Despite a career-high 32 points from junior guard Rashad King and some stand-out moments from junior guard Harold Woods, Northeastern men’s basketball (13-12, 5-7 CAA) fell to the Hampton Pirates (12-13, 4-8 CAA) 75-84 in a tough loss at home Feb. 8.
The Huskies won 70-62 at their previous road matchup against the Pirates on Jan. 30, but they couldn’t seem to bring that same heat to Matthews Arena.
“It was defense,” head coach Bill Coen said when asked about the difference between the two matchups. “The best opportunities are when you get defensive stops, rebounds, or steals. We got none of those today.”
Riddled with fouls, the first half had Hampton leading 9-2 less than four minutes in, and the Huskies just couldn’t seem to muster up much of a defensive front throughout the rest of the game.
The general lag of the Huskies defense allowed the Pirates to walk away from the matchup with eight offensive rebounds, doubling that of the Huskies.
“One of our goals is to get three stops in a row. Generally when you do that, you’re gonna score some points,” Coen said. “We didn’t get three stops in a row all afternoon, so if you don’t do that, you just end up trading baskets, and when you’re playing from behind that’s not a good format.”
A series of much-needed layups from junior guard LA Pratt provided some hope for the Huskies in the waning minutes of the first half, allowing the Huskies to bring the deficit up and end the half trailing the Pirates by five points at 35-40.
Hope for the second half came in the form of sophomore guard JB Frankel, who sunk a three-pointer less than one minute in.
However, the Pirates kept the Huskies at bay. Northeastern has a history of second half comebacks this season, but Hampton seemed prepared, refusing to let the Huskies get close to a lead.
“We really didn’t string together many solid defensive possessions until sometime in the second half. When you allow a team to get comfortable like that, that’s who you’re chasing from behind for the rest of the day. Just a missed opportunity here back in Matthews,” said Coen.
Despite the unfortunate result of the matchup, King wasn’t going to let the Huskies go down without a fight.
The junior guard secured a career-high 32 points in Saturday’s game, surpassing his previous high of 28 points, which he achieved just one game prior during the Huskies’ win at Hofstra Feb. 6.
“He’s just having an outstanding year,” Coen said of King. “I feel badly we couldn’t get him some support today.”
The players may have struggled to capitalize due the absences of two key players from the court, as both junior guard Masai Troutman and junior forward Youri Fritz are currently injured.
“They certainly would have helped today. Both of those guys have high motors, they give us some depth and versatility both on our front line and our backboard,” said Coen.
Despite some valiant attempts on the offensive front, Northeastern generally struggled to solidify a defensive effort, which ultimately what led to the disappointing loss to Hampton.
The Huskies are back in Matthews to take on the Campbell Fighting Camels (13-11, 8-3 CAA) at 7 p.m. Feb. 13.
