Northeastern head coach Bill Coen tells his players there are three parts to the season: non-conference schedule, conference schedule and conference tournament. The stakes increase with each part and the mindset changes, he says, but entering the CAA Tournament the Huskies will not stray from the fearless, loose basketball that won them a share of the regular-season title.
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Entering Saturday — the final day of the conference schedule (minus James Madison's rescheduled games vs. Elon) — Northeastern sat one game behind Charleston in the standings. Charleston lost to William & Mary in the afternoon, and while the Cougars had already clinched the No. 1 seed in the CAA Tournament, the Huskies beat Elon to win a share of their third regular-season title since 2013.
We love presents from @joeyd812! #GoNU pic.twitter.com/YDFHAVu0sg
— Northeastern MBB (@GoNUmbasketball) February 25, 2018
Northeastern celebrated at Alumni Gym and during the trip home but it was all business upon arriving back in Boston on Sunday, the first of seven straight non-gamedays, their longest non-finals or holiday layoff of the season.
"We're just relying on the character of our group," Coen says of remaining focused this week. "Arriving home from the Elon game, they have their sights set on bigger things. They were great in practice [on Monday]. We just want to keep it short and sharp in practice and make sure we're working on the fundamentals because that's what ultimately wins games. And try to be true to our identity and get a little better each and every day."
Their 21 wins are already the most since 2014-15, when they won 23 games, including the CAA Championship, and made their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1991. Devon Begley — their only senior — is the lone player remaining from the 2014-15 team that was a No 3 seed in the conference tourney and upset No. 2 UNC Wilmington in the semifinals and No. 1 William & Mary in the finals.
"There's a totally different mindset once you get to tournament play and its one and done," Coen says. "In my estimation I think you got to be focused and loose at the same time. You can't go into tournament play being tight or afraid to make mistakes. You have to play confidently, you have to trust each other, you have to trust yourself. Everybody has to be on the same page."
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And though Coen says their staff "constantly" talks about "rest vs. rust" and avoiding complacency, especially when a conference title is followed by a week off, the 12th-year coach seems to have little concern about his young team (three of their top four scorers are sophomores) losing focus before arriving in North Charleston, S.C., this weekend for the CAA Tournament.
"You got to have fun with it because it's a lifetime experience."
