Northeastern Advances To Its First NCAA Tournament In 24 Years
By Gregory Hunt
For the first time since 1991, the Northeastern Huskies are advancing to the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, thanks to a 72-61 victory over the William & Mary Tribe in the finals of the CAA Tournament Monday. The conference tournament's Most Outstanding Player, junior forward Quincy Ford, scored 22 points to lead the Huskies. The win came in front of a crowd of 5,721 at Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.
"These guys were on a mission this weekend, and they weren’t going to be denied,” said Northeastern head coach Bill Coen. "We came in here and said if we didn’t stop believing and we stuck together, we could accomplish great things."
The Huskies never trailed in the game and led the Tribe by as many as 22 points. Northeastern shot a blistering 59.1 percent from the field (26-of-44), including a red-hot 60 percent from the three-point line (12-of-20). Twelve three-pointers was a season-high for Northeastern. William & Mary was held to only 38.3 percent from the field (23-of-60).
"We faced a great team, came out and battled,” said Ford. "They rattled us a little bit, but we stuck together and finished strong."
Junior guard David Walker scored 15 points, junior guard Caleb Donnelly scored 13 and senior forward Scott Eatherton added 12. Versatile junior guard Zach Stahl chipped in five points along with five assists and 10 rebounds. Walker and Eatherton joined Ford on the CAA All-Tournament Team. For Walker, it was his 11th consecutive game scoring in double figures.
Northeastern (12-6 CCA, 23-11 overall) finished the regular season in a four-way tie for first place in the CAA with William & Mary, James Madison and UNC Wilmington, but tiebreakers gave William & Mary the No. 1 seed while Northeastern settled for the No. 3 seed. Northeastern defeated No. 6 Delaware and No. 2 UNC Wilmington to reach the championship game, while William & Mary defeated No. 8 Elon and No. 5 Hofstra. Both of William & Mary's victories were earned in overtime.
"I’m not sure I thought we were ready to play," said William & Mary senior guard Marcus Thornton. "Everyone was tired, but (the Huskies) played a game (Saturday), too, so I’m not going to sit here and say that’s why we started out that way."
This is Northeastern's first conference tournament championship since joining the Colonial Athletic Association in 2005. The Huskies did advance to the tournament finals in 2013, but lost to James Madison 70-57. Northeastern's previous conference tournament championship came in 1991, when the Huskies defeated Maine 57-46 to win the America East Tournament. That Huskies team was defeated by North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA Tournament 101-66.
The Huskies will be going to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time in school history. They will find out their first-round opponent when the NCAA selection committee announces the tournament field on Sunday, March 15. The selection show will be seen on CBS.
"There’s nothing like that experience. There’s nothing like Selection Sunday," said Coen. "It’s the culmination of a lot of years of hard work and dedication. I’m so excited to share that experience with our team, and they’ve earned that experience."
Gregory Hunt is a Boston native and a life-long fan of the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics. He's also particularly fond of lacrosse, IndyCar racing and women's college basketball. He currently works for Examiner.com where he serves as the Senior Manager of Content and Media Access. He also writes for Examiner.com as the New England Patriots Examiner. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
