Saturday’s 70-66 win over Providence College was the first victory for Northeastern over a BCS opponent under coach Bill Coen, but don’t call it an upset.
Sure, Providence was picked 10th in the Big East, a conference that could send 10 teams to the NCAA tournament in March, likely including the Friars. Yeah, they returned all but one impact player, including all five starters. And maybe they were the favorite before the game, posting an 8-1 record all-time against the Huskies and a 71-10 mark in season openers. But don’t call Northeastern’s win an upset.
NU struggled with Michigan last Wednesday, losing by 20 points in Ann Arbor in a game that seemed very winnable. The Huskies shot a miserable 29 percent and struggled against a 1-3-1 zone defense from start to finish. They looked overmatched and even frazzled at times. But when all is said and done, that 76-56 loss to the Wolverines might end up as the most disappointing loss of the season.
Going into Saturday’s game, it looked as if the expectations bestowed upon the Huskies might have been too high. But the men’s basketball team responded with its best effort in three years. Its defense was suffocating, holding Providence to 40 percent from the field, and 24 percent from three-point land. Just about every player sporting a red jersey hit the floor at one time or another, diving after loose balls. Eugene Spates scored 17 points and hit five treys, but it was his hustle that garnered the highest praise from Coen.
“The biggest play Eugene made was when he dove on the floor on an out-of-bounds play, and until that point Providence was really manhandling us on the backboards and he made a hustle play where he was guarding the in-bounder and dove right on the ball and got a jump ball out of it, and it kind of ignited us and gave us a little backbone,” Coen said.
Backbone is a term used in sports to describe one’s strength of character. No one can question the backbone of this team after their performance against the Friars. Even after Providence erased an 11-point second half deficit to tie the game, Northeastern responded with three-pointers on two separate occasions from Baptiste Bataille and Matt Janning to reclaim the lead. These shots have been absent from the Huskies arsenal in years past and have cost them that signature win over non-conference opponents.
Let’s not forget about the hostile environment in which the win came. Eight thousand Providence faithfuls, which included a packed and rowdy student section, did everything to try to will their team to a win. But Northeastern kept its composure and did not fold. The Huskies hit clutch free-throws down the stretch and made the plays they needed to under pressure.
Good teams rely on strong defense, great hustle, timely scoring and composure. Northeastern exhibited all of the above on Saturday. The Huskies are a good team, and now that they have a signature win over a big-name school, they have the experience to prevail in similar situations. They still have games at South Florida (Big East), Indiana (Big Ten), and Memphis (a national finalist last April). Don’t be surprised if they win any of those games. They possess the talent, work-ethic and experience to do so.
Good teams also win games they are supposed to. Saturday’s home-opener against Holy Cross won’t be a push-over. But when you see this team at Matthews Arena Saturday night, you’ll understand how good the Huskies have become. You’ll understand why their win over Providence wasn’t an upset.
Check out 104.9 FM or www.wrbbsports.com to hear all the action of your Huskies. Basketball coverage is Saturday at 6:45 p.m. against Holy Cross. Hockey coverage is Friday at 6:45 p.m. against New Hampshire and Saturday at 6:45 p.m. at UMass-Lowell.
– Tom Giles can be reached
