By Sarah Moomaw, News Staff
While the fall sports’ teams are knee deep in postseason tournaments and hockey is shifting into the middle stretch of the year, the men’s and women’s basketball teams are using preseason accolades to start the season off on the right foot, as the NCAA basketball season tips off tomorrow.
The men’s team, lead by seventh year head coach Bill Coen, will open its home slate against crosstown rivals Boston University tomorrow night. The women will do the same in their home opener on Nov. 20 after a season-opening three-game road trip, starting at Eastern Michigan University on Sunday afternoon.
“I know everybody is excited, the guys are excited to get the season started,” Coen said. “It’s been a great summer of preparation … I’m very happy with the way the guys have been working.”
In preseason Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) polls, both lineups are coming off middle of the pack rankings and hope to finish higher than predicted. The men were picked to finish fifth on preseason ballots casted by CAA coaches. The women earned head coach Daynia La-Force’s highest honors at No. 6.
Additionally, La-Force is looking for her first winning season at Northeastern coming off back-to-back 8-22 runs. The Huskies ended last season with high momentum, finishing 4-2 in down the stretch.
“We’re ready,” La-Force said. “We know exactly what we did to give us that great record and we’re prepared to do those same things.”
In their final game of the season, the George Mason University Patriots put the breaks on the Huskies CAA run, holding them to three points in the last six minutes after being tied at 57 in the 70-60 CAA quarterfinal loss.
It was their last struggle on the road during a season in which they only picked up two wins away from Solomon Court.
“Playing on the road it’s more of a mental game than a physical game and I think if you’re ready to compete, not only against the teams, but also the fans, you have a better chance of winning,” La-Force said. “It’s just about switching your mentality.”
But she’s confident that her five freshmen will mesh well with their returning core led by senior forward Deanna Kerkhof and junior forward/center Jewel Tunstull.
The Huskies’ top two 2011-12 leading scorers were recognized with preseason honors at CAA Media Day in October. Kerkhof was named to the Preseason First-Team All-Conference, and Tunstull was tabbed with Preseason All-Conference Honorable Mention.
Of the recruiting class, forward/guard Sam DeFreese has already made a mark and found a place with her new team.
“She is able to give Jewel some minutes off because she’s able to finish around the rim and she’s picking up the offense real well,” La-Force said.
She also highlighted newcomer forward/guard Tiffany Montagne’s ability outside the arc.
“If we continue everyday to clean up little things, they are going to be ready as a group over all to give us some big minute,” La-Force said.
Similarly, Coen has four freshman that he hopes will help fill the void left on the men’s team by injured senior captain and last season’s leading scorer Jonathan Lee.
“I think they’ve made a great transition,” he said. “Coming in for any freshman, whether they are an athlete or a non-athlete is a challenge … [they are] learning the game of basketball maybe in a different way then they have before, so there’s a lot on their plate but I’m really pleased with their progress and effort every day.”
The university announced that Lee broke his foot on Oct. 19. After surgery to repair the bone, Coen is waiting for his leading scorer’s next evaluation by the medical staff before hinting at a return date. At the time of his injury, Lee was expected to miss the first six weeks of the season.
“We want to make sure he’s healthy when he gets back and he’s ready to go 100 percent,” Coen said.
The Huskies will also be missing freshman forward Kwesi Abakah all season, who’s sidelined with a torn ACL.
The men’s squad returns to the court following a 9-9 CAA season to a shaken conference. Rivaled Virginia Commonwealth University Rams, who ended the Huskies’ season in the CAA tournament two seasons in a row, left the conference effective July 1 for the Atlantic 10.
Coen said one of the most valuable moments this preseason was their seven-game trip through Canada in August, which the Huskies finished at 6-1.
“What we’re finding now, is everyone had a chance to play in Canada which really contributed to building our depth,” he said. “As it turns out, we’re going to need that depth early in the season and have guys play much bigger roles than they anticipated they might until Jon [Lee] gets back. … I think canada is going to be something we’ll look back on that really helped us prepare for the season.”
As for the rest of preseason on Huntington Avenue, Coen is pleased with what he’s seen, but knows that to grab wins this season it’s going to take effort on game day.
“Were going to have to rely on execution and effort. We are going to have to be a team that plays hard, plays smart and plays together,” Coen said. “We’re going to need maximum effort and we’re going to need execution to win basketball games.”
