Leaders of pack

Colonial Athletic Association Basketball Preview

Lee, Smith provide foundation for Huskies

November 07, 2011|By Michael Vega, Globe Staff

Running mates ever since they were freshmen, it only stood to reason Jonathan Lee and Joel Smith would form a perfect combination this season as junior cocaptains of the Northeastern men’s basketball team.

In fact, Lee, a 6-foot-2-inch guard from Flint, Mich., and Smith, a 6-4 guard from Leander, Texas, had asserted their leadership in the second half of their sophomore season as loyal lieutenants to Chaisson Allen, last year’s captain who led the Huskies in points (16.7), rebounds (6.1), and assists (3.7).

“We often say, ‘Captains are appointed but leaders emerge,’ ’’ said sixth-year NU coach Bill Coen, who returns eight players, including four starters, from last year’s 11-20 squad that finished tied for ninth in the Colonial Athletic Association. “Even though Chais was our captain and did a good job of that last year, both Jon and Joel took some personal responsibility in leading this team because they have pride in what they’re doing, they have pride in the program, and they’re both competitors.

“Towards the last two months of last season, I would say both these guys started the process of becoming the leaders of this program.’’

Lee and Smith succeeded in winning the respect and admiration of their teammates with their work ethic and positive energy, even as the team struggled through a nine-game losing streak from Dec. 29-Jan. 22, dropping their first eight conference games.

“I just knew that me and Jon, we could help Chais out a lot,’’ said Smith, who ranks as the team’s leading returning scorer (12.2) and third in rebounding (3.2) behind junior Kauri Black (4.0) and sophomore Ryan Pierson (3.7). “We couldn’t sit back. We knew we had a lot to offer the team. We knew we could be a voice and be like second-in-command behind Chais.’’

Lee, who set a school record last season by hitting .472 from beyond the 3-point arc (34 of 72), didn’t recall when he and Smith stepped up their leadership. “There wasn’t any particular point,’’ he said. “But after you start losing, everybody’s head gets down and everybody’s spirit gets down. The only way you can get back on track is how hard you work.

“You focus on encouragement and enthusiasm. That’s always been a part of my personality. I knew I couldn’t do it by myself, so I said, ‘Joel, we’ve got to get people up.’ And I knew Joel would be on board.’’

So when it came time to elect a captain for the 2011-12 season, a team vote was not even necessary. Coen made the command decision.