Mike Jenkins and the Wildcats will look to improve to 3-1 for the first time since 2002.Mike Jenkins and the Wildcats will look to improve to 3-1 for the first time since 2002.

Northwestern Hosts Florida Atlantic in Home Opener Monday Night

Nov. 19, 2005

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EVANSTON, Ill. - The Wildcats open up at home Monday night against the Florida Atlantic Owls of the Atlantic Sun and first-year head coach Matt Doherty.

Northwestern opened up the 2005-06 season on a positive note, going 2-1 at the BCA Invitational in Laramie, Wyo. where senior forward Vedran Vukusic scored 76 points (25.3 ppg) in the three games and was named to the all-tournament team.

The 'Cats defeated Lehigh in the opening round before pulling off the biggest surprise of the tournament, defeating Atlantic-10 member Charlotte, 61-47, in the semifinals. Then on Tuesday, NU fell victim to cold shooting and early turnovers against UNC Wilmington in the championship game, falling 56-48.

The Owls are coming off a 78-74 loss to Colgate Friday night, this despite forcing 22 takeaways compared to just five turnovers for Florida Atlantic.

Noting Northwestern

  • Vedran Vukusic got off to a red-hot start at the BCA Invitational in Laramie, Wyo. last week. The senior from Croatia scored 76 points (25.3 ppg) in the three BCA Invitational games, earning him all-tournament honors. In the three games, Vukusic was 25-of-45 (.555) from the field, 12-of-22 from three-point range (.545) and 14-of-18 (.777) from the free throw line.

  • With 23 points in the BCA championship loss to UNC Wilmington, Vukusic moved into 18th place on Northwestern's all-time scoring list with 1,124 points, passing Hal Grant (1,123) Mark Sibley (1,113) and Tavaras Hardy (1,122).

  • Northwestern is looking to improve to 3-1 for the first time in three years.

  • Northwestern is 4-1 in home openers under head coach Bill Carmody and 74-26 in home openers all-time.

    • Recapping The BCA Invitational
    The Wildcats took home the runner-up trophy at this year's BCA Invitational, falling 56-48 to UNC Wilmington in the championship game Tuesday. However, the Wildcats showed plenty of promise to the 2005-06 season, evident by their impressive 61-47 win over Charlotte, who at the time was eight spots outside of the ESPN/USA Today Top 25.

    In the opening round, Northwestern rebounded from a slow start and came back from a double-digit deficit in the first half to defeat Lehigh, 61-59. As he did throughout the tournament, Vukusic played like a man possessed, scoring 18 of his game-high 25 points in the second half to lead the Wildcats to victory. Tim Doyle had 14 points and tied a career-best with six assists.

    The 'Cats jumped all over Charlotte early and often in the semifinals, running Bill Carmody's offense to perfection in the 61-47 win. Vukusic once again led the way with a season-high 28 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 5-of-7 from three-point range. Mohamed Hachad chipped in with 14 points and tied his career best with nine boards.

    In Tuesday night's championship game, the Wildcats fell victim to cold shooting and early turnovers in the 56-48 loss. After trailing by as much as 12 in the second half, Northwestern cut the lead to four twice, but that was as close as they would come. Vukusic once again led NU with 23 points, Hachad finished with 10 and Doyle had another solid game with six points, seven rebounds and five assists.

    About The Owls

  • Matt Doherty and the Owls tipped off their regular season at Colgate Friday, falling 78-74. FAU fought their way back from a 12-point halftime deficit , but Colgate sank several free throws down the stretch to seal the win. The Owls' defense tightened in a big way for the final 20 minutes. They allowed the Raiders to shoot just 37 percent, and forced several turnovers in a 28-5 run to start the second half.

  • Florida Atlantic is coming off a 10-17 record in 2004-05 with a 10-10 mark in the Atlantic Sun. They return two starters and six letterwinners.

  • Senior guard Quinton Young is the Owls leading returning scorer, averaging 12.3 points and 2.0 rebounds per game last season. Senior forward Rodney Webb also returns after averaging nearly 10 points (9.8) and 5.7 caroms per game.

  • The Owls defeated Florida Tech 94-73 in their only exhibition contest of the season back on Nov. 13. Freshman guard Paul Graham led six Owls in double figures with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting and four rebounds. Webb followed up with 19 points and eight rebounds while junior guard DeAndre Rice chipped in with 15 points and nine assists.

    • The Series With Florida Atlantic
    Tonight's game is the first meeting between the two schools. Northwestern is 4-0 all-time against current Atlantic Sun teams.

    FAU Head Coach Matt Doherty
    Matt Doherty is in his first year at Florida Atlantic after previous head coaching stints at Notre Dame (1999-00) and North Carolina (2000-03). In 1999 he guided the Fighting Irish to their best season in a decade before taking over in the same role at his alma mater in 2000 as North Carolina's head coach. In his first season at UNC, Doherty led the Tarheels to a 26-7 record and was named the Associated Press National Coach-of-the-Year. Prior to his head coaching career Doherty served as an assistant at Kansas (1992-99) and Davidson (1989-92).

    Home Cookin'
    In the last four years the Wildcats have recorded a 42-17 (.711) overall record at Welsh-Ryan Arena, including a 19-13 mark in Big Ten play.