On Thursday two top teams in the Colonial Athletic Association meet for the first time since last year’s tournament final when Northeastern hosts the College of Charleston. Here’s a look at the matchup.
TV Schedule: Thursday, January 17, 7:00 p.m. ET, check local listings
Arena: Matthews Arena, Boston, Massachusetts
Thursday night is the night that fans of the Northeastern Huskies (9-8, 3-2) have been waiting 10 months for. They welcome the College of Charleston (14-4, 3-2) to town for the first meeting between the two teams since last year’s Colonial Athletic Association tournament final. In that game, the Cougars erased a 17-point deficit in the 2nd half on their way to claiming their first conference title in overtime, leaving Northeastern heartbroken. Coming into the season the two were the odds-on favorites to meet again for the right to go to the NCAA Tournament. Entering the contest both teams sit at 3-2 in the conference, two games behind undefeated Hofstra.
Since losing back-to-back games at the Advocare Invitational to Oklahoma State and LSU in November, Earl Grant’s squad has gone 11-2, including wins over UAB, Memphis, and VCU. The Cougars could easily be 4-1 in the CAA, as they fell to Drexel 79-78 when Troy Harper was fouled on a three-point attempt with one second left. This is the first of a critical two-game road trip for Charleston, as they also travel to face Hofstra on Saturday.
Statistically, Charleston is led by its junior guard Grant Riller who is scoring 21.9 points per game, which is 18th best number in the nation. The 6-3 point man from Orlando also leads the team in assists at 4.3 per game and the reigning MVP of the CAA Tournament averaged 23 points per game during the team’s ten-game winning streak that spanned from Nov. 23-Jan. 3rd. Senior forward Jarrell Brantley is the team’s only other double-digit scorer, pouring in 19.3 points and nabbing over eight rebounds per game.
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While the Cougars don’t score a ton of points, just 73 per game and they don’t rebound the ball particularly well, a couple of things they are good at, shooting the ball and not turning the ball over is what helps make them successful. They shoot 47% from the field which is the 3rd best number in the conference and the 10.5 turnovers they commit is the 13th highest number in the sport.
Bill Coen’s Huskies enter this one with just a 9-8 record, but they have faced stiff competition. After a season-opening loss to Boston University, they took part in the Charleston Classic where they were upset Alabama before being knocked off by Virginia Tech and Davidson twice. The month of December saw the Huskies go 4-3, falling to Syracuse and then Vermont and Delaware by a total of seven points. The new year began with Northeastern losing to Hofstra in heartbreaking fashion at the buzzer 75-72. They have since won two straight over Elon and William & Mary, to get to 3-2.
Even though Northeastern scores just two more points per game than Charleston, 75-73, their offense is deeper than the Cougars. They have three double-digit scorers, led by their backcourt of Vasa Pusica and Jordan Roland each score over 15 points per game and dish out 6.2 assists per game. Another key cog for Northeastern has been junior Donnell Gresham. The diminutive 6-1 Gresham is the team’s leading rebounder, grabbing 5.3 per game, also adds 10.8 points and hands out 4.3 assists.
Elsewhere on the roster, Northeastern has five other players that score five or more points per game and one of those players to keep an eye on is 6-4 Shawn Occeus. The junior has played in just seven games this season due to injuries, but over his last three games, he has averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 47% from the field and could be an integral piece for the Huskies going forward.
Key matchup
The key matchup in this game isn’t a player vs. player aspect but will be Charleston’s 47.2% field-goal shooting facing a Northeastern team that has allowed its opponents to shoot 46.9%, which ranks only in front of Drexel in the conference. The Cougars’ three leading scorers, Riller, Brantley, and sophomore guard Brevin Galloway combine to shoot 51% from the field.
Prediction: The Huskies are hoping to extract some revenge, but unfortunately Charleston shoots the ball well, doesn’t turn the ball over, and has the best player on the floor in Riller. So the Cougars should come away with a road win, by at least eight points.