Tournament Central: Northeastern at the 2016 CAA Women's Basketball Championship
When	Quarterfinals (NU Game 30): vs. No. 3 Hofstra  |  Thursday, March 10  |  7:30 p.m. Semifinals (NU Game 31): vs. No. 2 Drexel  |  Friday, March 11  |  4 p.m. Championship (NU Game 32): Saturday, March 12  |  4 p.m.
Where	Upper Marlboro, Md.  |  The Show Place Arena  |  Directions  |  Tickets
Broadcast and stats	Quartefinals (NU Game 30): Stats  |  Video Semifinals (NU Game 31): Stats  |  Video  |  TV: CSN  |  Radio: Heritage Sports Radio Network - Sirius/XM Radio Championship (NU Game 32): Stats  |  Video
CAA Tournament Central	CAA Tournament Central  |  Bracket
Notes	Northeastern (PDF)
Media Guide	2015-16 Northeastern Women's Basketball Media Guide
Social media	Twitter: @GoNUwbasketball Facebook: GoNUwbasketball Instagram: GoNUwbasketball Use #GoNU

BOSTON – Entering the postseason having won seven of its last nine games, the Northeastern women's basketball team, the No. 6 seed in the CAA tournament, is geared up and ready for a quarterfinal clash against No. 3 Hofstra, set for Thursday, March 10, at 7:30 p.m. in Upper Marlboro, Maryland (The Show Place Arena). Not only will the Huskies and the Pride be meeting for the second straight game having squared off during the March 2 regular season finale at Cabot Center, but both programs will be bumping heads in the league quarterfinals for the second time in four seasons (2013).
 
ALL-TIME AGAINST HOFSTRA
 
Hofstra's two victories against Northeastern this season tipped the scale in the all-time series back in favor of the Pride at 20-18. 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 7-16 against Hofstra as a member of the CAA. The Huskies' last victory against the Pride came eight games ago in the all-time series on March 6, 2013, when NU scooted by Hofstra, 88-81, at Cabot Center.
 
POSTSEASON AGAINST THE PRIDE
 
Although the Huskies and the Pride have met 38 prior times dating back to the 1993-94 season, the two programs have only met once during the postseason. In the 2013 CAA quarterfinals, No. 4 Northeastern lost to No. 5 Hofstra, 57-52, despite being backed by Jewel Tunstull's 12 points and 17 rebounds. Then-freshmen Tiffany Montagne and Kazzidy Stewart are the only two active Huskies to have played during that tournament game.
 
ALL-TIME IN THE CAA TOURNAMENT
 
This year marks the seventh time in 11 seasons that Northeastern has advanced as far as the CAA quarterfinals. It is also the third time in four seasons that NU has received an automatic placement in the quarterfinal round. NU is 4-10 all-time in the CAA tournament and enters Thursday's tournament game with eyes on its first semifinal appearance during its tenure in the conference. The Huskies' No. 6 seed is also tied for the second highest seed Northeastern has earned since joining the league (No. 4, 2013).
 
AGAINST THE 2016 TOURNEY FIELD
 
Northeastern clinched a spot in the 2016 CAA quarterfinals on Feb. 28 with an 81-63 win against Towson. This season, NU has defeated seven of its nine CAA opponents at least once, with the exception of Hofstra and James Madison.
 
PASS THE BUTTER, NU IS ON A ROLL
 
Since Feb. 5, the Huskies have won seven of their last nine games. Northeastern's six-game winning streak from Feb. 12 to Feb. 28 was the longest NU had enjoyed since the 2007-08 season, when the Huskies won seven straight games, including their first CAA tournament game of that season. This year's streak was the 13th in program history that reached six wins or more. 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 eight more CAA wins. Cole's turnaround ranks in a tie 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
UNC Asheville	9-22	23-6	+14
UTEP	12-16	25-3	+13
Georgetown	4-27	16-13	+12
Manhattan	3-27	15-16	+12
Santa Clara	11-18	23-8	+12
Northeastern	4-25	14-15	+10
Five teams	--	--	+10

  
FIVE HUSKIES EARN CAA AWARDS
 
Headlined by Samantha DeFreese's All-CAA First Team selection, five Northeastern student-athletes received CAA women's basketball postseason awards. Jess Genco and Gabby Giacone both landed on the CAA All-Rookie Team, becoming the first NU freshman pair to earn simultaneous selections since Machanda Meredith and Betsy Palacek in 1994-95. Francesca Sally and Loren Lassiter were both named to the CAA All-Academic Team as well.
 
HUSKIES RAKING IN WEEKLY AWARDS
 
Northeastern is one of only three schools in the CAA this year (James Madison, William & Mary) that 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 the postseason with 126 assists which ranks as the seventh best single-season total in program history (10 assists shy of tying fourth place).
 

Rank	Player	Season	Assists
4.	Shaleyse Smallwood	2007-08	136
5.	Amy Malinaric	1988-89	129
	Jamie Conroy	2012-13	129
7.	Jess Genco	2015-16	126

 
DRIVING WITH 4 40 AC
 
The Huskies were cruising with the windows down during their 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 9-2 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 the 2016 CAA tournament, Samantha DeFreese is 16th on Northeastern's all-time scoring list (1,116 career points) and 22 points away from tying Deanna Kerkhof (2009-13) for 15th in scoring. With 683 career rebounds, DeFreese is also in sole possession of sixth place in program history.
 
FINDING THE PERFECT BALANCE
 
NU observed at least four players reach double figures during each of the Huskies' six wins during their winning streak. Northeastern has also witnessed at least five players score eight points or more during five of the Huskies' last six games. Two weeks ago, 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 9, freshman Jess Genco leads all Division I freshmen in minutes per game with an average court time of 38.9 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 notched her first double-double of the season (10 points, 11 rebounds) on Feb. 28 against Towson, and has scored at least eight points during seven of her last nine games. She powered home a season high, 19 points, on seven-of-10 shooting against College of Charleston on Feb. 26.