Subway AUS Championships Team Profile: Saint Mary's Huskies

Joey Haywood will need to be front and center for the Huskies if they are to advance to Semi -Final Saturday.

Huskies Seed At The Championships: Sixth
First Game: Quarterfinals, Friday night at 8:15 vs. Third Seeded Saint Francis Xavier

Head Coach: Ross Quackenbush
Last AUS Championship: 2008
2010/11 Record: 7-13, 20 points.

Meet The Huskies

Key Players

Joey Haywood- The leading scorer in the CIS averages nearly 30 points per game. Was voted CIS Player of the Week in January after a 46 point performance vs. UPEI. Scored 37 points in the second half in a victory over Dalhousie. Haywood shoots over fifty percent from the floor and averages five rebounds a game

Tory Fassett- Fassett averaged 16 points and 6 rebounds per game, shooting 55% from the floor and often received the toughest defensive assignment. Fassett has been a critical part of the Huskies press break and is a dynamic athlete whose had several highlight dunks at the Tower this season.

Harry Ezenibe- On of the best athletes in the conference, Ezenibe also features a very polished post game. Averaged 10 points and 7 rebounds per game and can jump with anyone in the AUS.

Strengths

Haywood- For the Huskies to make a run at the championships they'll need lots of Haywood. Expect Joey to score well over thirty points in each game the Huskies play this weekend.

Half Court Offense- The signature of Ross Quackenbush's Huskies teams is the beautiful passing half court offence. Not only is it fun to watch, but it's extremely effective at the Metro Centre for championship basketball where the style of play tends to revert to critical half court possessions.

Athleticism- With the additions of Fassett and Jerome Smith to a lineup that already had Haywood, Ezenibe, and Miguel Pink, the Huskies have the athleticism needed to compete with the X-Men and Capers.

Shooting Percentage- The Huskies shoot the basketball at a 47 percent clip, good for second in the conference. Offensively the Huskies average 88 points per game

Weaknesses

Defence- The Huskies are the second worst defensive team in the AUS surrendering nearly 90 points per game.

Chemistry- After losing Mark McLaughlin and Ike Ichegbu, the Huskies had to reload in a hurry and managed to find talented players ready to contribute in Fassett, Smith, and Doyle Anthony. But the Huskies have still not gelled on the floor and time is running out. Saint Mary's is renowned for playing their best basketball in February and March but heading into AUS championships there appear to be more questions than answers.

Huskies Notes

SMU lost both of their games this season to X. 97-84 in Antigonish and 93-92 at The Tower in a game the Huskies were in control of until the final minute.......The Huskies were 2-8 vs. CBU, X, and Dal this season......Miguel Pink shot nearly 40 percent from the three point line this season ( 35-88).....perhaps the Huskies player who has struggled the most this season has been Simon Marr. The 6'9" Saint John product is only averaging 6 points and 4 rebounds a game while shooting well below 40 percent from the field. However, Marr is the best passing post player in the AUS and his ability to move the basketball could be a huge factor f or the Huskies this weekend....SMU is 1-6 in their last 7 games......The Huskies are the third best offensive rebounding team in the conference averaging 15 per game.....Joey Haywood's conference leading average of 29 ppg is 10 points ahead of the next highest scorer, Simon Farine of Dalhousie with 19.

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