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BOSTON - Beginning the second half of Friday night's CAA game with an 11-0 run, the Northeastern women's basketball team built an insurmountable lead against College of Charleston, ringing in its three-game home stand with a 59-37 victory against the Cougars.
 
Jess Genco led the Huskies with 17 points, recording three perimeter makes while also tallying three rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Gabby Giacone followed Genco's game high scoring output with 12 points and six rebounds, while Loren Lassiter hauled in 13 rebounds off the glass.
 
Northeastern (8-8, 3-2 CAA) outperformed College of Charleston (5-11, 1-4 CAA) in nearly all statistical categories, finishing the night +2 in rebounds, +4 in turnovers, and +8 in points in the paint.
 
Tanisha Brown led the Cougars with seven points, six rebounds, and three steals, while five other Charleston players finished with either six or five points as well.
 
GAME TRENDS
 
• Gabby Giacone began the game shooting two-for-two from the floor as Northeastern built an early, 4-0 lead, maintaining it during the period's opening four minutes. Claudia Ortiz upped the Huskies' advantage to 5-0 at the foul line, while Northeastern's defense created five missed shots out of Charleston before the Cougars were able to tally their first layup with 4:39 remaining in the first quarter.
 
• College of Charleston, which entered the night leading in the CAA in 3-point field goal defense (28.7 percent), successfully kept the Huskies without a made 3-pointer during their seven first quarter attempts. Northeastern, which began the day ranked among the top 20 NCAA Division I programs in 3-point field goals per game (9.1), finished with only five 3-point makes, which tie for the fewest NU has registered to date this season (Dec. 1 vs. New Hampshire).
 
• Jess Genco's jumper midway through the second quarter cushioned Northeastern's lead to 18-11, before the Cougars scored during each of their next three possessions, leveling the game at 18-18 prior to the 2:57 media timeout.
 
• Northeastern sent College of Charleston to the foul line during only three instances: once during the first quarter and twice during the fourth quarter. The Huskies collectively shot 10-for-14 from the free throw line, while the Cougars went two-for-six.
 
DECIDING FACTOR
 
Exiting the 2:57 media timeout of the second quarter, Jess Genco drained back-to-back 3-pointers for Northeastern, helping the Huskies break an 18-18 tie by closing the first half on an 8-2 scoring run. With a 26-20 halftime lead in hand, the Huskies blitzed Charleston to the tune of 11 unanswered points to begin the second half as Northeastern took a 37-20 advantage with 6:09 remaining in the third quarter. Shannon Todd and Genco dialed up consecutive 3-pointers again around the two-minute mark of the third quarter, extending the Huskies' lead above 20 points, where it would stay for the majority of the fourth quarter.
 
GAME NOTES
 
• Loren Lassiter recorded her fourth double-digit rebounding game of the 2017-18 campaign, finishing two rebounds shy (13) of her season and career high, 15. Lassiter has now led the Huskies on the glass during three straight games and eight times overall this season.
 
• NU allowed 20 points during the first half, marking the third time during the Huskies' first five CAA games this season that Northeastern has kept its opponent to 21 points or fewer before halftime.
 
• Northeastern held its opponent to under 40 points of offense for the first time since March 10, 2004, when the Huskies limited UMBC to 30 points during the first round of the America East tournament.
 
• The Huskies improved to 5-1 when shooting above 40 percent from the field and 5-0 when keeping their opponent below 35 percent. Northeastern shot 41 percent on Friday, while limiting the Cougars to 31 percent in the same category.
 
UP NEXT
 
Northeastern is off until Friday, Jan. 19, when NU will resume its three-game CAA home stand with a rematch of the 2017 CAA quarterfinals against Drexel. Tipoff between the Huskies and the Dragons is scheduled for 7 p.m.