2008 Woodie Awards
Men's Basketball: Season full of promise, expectations
Andrew Parente
Issue date: 11/10/08 Section: Sports
When the men's basketball team takes to the court tomorrow for its season opener, it will be doing so around many familiar faces.
Coming off a sixth-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) last year, this year's squad returns 12 players including all five starters.
Head coach Bill Coen said he knows the importance of this experience, and feels that it will help his team, especially early in the season.
"I think it definitely helps initially, practically when your playing earlier than most teams in the country," the third-year head coach said. "Having that experience back will definitely help us prepare for our initial games."
The Huskies will take on IUPUI in Ann Arbor, Mich. at 4 p.m. as part of the 2kSports Classic benefiting Coaches Vs Cancer. They will either face Michigan or Michigan Tech Wednesday. Should they win both games, they will advance to Madison Square Garden in New York Nov. 21 and Nov. 22.
Prior to the season, NU was picked to finish second overall in the CAA by the coaches and other media outlets. However, Coen said he knows it's important to stick to the game plan in order to be successful as their opponents will be thinking differently when getting ready to battle the Huskies.
"I don't think it is going to change the way that we prepare, but I think it will change the way that our opponents prepare for us," Coen said. "Chances are, when your picked higher in the league, opposing teams are going to play with a sense of urgency ,where in the past they might have overlooked us."
The backcourt for Huskies, consisting of junior Matt Janning and sophomore Chaisson Allen, is one of the most talented in the conference. Janning comes off a year in which he averaged 16.1 points a game. That number was good enough for third place overall in the CAA.
Allen, who started all 31 games last year as a freshman, averaged 9.9 points and 3.5 assists per game. The sophomore gained a lot of knowledge in his first year and hopes that it will continue to help him in his second year.
Coming off a sixth-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) last year, this year's squad returns 12 players including all five starters.
Head coach Bill Coen said he knows the importance of this experience, and feels that it will help his team, especially early in the season.
"I think it definitely helps initially, practically when your playing earlier than most teams in the country," the third-year head coach said. "Having that experience back will definitely help us prepare for our initial games."
The Huskies will take on IUPUI in Ann Arbor, Mich. at 4 p.m. as part of the 2kSports Classic benefiting Coaches Vs Cancer. They will either face Michigan or Michigan Tech Wednesday. Should they win both games, they will advance to Madison Square Garden in New York Nov. 21 and Nov. 22.
Prior to the season, NU was picked to finish second overall in the CAA by the coaches and other media outlets. However, Coen said he knows it's important to stick to the game plan in order to be successful as their opponents will be thinking differently when getting ready to battle the Huskies.
"I don't think it is going to change the way that we prepare, but I think it will change the way that our opponents prepare for us," Coen said. "Chances are, when your picked higher in the league, opposing teams are going to play with a sense of urgency ,where in the past they might have overlooked us."
The backcourt for Huskies, consisting of junior Matt Janning and sophomore Chaisson Allen, is one of the most talented in the conference. Janning comes off a year in which he averaged 16.1 points a game. That number was good enough for third place overall in the CAA.
Allen, who started all 31 games last year as a freshman, averaged 9.9 points and 3.5 assists per game. The sophomore gained a lot of knowledge in his first year and hopes that it will continue to help him in his second year.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
prestopaul@aol.com
posted 11/11/08 @ 6:46 PM EST
Go Huskies!!!!!!
Bring home the CAA crown
Annie
posted 11/14/08 @ 12:46 PM EST
Another excellent article - good work Andrew
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