By Patrick McHugh, News Staff
Tony Shaver sat on the bench with a look of frustration and despair on his face. The William & Mary head coach was learning what many Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) coaches have discovered: Quincy Ford is an opponent’s nightmare.
Ford, the 6-foot-8 freshman forward/guard of the men’s basketball team, was having another standout performance against the Tribe Saturday at Matthews Arena. In one sequence Ford took a feed from junior captain Joel Smith, elevated over two defenders and slammed the ball home with authority. Later, he cut to the basket and used his wingspan to reach around traffic for an easy layup. With William & Mary packing the paint in order to prevent shots near the basket, Ford went to the outside and drilled a three-pointer.
The youngster finished with 13 points on five of 10 shooting and also grabbed 10 rebounds for his first double-double in a Husky uniform. Northeastern won 64-50, the squad’s fifth win in its last six games.
Shaver wasn’t shy about praising NU’s emerging star in the post-game press conference.
“I think he’s unbelievable,” Shaver said. “I mean, I think it’s scary how good he can be. There’s no phase of the game he doesn’t do well. He shoots it, he handles it, he can score inside, and he defends you. I think his future is unlimited.”
The emergence of Ford – the St. Petersburg, Fla., native who turns 19 tomorrow – has been a major reason for Northeastern’s recent success. After modest numbers in his first five college games, the freshman exploded with 16 points in a Dec. 3 loss against Old Dominion and then followed that up with 18 points on eight of 15 shooting attempts at Bradley three days later. Ford has reached double digits in scoring in seven of his past 11 games and is now third on the team in scoring behind only Smith and his junior co-captain Jonathan Lee.
So far, Ford has taken his success in stride.
“I just go out there, play as hard as I can, get out, rest up and just try and do my job,” Ford said after a Jan. 7 victory at James Madison, a game in which he dropped a career-high 20 points. “Whatever coach wants me to do, I do.”
Men’s basketball head coach Bill Coen, said he has been asking his freshman to do more each time he steps on the court, and thus far he has delivered.
“He just keeps getting better and better,” Coen said. “He’s got the versatility that we can move him up and down the lineup. We’ve played him pretty much in four different positions this year, and he’s got the unique ability to beat a point guard on the perimeter defensively, get you 10 rebounds in a game, make threes and handle the ball.”
Though not the tallest player on the team – that would be 6-foot-11 junior forward Dinko Marshavelski – Ford has become the squad’s best rebounder with 5.4 boards per contest. He is also averaging a block and an assist per game while shooting 41.6 percent. Perhaps most impressive has been Ford’s defensive prowess against both quick guards and towering post players.
“When you have somebody with that type of versatility it really helps in your defensive schemes and your offensive schemes,” Coen said. “He’s got a ton of potential. I think he’s just scratching the surface of what he could be. We’re very excited about Quincy.”
Ford is in contention for the CAA’s Rookie of the Year award, handed out annually to the conference’s best newcomer. He was named the league’s Rookie of the Week Dec. 12 after he led Northeastern with 18 points and seven rebounds against Bradley. He ranks fourth in the CAA in scoring amongst freshmen with an average of 10.1 points per game, a number that should continue to rise as he gains more experience.
That’s a scenario opposing coaches and players would rather not think about.
“I’m telling you, [Ford] is frightening for me as a coach in the league,” Shaver said.
