by Matthew MacCormack
“It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Everybody’s gonna kind of stub their toe at some point or another.”
Northeastern men’s basketball head coach Bill Coen knew his squad should’ve done better. The game was in hand, but the preseason conference favorite Huskies (7-7, 1-1 CAA) lost in heartbreaking fashion to Delaware , 82-80, in double overtime Saturday night at Matthews Arena.
The Huskies blew a double-digit first half lead, and had a shot to win or tie in double overtime. Trailing 81-80 with 15 seconds left in the second overtime, redshirt junior guard Donnell Gresham missed his second free throw, but junior forward Bo Brace grabbed the offensive board, sending it back out to Gresham. Coen appeared to yell for a timeout, but Gresham drove to the bucket, missing a contested layup.
After Delaware’s Ryan Allen hit one of two free throws to make it 82-80 with 1.7 seconds left, Gresham came up short on a last-second heave that would’ve won the game. The Blue Hens (9-6, 1-1 CAA) came out victorious.
“I didn’t think we came out with energy necessary in order to compete,” Coen said.
“If you don’t come ready to play, in this league, you’re gonna get beat.”
Brace played a tremendous game, racking up 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Northeastern led by as many as 12 points in the first half, but the Blue Hens — who suffered a 45-point defeat at Hofstra two days prior — rallied to bring the game back within one, and trailed by just five at the break, 34-29.
The Huskies will be back in action at Hofstra on January 5, in Hempstead, N.Y. at 4 p.m.