huskies took the first step to the claim with an 87-84 overtime victory over Boston University in the season opener
• With a win against Harvard, the Huskies would have swept their Boston opponents for the 2015-16 season.
• Northeastern and Boston College will not face each other this season.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON• Harvard is led by junior Zena Edosonmwan who is averaging a double-double to being his 2015-16 campaign.
• Edosonmwan is averaging 12.8 ppg and 10.0 rpg against the Crimson's opponents.
• Also averaging double-figures on the year is Freshman Tommy McCarthy with 10.7 ppg. McCarthy has scored or assisted on 29.9 percent (111 pts.) of Harvard's points this season. McCarthy ranks second on the team in scoring (10.7 ppg) and is first in assists (20).
• Evan Cummins leads the team with a .615 field goal percentage on the year (16-26 from the field), with all of his baskets coming in two-point range.
• The Huskies will look to defend the three-point shot once again. Harvard has made at least five 3-pointers in all six games this season, the team's longest streak since going seven straight games to close out the 2013-14 campaign (Feb. 22 - March 22).
• After allowing 19 3s through the first two games, the Huskies have held their opponents to just 21 in the last four games.
THIS SEASON• Harvard is off to a 2-4 record on the season and will play its seventh game in 20 days when it comes to Matthews Arena on Wednesday.
• The Crimson are coming off of a 50-49 loss to Holy Cross on Sunday. Harvard cut a 10-point deficit to just one with under 10 seconds to play, but couldnt force the victory.
ALL-TIME SERIES• Harvard leads the all-time series between the two teams 38-14 in a series that dates back to the 1920-21 season.
• The Huskies lost 22 of the first 23 games against Harvard dating back to 1955-56. Since the 1955-56 season, Northeastern is 13-16 against the Crimson.
• Under
Bill Coen, the Huskies have a 2-2 record against Harvard, winning the first two showdowns of Coen's vs. Harvard, but falling in the last two outings since resurrecting the series in 2014-15.
• This year's game will mark the third straight season that Harvard and Northeastern will meet, the first time since a three-year series from '97-'99 that the two teams will square off against each other.
LAST TIME OUT• The Huskies recorded the biggest victory of the
Bill Coen era, and the 150th victory of Coen's tenure, with a 78-77 upset over No. 15/19 Miami in Coral Gables.
• The win was the Huskies first over a ranked team in nearly 29 years.
• Redshirt senior
Quincy Ford hit the game-winning, buzzer beating jumper for the Huskies in his return to his home state of Florida.
• Ford finished the game with 24 points, six rebounds and four steals and was 5-of-10 from three-point range.
• Northeastern led the majority of the game, including a 35-30 halftime lead, before Miami took its first lead of the game with 7:48 remaining in the second half.
• The Hurricanes jumped out to a seven point lead in the waning minutes, but a four-point play by freshman
Jeremy Miller allowed the Huskies back into the game, and eventually they would take a four-point lead of their own with under two minutes remaining.
• Miami went up by one on a layup, and
Devon Begley had the initial game-winning try for NU before Tonye Jekiri rejected the ball out of bounds setting up the inbound pass and Ford's game-winner.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR FORD• For his efforts against Miami, redshirt senior
Quincy Ford was named the CAA Player of the Week for the first time in his career.
• Ford finished the game with a season-high 24 points, six rebounds and four steals and was 5-of-10 from three-point range.
• In addition to the CAA accolades, Ford was tabbed as the Lou Henson Award National Player of the Week and the College Sports Madness Conference and High-Major National Player of the Week.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR NU• After the Miami victory, the Huskies are currently receiving one vote in the AP Top-25 poll
• This marks the fourth time in history and the second consecutive season that the Huskies have received at least one vote in the AP Poll.
• The Huskies received votes in the AP Poll last season after defeating another ACC foe in Florida State, 76-73 in Tallahassee.
TIPPING POINT•
Kwesi Abakah controlled the first five opening tips for the Huskies this season
• The junior lost the tip for the first time at Miami (Nov. 27)
• The 6-8 redshirt junior has helped the Huskies to control the ball and get on the board first three of the five games on the season.
ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY• Although Northeastern is located in Boston, Mass. in the northeastern part of the United States, the Huskies, and the starting lineup in particular, come from all around the country.
• The Northeastern roster is represented by eight different states, two of which are found in the northeast.
• Northeastern's starting lineup hails from five different states, Ohio, Texas, Florida, Minnesota and Georgia.
SETTING SCHOOL RECORDS• Just two games into the season and the 2015-16 Huskies have broken a school record
• Forcing 24 Wentworth turnovers, the Huskies stole the ball away from the Leopards a school record 20 times
• The mark bests the previous record of 19 steals set against Connecticut on Nov. 25, 1996.
MOVING ON UP•
Quincy Ford has improved from 23rd, where he began the season on the Northeastern all-time scoring chart, to 14th place with 1,235 career points.
• Ford has tallied 95 points this season. Up next for Ford is Joel Smith's 1,328 points.
• Walker began the year in 29th place, and with his 125 points this season, currently sits 22nd (recently passing Jonathan Lee (1,161) at Miami) with 1,165 points.
• The duo also finds themselves on the career 3-point field goals list while Ford can be found on the career blocks chart.
CAREER SCORING| No. | Player | Years | Points |
| 13 | Joel Smith | 2009-13 | 1,328 |
| 14 | Quincy Ford | 2011-pres. | 1,235 |
| 15 | Manny Adako | 2006-10 | 1,209 |
| 16 | Anthony Brown | 1991-94 | 1,197 |
| 17 | Ben Harlee | 1990-95 | 1,190 |
| 18 | Kevin McDuffie | 1984-88 | 1,186 |
| 19 | Bennet Davis | 2003-07 | 1,185 |
| 20 | Chip Rucker | 1977-81 | 1,172 |
| 21 | Jack Malvey | 1961-64 | 1,170 |
| 22 | David Walker | 2012-pres. | 1,165 |
CAREER 3-POINT FIELD GOALS MADE| No. | Player | Years | 3FG |
| 4 | Chaisson Allen | 2007-11 | 180 |
| 5 | David Walker | 2012-pres. | 170 |
| 6 | Aaron Davis | 2001-06 | 165 |
| 7 | Marcus Barnes | 2003-05 | 160 |
| 8 | Lamont Hough | 1989-93 | 151 |
| Quincy Ford | 2011-pres. | 151 |
CAREER BLOCKS| No. | Player | Years | Blocks |
| 6 | Steve Carney | 1987-91 | 96 |
| 7 | Quincy Ford | 2011-Pres. | 93 |
| 8 | Dan Callahan | 1990-95 | 91 |
WALKER ON FIRE• Senior
David Walker has been on fire as of late
• He currently ranks second in the conference and 29th in the country with his 20.8 ppg average but his 125 total points top the conference and rank 41st nationally.
• His 39 field goals made, ranks second in the conference and ranks 79th in the nation.
• Walker began the season setting a new career high with 27 points against Boston University in a season opening, overtime victory over the crosstown rivals.
• In his return to his home state of Ohio, Walker could not be stopped.
• Walker averaged 23.3 points over the course of the weekend also collecting 11 rebounds, 11 assists and nine steals while shooting .561 from the field and .450 from behind the arc.
• Walker set a new career high against Lipscomb tallying 30-points, his first 30-point effort and the first for a Husky in nearly eight seasons.
• The senior is currently on a three-game streak of 20-point games after securing 21 points against No. 15/19 Miami using 11-of-12 free throw shooting.
GETTING DEFENSIVE • The game between Harvard and Northeastern will be heavy on the defense.
• NU is 21-3 since the start of the 2012-13 season, and 31-5 since 2011-12, when holding an opponent to 59 or fewer points, including a perfect 9-0 last season.
• Under Coen, the Huskies are 64-20 (.762) when keeping opponents under 60 points.
• Coen's record when holding an opponent under 60
| Year | Record |
| 2006-07 | 6-0 |
| 2007-08 | 10-3 |
| 2008-09 | 13-4 |
| 2009-10 | 13-5 |
| 2010-11 | 0-3 |
| 2011-12 | 9-2 |
| 2012-13 | 6-0 |
| 2013-14 | 6-3 |
| 2014-15 | 9-0 |
| 2015-16 | 1-0 |
| Total | 73-20 (.785) |
TAKING ADVANTAGE OF CHARITY•
David Walker is 30-of-34 on the season from the free-throw line, with an .882 FT percentage which ranks third in the conference and 76th in the country.
• Walker is first in the conference among players to have taken at least 25 free throws on the year and 26th nationally.
• The Huskies, as a team, have taken 154 free throws, fifth in the conference and have capitalized on 98 of them (fourth in the CAA).
• Northeastern has held its opponents to 109 free throw attempts on the year (29 coming against Miami OH alone).
GET THAT OUTTA HERE• Rookie
Anthony Green ranks seventh the conference with six blocks on the season, or 1.2 blocks per game.
•
Zach Stahl has notched five on the season, which ranks 14th in the conference and has recorded at least one block in four consecutive games (Nov. 20-pres.)
THEVERIES• The Huskies lead the CAA in thefts, stealing the ball away from their opponent already 48 times on the season, or 8.0 per game.
•
David Walker leads the way ranking third in the conference with 47th nationally with 13 steals
•
Quincy Ford is second on the team, fifth in the conference and 139th nationall with 10 thefts on the year.
HUSKIES VS. RANKED TEAMS• Northeastern faced an AP ranked team during the regular season for the first time since the 2006-07 season when it took on No. 15 Miami on Nov. 27.
• Northeastern will likely face two AP ranked teams this season when current-No. 3 Michigan State comes to Matthews Arena on Dec. 19.
• Prior to Miami, the last AP ranked team Northeastern faced during the regular season was at No. 19 Connecticut on Dec. 6, 2006, the third ranked team Northeastern faced that season.
• Northeastern did face a ranked team last season when they took on AP No. 11 Notre Dame in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, a 65-69 loss on March 19, 2015.
• The Huskies snapped a 19-game losing streak to AP ranked teams dating back to the 1986 season with their 78-77 win over No. 15 Miami on Friday.
• The last win prior to Northeastern's win over Miami came against the reigning national champions No. 2 Louisville in the Great Alaska Shootout (Nov. 28, 1986), before falling to No. 10 Iowa in the tournament championship.
• The win propelled the Huskies to No. 19 in the AP rankings, the last time Northeastern was ranked in the AP poll.
STARTING OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT• With the win against Lipscomb, NU began the season 4-0 for the second straight year
• The Huskies began the 2014-15 season on a four-game win streak before falling to UMass (11/26)
• This season also marked the first time in program history that both the men's and women's teams have started the season off 3-0
• Northeastern has begun the year 4-0 only eight times in the 96 year history of the program
WALKER EARNS CAA HONORS• After his career performance against Boston University on Friday,
David Walker was named Colonial Athletic Association Co-Player of the Weekon Nov. 16
• The senior guard dropped 27 points on the Terriers, extending his double-digit shooting streak to 13 games and marking the second 20-point game for Walker against Boston University
• Walker recorded NU's first seven points of the overtime period to give the team a five-point advantage forcing BU to call a timeout to regroup
• The honor marked Walker's third CAA Player of the Week nog during his Northeastern career (Nov. 17, 2014, Feb. 23, 2015)
