BOSTON – In the midst of a six-game winning streak, the longest in eight seasons, the Northeastern women's basketball team will honor the five members of its senior class during Senior Night at Cabot Center on Wednesday, March 2, as the Huskies host Hofstra in the 7 p.m. regular-season finale. Prior to the game, Northeastern will honor the careers of
Samantha DeFreese,
Kazzidy Stewart,
Tiffany Montagne,
Sade Iriah, and
Onia Webb.
In addition to Wednesday's Senior Night festivities, NU will be holding White Ribbon Night, raising awareness towards eliminating men's violence against women by fostering a positive image of masculinity. For more information, please visit the homepage of Jane Doe Inc. at janedoe.org.
ALL-TIME AGAINST HOFSTRA Hofstra's 75-50 home victory against Northeastern on Dec. 22 tipped the scale in the all-time series back in favor of the Pride at 19-18. Although the Huskies went 11-4 against the Pride during the two teams' tenure in the America East conference and its predecessor, the North Atlantic Conference, NU is just 7-15 against Hofstra as a member of the CAA. The Huskies' last victory against the Pride came seven games ago on March 6, 2013, when NU scooted by Hofstra, 88-81, at Cabot.
AWAITING THE CAA TOURNEY DRAW While Northeastern clinched a spot in the 2016 CAA quarterfinals on Feb. 28 with an 81-63 win against Towson, the Huskies' first postseason opponent remains up in the air. Entering the final day of the regular season, the second- through sixth-place teams in the conference are separated by just three games in the standings. This season, NU has defeated four of those five teams at least once, with the exception of Hofstra. If the Huskies and Pride were to meet in the 2016 CAA quarterfinals, it would mark the first time the two teams have squared off in the postseason since the 2013 league quarterfinals, when No. 5 Hofstra topped No. 4 Northeastern, 57-52.
PASS THE BUTTER, NU IS ON A ROLL Northeastern's active six-game winning streak is the longest NU has enjoyed since the 2007-08 season, when the Huskies won seven straight games, including their first CAA tournament game. This year's streak is the 13th in program history that has reached six wins or more, while seven of the previous 12 streaks have reached an impressive, seventh consecutive victory. Considering regular season streaks only, the Huskies last won seven in a row during the 1993-94 campaign. Northeastern's longest winning streak in program history is nine games, set during the Huskies' run to the NCAA tournament in 1998-99.
TURNING THE TABLES In her second season as head coach,
Kelly Cole has guided the Huskies to 10 more victories than her first year, including seven more CAA wins. Cole's turnaround ranks as the sixth best in the nation. Here is a look at the top Division I turnarounds this season:
| Teams | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | Turnaround |
| UTEP | 12-16 | 25-2 | +13 |
| Georgetown | 4-27 | 16-12 | +12 |
| UNC Asheville | 9-22 | 21-6 | +12 |
| Manhattan | 3-27 | 14-15 | +11 |
| Santa Clara | 11-18 | 22-7 | +11 |
| Northeastern | 4-25 | 14-14 | +10 |
HUSKIES RAKING IN WEEKLY AWARDS Northeastern is one of only three schools in the CAA this year (James Madison, William & Mary) that has had four different players receive a weekly award by the conference. Sophomore shooting guard
Claudia Ortiz became the Huskies' fourth player, collecting her first ever CAA Player of the Week accolade on Feb. 22. She notched the first and second double-doubles of her career the week before, posting identical score lines of 11 points and a career high, 10 rebounds. She joined
Samantha DeFreese (two-time Player),
Jess Genco (three-time Rookie), and
Gabby Giacone (Rookie) as the Huskies' weekly winners this season.
GENCO SETS FRESHMAN ASSIST RECORD On Feb. 21 against UNCW, rookie
Jess Genco broke the Northeastern freshman assist record, set previously at 97 by Jody Burrows during the 2003-04 season. Genco registered her record-breaking 98th assist during the Huskies' very first basket of the game, a 3-pointer by senior
Kazzidy Stewart. The freshman point guard enters Wednesday's game with 114 assists which ranks as the 10th best single-season total in program history (eight assists shy of tying ninth place).
| Rank | Player | Season | Assists |
| 7. | Desiree Clagon | 1984-85 | 125 |
| 8. | Tesha Tinsley | 1999-00 | 123 |
| 9. | Tesha Tinsley | 1997-98 | 122 |
| 10. | Jess Genco | 2015-16 | 113 |
DRIVING WITH 4 40 AC The Huskies have been cruising with the windows down during their active six-game winning streak, shooting greater than 40 percent from the field during each victory, including a season high, 51.7 percent, on Feb. 28 against Towson. NU is 12-2 this year when exceeding 40 percent from the floor and 9-1 when knocking down at least 25 field goals.
THE FIELD GOAL IS GOOD Northeastern's 32 field goal makes against College of Charleston on Feb. 26 are the most the Huskies have made in a single game since Dec. 21, 2013, when NU made 36 in a 95-76 win against Massachusetts. Here is a look at Northeastern's top shooting performances by number of made field goals:
| Date | Opponent (site) | Result | FGs Made | FG Pct. |
| Feb. 26 | College of Charleston (H) | W, 78-66 | 32 | 50.8 |
| Feb. 28 | Towson (A) | W, 81-63 | 31 | 51.7 |
| Nov. 13 | Boston University (A) | W, 77-44 | 30 | 45.5 |
| Nov. 15 | Siena (A) | W, 70-67 | 28 | 40.0 |
| Dec. 2 | New Hampshire (A) | W, 66-54 | 27 | 46.6 |
| Feb. 12 | UNCW (A) | W, 72-66 | 27 | 40.9 |
NU TO PLAY NEXT SEASON IN MEXICO On Feb. 10, Northeastern was one of 10 schools selected to compete next season in the 2016 Women's Cancun Challenge, to be held at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico. The Huskies will be paired in the tournament's Mayan Division and will play three round-robin games against Stanford, Purdue, and Wichita State between Nov. 24 and Nov. 26. NU will be playing outside of the contiguous United States for the first time in program history.
DEFREESE JOINS 1,000-POINT CLUB Senior
Samantha DeFreese scored her 1,000th career point at home on Feb. 7 against James Madison. The milestone came with 4:28 remaining in the third quarter, when DeFreese was fouled while making a layup in the paint. She completed the three-point play at the line following the media timeout, bringing NU level with JMU at 36-36. DeFreese is the 19th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark.
DEFREESE ON THE NU ALL-TIME CHARTS Entering Wednesday afternoon's game against Hofstra,
Samantha DeFreese is 16th on Northeastern's all-time scoring list (1,102 career points) and 36 points away from tying Deanna Kerkhof (2009-13) for 15th in scoring. With 679 career rebounds, DeFreese is also in sole possession of sixth place in program history.
FINDING THE PERFECT BALANCE NU has observed at least four players reach double figures during each of the Huskies' last six games (all victories). Northeastern has also witnessed at least five players score eight points or more during each of the Huskies' last five games. Last weekend, the Huskies set consecutive season highs in scoring, piling on 78 points against College of Charleston (Feb. 26) before breaking the 80-point threshold with 81 against Towson (Feb. 28).
THAT MAGIC (THIRD) QUARTER Northeastern has outscored seven opponents this season by 10 points or more during the third quarter. Here is a look at some of the Huskies' best third-quarter performances this year:
| Date | Opponent (site) | Score | Margin |
| Dec. 4 | Maine (H) | 23-8 | +15 |
| Nov. 13 | Boston University (A) | 23-9 | +14 |
| Feb. 28 | Towson (A) | 21-7 | +14 |
| Feb. 21 | UNCW (H) | 23-10 | +13 |
| Feb. 12 | UNCW (A) | 19-6 | +13 |
| Dec. 2 | New Hampshire (A) | 19-7 | +12 |
| Nov. 15 | Siena (A) | 24-14 | +10 |
GENCO LEADS NCAA ROOKIES IN MINUTES As of March 1, freshman
Jess Genco leads all Division I freshmen in minutes per game with an average court time of 38.8 minutes per game. Genco is ranked second in the nation in the same category among all Division I student-athletes, trailing only Hampton's Malia Tate-DeFreitas (39.2 minutes per game).
SALLY MAKING WAVES OFF THE BENCH Northeastern has seen great bench minutes of late by junior center
Francesca Sally. Sally enters Wednesday's game coming off her first double-double of the season (10 points, 11 rebounds), and has scored at least eight points during six of her last eight games. She powered home a season high, 19 points, on seven-of-10 shooting against College of Charleston on Feb. 26.
