Game-day Information: Game 10 vs. Canisius
When	Monday, Dec. 21  |  2 p.m.
Where	Boston, Mass.  |  Cabot Center  |  Directions
Broadcast and stats	Stats  |  Video  |  Audio
Notes	Northeastern (PDF)
Media Guide	2015-16 Northeastern Women's Basketball Media Guide
Social media	Twitter: @GoNUwbasketball Facebook: GoNUwbasketball Instagram: GoNUwbasketball Use #GoNU

BOSTON – Beginning the second half of a six-game home stand, the Northeastern women's basketball team will make its return to Cabot Center on Monday, Dec. 21, as the Huskies take the floor against Canisius in a 2 p.m. non-conference tilt. NU is 1-1 this season against MAAC opponents and looks to bounce back from consecutive losses to Quinnipiac and No. 24/22 Michigan State.
 
ALL-TIME AGAINST CANISIUS
 
Monday's meeting between the Huskies and Golden Griffins will be the sixth in the all-time series, with Canisius sporting a 4-1 advantage during the first five matchups. Northeastern's only victory against the Golden Griffins came during the Huskies' first year in the CAA, when NU won a three-point contest, 80-77, in Buffalo, New York, on Dec. 20, 2005. The two programs will also be facing each other for the first time in nine seasons (Nov. 24, 2006).
 
COLE AGAINST THE MAAC
 
In her second season as head coach of Northeastern, Kelly Cole is 2-1 against MAAC programs, having led the Huskies to wins against Marist (Nov. 22, 2014) and Siena (Nov. 15, 2015). Canisius will be the fourth team that Cole has squared off against out of the MAAC.
 
TAKING A BITE OUT OF THE APPLE
 
During the last two seasons, Northeastern is 3-0 in non-conference games against New York schools. Considering the 2014-15 and 2015-16 campaigns, the Huskies have earned non-league victories against Marist (58-51), Albany (70-67), and Siena (70-67).
 
DEFREESE NAVIDAD
 
Senior co-captain Samantha DeFreese is on pace to become the Huskies' next 1,000-point scorer. Entering Monday's game against Canisius, DeFreese has amassed 884 career points and needs 116 to reach the four-digit milestone. If the Bergenfield, New Jersey, native were to maintain her 16.4 points per game average as the season continues, she would need just eight games to achieve the feat.
 
SALLY SCORES 14 AGAINST SPARTY
 
Junior center Francesca Sally dropped a season high, 14 points, against No. 24/22 Michigan State during the first game of the Northeastern Winter Showdown on Dec. 18. Sally scored 10 of her 14 points during the second half, knocking down four of her eight field-goal attempts in the third and fourth quarters. The Denver, Colorado, native has three 10-point scoring games this season and is second on the team with 5.9 rebounds per game.
 
HUSKIES PLAY NO. 24/22 MSU IN SHOWDOWN
 
Playing its first game in Matthews Arena since Nov. 13, 2013, Northeastern ran into a strong rebounding team in No. 24/22 Michigan State as the Spartans topped the Huskies, 77-51, to take the opening game of the Northeastern Winter Showdown. Francesca Sally led NU with 14 points, three rebounds, and two assists, while Samantha DeFreese shot 50 percent (four-of-eight) en route to 11 points and two rebounds. Te'Erica Eason stepped up for the Huskies off the bench with seven points, while Tiffany Montagne hit two 3-pointers, ending the game with six points.
 
NU AGAINST BIG TEN RANKED TEAMS
 
The Huskies' Dec. 18 Winter Showdown game against No. 24/22 Michigan State marks the second straight year in which NU has played a ranked team out of the Big Ten conference. During the 2014-15 campaign, Northeastern lost a 74-60 game at No. 22/24 Rutgers.
 
NORTHEASTERN'S STATISTICAL RANKINGS
 
Samantha DeFreese is ranked first in the CAA and 35th in the nation in field-goal percentage (57.4 percent), third in scoring (16.4 points per game), and seventh in free-throw percentage (81.6 percent). With a minutes per game average of 38.1, freshman Jess Genco is ranked first in the CAA and sixth in the nation. 

SEASON SNAPSHOT 

Here is a quick look at some of Northeastern's early season highlights during the 2015-16 season:
 

Date & Result	Game Headlines
Nov. 13 W, 77-44 vs. Boston University	The Huskies' 33-point victory (W, 77-44) against Boston University is the largest in 74 all-time meetings between the two schools.
Nov. 15 W, 70-67 at Siena	NU outscores Siena, 24-14, during the third quarter to earn a three-point road win, 70-67.
Nov. 19 W, 60-49 vs. UMES	Northeastern tallies 32 bench points, led by Gabriella Giacone's 14, as NU starts 3-0 for the first time since 1982-83.
Nov. 27 L, 56-69 vs. Missouri	Samantha DeFreese, Jess Genco, and Gabriella Giacone each reach double-figures but Missouri (6-0) wins the battle between two unbeaten teams at the St. Mary's Classic (Moraga, Calif.).
Nov. 28 L, 55-69 vs. Fresno State	Zoe Zwerling drains two 3-pointers on her way to career best, 11 points in St. Mary's Classic finale against Fresno State.
Dec. 2 W, 66-54 vs. New Hampshire	Samantha DeFreese (29 points) and Jess Genco (21) notch career highs in win at New Hampshire.
Dec. 4 W, 56-44 vs. Maine	NU outscores Maine, 34-17, during the second and third quarters to earn come-from-behind victory.
Dec. 9 L, 60-71 vs. Quinnipiac	Northeastern outrebounds Quinnipiac but cannot shake the Bobcats in a 71-60 loss.
Dec. 18 L, 51-77 vs. No. 24/22 Michigan State	A crowd of more than 1,800 fans fills Matthews Arena to see NU square off against No. 24/22 Michigan State during the first game of the Northeastern Winter Showdown.

THAT MAGIC (THIRD) QUARTER
 
During the third quarter, Northeastern has outscored five of its nine opponents this year, including four opponents by margins of 10 or more points. Here is a look at some of the Huskies' third-quarter trouncings this season:
 

Date	Opponent	Third-quarter Score	Margin
Nov. 13, 2015	Boston University	23-9	+14
Nov. 15, 2015	Siena	24-14	+10
Nov. 27, 2015	Missouri	17-16	+1
Dec. 2, 2015	New Hampshire	19-7	+12
Dec. 4, 2015	Maine	23-8	+15

A SHOOTING DISPLAY FOR THE AGES
 
On Dec. 2 against New Hampshire, DeFreese knocked down 12 of her 14 field-goal attempts from the floor en route to 29 points and eight rebounds. DeFreese's shooting clip of 85.7 percent that evening is tied for the ninth best single-game, field-goal percentage in Northeastern program history. Tesha Tinsley was the last NU player to shoot 85.7 percent (12-of-14) from the field, having done so on Feb. 19, 1999 against Hartford. DeFreese went on to shoot 11-of-14 on Dec. 4 against Maine, finishing the week with an 82.1 percent field-goal percentage (23-of-28).

DETERMINING FACTORS

NU is 5-0 this season when leading after three quarters. The Huskies have also overcome halftime deficits to win during two games this season (Siena, Maine). Northeastern is also 5-0 this season when not trailing its opponents in points in the paint.