NORFOLK, VA – From a distance, Saturday night’s 58-42 win over Old Dominion looks like another Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) blowout for the Northeastern men’s basketball team. But for anyone who followed the game from start to finish, it was far from an easy win for the Huskies.
‘ If Northeastern (13-5, 8-1) looked like favorites entering the game against ODU (11-8, 4-5), it was based on record alone. The Huskies had struggled mightily in the state of Virginia during CAA play. They had never won at Old Dominion, George Mason, Virginia Commonwealth or William & Mary; James Madison was the only place where they’d had any success, winning all three contests.
‘ One can directly correlate the lack of success in Virginia with the hostile environments in which NU has had to play. More than 7,500 people packed into the Ted Constant Convocation Center Saturday night, each with the intention of losing their voice before the final horn.
‘ It is extremely hard to come back from a deficit, especially in a hostile environment, which is exactly what Northeastern did. The Monarchs jumped out to a 22-7 lead ‘- the first time NU had trailed by more than 10 points since an 80-48 loss at Memphis on New Year’s Eve. Simply put, the Huskies came out soft. One of the biggest concerns for this NU team was how they would respond to being down early in a game because they had been so dominant during the past month.’ ‘
‘ Northeastern responded with nine unanswered points, and three of those points still have us seeking an answer:’ How the heck did Eugene Spates hit that three? With just a second left on the shot clock, the senior forward chucked a well contested, 35-footer at the basket and it somehow went in. The shot seriously defied physics. I’m still not convinced the shot ever went above the rim, but it somehow went in. Even the Old Dominion fans got a kick out of it at the time. But that miracle shot was the beginning of the end for the Monarchs.
‘ Northeastern got back to its dominant self. Senior forward Matt Smith knocked down another huge three-pointer at the end of the half, proposing another question:’ ‘ Is anyone shooting the ball better than Smith right now? He’s 11-23 from behind the arc against CAA opponents, including a clutch, 11-point performance in the 58-57 win over George Mason last week.
‘ The other Matt joined in on the fun as well. I don’t think there are many, if any, performances by Matt Janning that were better than Saturday night’s. Janning’s 24 points in the dominating effort was 10 shy of his career-high, which he put up last year against Rhode Island in a loss.
The junior guard 8-of-13 from the field, but unfortunately the box score doesn’t measure degree of difficulty. Old Dominion has the third best defense in the league behind Northeastern and George Mason. I don’t know if they could have defended Janning any better. Seriously, he was that good. Janning made shot after shot off the dribble, fading from the basket, with a hand in his face. It was classic ‘oh no he didn’t,’ play after play. Great players take over in games, and Janning simply took over.
‘ Just as Northeastern began its takeover, we saw our second wacky, ‘are you serious’ moment of the game:’ ‘ Upset with the officiating,’ ODU coach Blaine Taylor ran out to the top of the key in the middle of the game (play had stopped, but it was not a timeout). Taylor was immediately hit with a technical foul and stomped toward the tunnel as if he had been ejected from the game (which he should have been, but was not).
‘ It’s not hard to predict what followed:’ ‘ The fans went from annoyed with the officiating to berserk; the style of play got a little chippy and the officials basically lost control. Most road teams, including past Northeastern teams, had trouble keeping their composure in such situations.
The Huskies showed how far they’ve come by winning the game during this crucial stretch. The hostility was unreal, but NU didn’t blink. They continued with the same ‘you don’t know us, but you’ll remember us after we beat you’swagger.
‘ Northeastern gave up 20 points during the final 26 minutes. They held ODU to a season-low in both points (42) and field goal percentage (29.1 percent).’ They basically wore the Monarchs down. As glorious as the win was, it needed to be short lived. That is why Bill Coen and his team have already moved on.
‘ They face Virginia Commonwealth (15-5, 8-1) Tuesday and that one won’t be any easier, but a win would be that much sweeter.
Check out 104.9 FM or at www.wrbbradio.org to hear all the action of your Huskies. Basketball coverage is Tuesday at 8:45 p.m. at VCU and Saturday at 12:45 p.m. against Delaware. Hockey coverage is at UMass Amherst at 6:45 p.m. Friday, and Monday at 7:45 p.m. in the first round of the Beanpot against Boston College.
‘- Tom Giles can be reached’
at [email protected].
