By: Patrick McHugh, News Staff
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Emotions ran high inside the visiting locker room of the Justice Center Saturday afternoon. After a disappointing first half plagued with turnovers and fouls, the Northeastern men’s basketball team found itself trailing the University of North Carolina Asheville 44-27 at halftime, and the Huskies’ players and coaches were not pleased.
“We all were just getting on each other because we know how good we can play,” sophomore guard Jon Lee said. “We beat the number one team in the conference [Virginia Commonwealth] and then we turn around and play a game like this, flat with no energy. We’re an energy team and that’s how we play. We knew we had to turn it up like four notches just to even get back in the game.”
Northeastern turned up the energy in a big way in the second half, erasing a 19-point deficit and holding on for an 83-82 victory over the Bulldogs.
The win improves the Huskies to 10-18 overall.
Saturday’s contest against Big South Conference member Asheville was part of ESPN Bracketbusters weekend presented by Sears. Bracketbusters, now in its ninth season, is a weekend in which schools from opposing mid-major conferences are matched based on similar records and perceived skill levels. NU is now 4-2 all-time in Bracketbusters games.
The visiting Huskies looked lethargic and unfocused in the opening 20 minutes of play, committing 12 turnovers and 10 fouls while falling behind from the opening tip-off. The team shot only 8-of-21 from the floor in the opening period and had four players with at least two personal fouls each.
Asheville took advantage of the Huskies’ sloppy play and pushed the ball in transition for easy shot opportunities. The Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the floor, with most baskets coming off open looks.
“I thought they [Asheville] were so much more the aggressor in the first half,” Huskies head coach Bill Coen said. “They were stepping in passing lanes, really pushing the tempo on us. I think we had 12 turnovers, really mishandled the ball because of their aggression and their ball pressure.”
A refocused and re-energized Northeastern team emerged from halftime and swung momentum in its favor. A 9-0 run cut the lead to 55-48 with 12:44 remaining and Lee took over from there, scoring 21 of his career-high 25 points in the second half to give the NU offense life.
“I think that was our whole team’s focus, just to start being more aggressive,” Lee said. “Basically the key was to get deep into the paint and then kick out, and that’s what we started doing in the second half.”
Forced to play with a smaller lineup because of foul trouble with its starting forwards (sophomore Kauri Black and freshman Ryan Pierson), the Huskies found success using a four-guard lineup for most of the second half.
“Our goal was to get into the paint off the dribble, but then make two passes coming out of it, and we thought we’d get some open, feet-set threes,” Coen said.
The strategy paid dividends as Northeastern went 6-of-12 from long distance in the second half. The visitors finally took their first lead of the game when senior guard Chaisson Allen connected on a free throw to make it 79-78 with 42 seconds remaining.
Both teams traded free throws until Asheville had the ball back for the final possession, trailing by three. After a three-pointer by junior guard J.P. Primm fell off the mark, junior guard Chris Stephenson collected the rebound near the top of the key and quickly fired a shot toward the basket prior to the final buzzer. The shot was good, but Stephenson’s feet were on the three-point line, so the shot only counted for two points, making the final score 83-82 in favor of Northeastern.
Lee was joined in double-figures by Allen, who had 24, and sophomore guard Joel Smith, who had 18. No bench players recorded a point for the visitors, who shot 85.7 percent (30-of-35) from the free throw line.
Three players reached double-digits for Asheville, led by junior guard Matt Dickey, who had 25.
The Huskies will get back to Colonial Athletic Association play Thursday when they take on George Mason in Fairfax, Va. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Patriot Center.
Coen said he hopes Saturday’s emotional comeback will translate to the next contest.
“I think it’s a confidence booster,” he said. “We’ve played stretches and we’ve had struggles finishing games. Today was almost the exact opposite. In a lot of our losses we’ve had huge second half leads and kind of gave it away. This time we came back and it’s a lot better feeling in that locker room.”
