What happened?

Joel Smith drilled a three-pointer 27 seconds into the contest, setting the tone for what would be a career-best day for the junior captain. Smith knocked down his first three long distance tries in the game’s opening four minutes, helping push the Huskies to a quick 16-7 lead. The hot shooting display seemed to stun St. John’s, who turned the ball over six times in the next six minutes, allowing the visitors to push the advantage to as many as 12. The visitors employed a zone defense, and the Red Storm could not take advantage of the shooting opportunities, going 1 of 6 from beyond the arc in the first half. Despite the sluggish start, St. John’s used a 17-7 run to close the deficit to two points at halftime.

Better ball movement and shot selection allowed the Red Storm to continue the late momentum from the first half and grab their first lead at the 17:50 mark of the second half. Northeastern immediately responded, hitting the glass and taking control of the rebounding battle. Quincy Ford, Kashief Edwards, Kauri Black and Reggie Spencer all got in on the act, creating second, third, and even fourth shot opportunities for the visitors. As a result of the offensive rebounds St. John’s was continually caught out of position, allowing for Smith to get open for more long distance tries. Smith again delivered for his team, burying three treys in another four minute span. The hosts rallied to get within four, until the Huskies ran off 11 consecutive points to build a 70-55 lead with 4:24 to go, the largest of the game. From there NU made good on 8 of 11 free throws to pull out the 78-64 win.

Player of the Game:

No debate here. With a career-high 29 points, 21 coming on three-pointers, Smith stole the show from the opening tip-off. His prowess from beyond the arc allowed Northeastern to jump out to a quick lead and forced St. John’s to play catch up all afternoon. The seven threes and 10 field goals were also career-highs for Smith, who entered Saturday’s contest having only connected on 9 of 27 field goal attempts through the season’s first three games.

It was immediately apparent that Smith took the floor determined to become a more focal part of the Huskies offensive attack. His teammates looked for him early, setting screens and running plays that allowed him to shake from his defender for some open looks. Smith wasted no time, squaring to shoot once he received a pass and looking confident with each attempt. For the first time this year, Smith looked like the player who averaged double figures in 11 straight games a season ago.

Smith joined impressive company with his three point barrage. It was the most three pointers hit by a Northeastern player since NBA champion Jose Juan Barea hit seven against Maine on Feb. 26, 2004.

Hot shooting aside, Smith made his impact in other aspects of play. He led his team with 10 rebounds, dished out three assists and tied a career-high with three steals in 38 minutes of play. The 6-foot-4 guard looked locked in all game, hustling around the court for loose balls and barking directions and words of encouragement to teammates. It’s no stretch to say this was Smith’s best game in a Northeastern uniform.

The Takeaway:

Lots to take away in this one, and nearly all of it good for NU. First, it was nice to see Smith make an offensive impact that had been missing up to that point. In the Huskies’ 64-57 victory over Southern Illinois on Homecoming, Smith tallied only five points, his lowest output in nearly a year. While scoring certainly isn’t the only measure of a player’s contribution to his team, it will be important for Smith to contribute at least 10 to 15 points per game.

Jonathan Lee finished second on the team in scoring with 17, but it was Black’s 12 points that proved more significant. Though he is 6-7, Black is a good ball handler and moves well for his size. On several possessions, Northeastern overloaded one side of the court and looked for Black cutting to the basket from the weak side. From there Black could stop for a mid-range jump shot, dribble and attack the basket, or turn and pass it back to the perimeter for another shooter. Black was 6 of 11 from the floor, collecting five layups and one dunk, and led the squad with five assists. On just about every possession he touched the ball Black made the right decision, going to the hoop when the opportunity presented itself and kicking it out to an open shooter when the defense sagged into the paint too much. Though he again fouled out after 37 minutes of play, Black was a perfect inside compliment to the outside shooting from Smith.

Edwards also turned in his best performance as a Husky, reaching double figures with 11 points while grabbing five rebounds. The senior transfer provided solid defense as well, recording two huge blocks that helped lead to fast break points at the other end of the floor. It seems every game Edwards is getting more comfortable in Bill Coen’s system.

Although not eye popping stat-wise, it was nice to see Ford add seven points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. At 6-8, Ford needs to make an impact rebounding the basketball when he is on the floor. He also connected on his first three pointer of the season, which will prove important as the season wears on. Ford doesn’t have to drop a lot of points during games, but he has to make the defense at least respect his ability to shoot from the outside so as to create more space for Smith and Lee.

Hot shooting can come and go, but the biggest takeaway from Saturday was the output on the glass. The Huskies edged the Red Storm 45-35 in rebounding, marking the third time in four games that Northeastern has out-rebounded its opponent. Coincidently, NU is 3-0 in those games.

What makes the work on the boards so impressive is the caliber of opponent. While St. John’s is not an elite team and was playing without its head coach (Steve Lavin, still recovering from prostate cancer treatment), the Red Storm are still a Big East program that can recruit top notch frontcourt players. Boston University and Southern Illinois simply don’t have big men of the same talent level as the Johnnies, so for Northeastern to win the rebounding battle is more impressive.

Offensive rebounding was particularly significant, with the Huskies grabbing 21 offensive rebounds compared to only 12 for St. John’s. Rebounding was something NU couldn’t get much of last season, as most opponents out-rebounded the club. By winning the majority of the battles down low, Northeastern is creating multiple shot opportunities while simultaneously limiting possessions for opponents. It doesn’t take a basketball genius to know that the more times a team has the ball, the more chances they have to score. Through four games this has been the biggest difference between this year’s team and last year’s team.

Quotes of Note:

Bill Coen: “Joel is our primary three point threat. We knew we were going to face a lot of zone today, and we were hoping that we’d be able to get him loose for a couple of early looks. He made his first three of the game and I thought that really kind of set the tone for him.”

Joel Smith: “I wasn’t able to get involved in the first couple games. Coach Coen and me talked and he just told me to keep my head up. I practiced hard over the summer, so he told me to just calm down and it would come to me and depend on my teammates.”

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Patrick McHugh Basketball, Press Pass St. John's