Northeastern Huskies
Record: 23-11, 12-6 Colonial
Head coach: Bill Coen (9th season)
Season summary: Just a year removed from an 11-21 campaign, the Huskies are one of the feel-good stories of this year’s tournament. Northeastern earned the Colonial's automatic bid with its first conference tournament win in program history, thanks to a stellar effort by the tournament’s MVP, Quincy Ford (10.4 PPG, 5.4 RPG). The 6’8" forward poured in 22 points in the championship game and is one of three Huskies in double digits in scoring. He’s joined by senior forward Scott Eatherton (14.6 PPG) and junior guard David Walker (13.4 PPG). Northeastern runs a very efficient offense, ranking 12th in the nation in field goal percentage at 48.6 percent. The last time the Huskies made it to the Big Dance was in 1991, when they were a 16th seed and blown out by North Carolina.
How they make a run: If Eatherton is playing aggressive down low, he’ll require a double-team and free up some of Northeastern’s sharpshooters like Walker and Ford.
How they falter: If Walker and Ford can’t penetrate, the ball becomes stagnant on offense and the Huskies settle for contested jump-shots.
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