GAME NOTES: The Richmond Spiders are set to close out the non-conference portion of their schedule against the Northeastern Huskies on New Year's Eve at the Robins Center.

Northeastern is off to a 1-2 start on its second five-game road swing of the season. The Huskies are coming off Monday's 72-68 overtime loss at Saint Mary's. Following this tilt, they will open Colonial Athletic Association play at Delaware on Saturday.

Richmond is coming off Sunday's 65-63 loss to Wake Forest on a tip-in at the buzzer. That outcome snapped the Spiders' four-game win streak as well as the team's perfect 6-0 home record. This marks their final non-league game before kicking off their Atlantic 10 slate at Davidson on Saturday.

These teams met for the first time last New Year's Eve in Boston, where Richmond claimed a 70-66 victory.

Northeastern hung right with Saint Mary's in a game that featured 13 ties and 20 lead changes. However, the Huskies committed three late turnovers, which allowed the Gaels to score the final six points of overtime to claim the victory. Quincy Ford (10.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg) tied his season-high with 18 points in the loss, and the redshirt junior also grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists. T.J. Williams chipped in with 13 points, Zach Stahl scored 12, and Scott Eatherton finished with 11 to round out the team's double-figure scorers. Eatherton (16.4 ppg, 7.5 rpg) has been a go-to player for the Huskies, as he earned his second CAA Player of the Week honor of the season on Dec. 22.

Meanwhile, Kendall Anthony has been hot of late for Richmond. The senior has put up 40 points over his last two games; first hitting a season-high five 3- pointers against IUPUI and then a season-best nine field goals against Wake Forest. He is scoring 15.3 ppg, while T.J. Cline (10.4 ppg) and Terry Allen (10.2 ppg) are also averaging double figures. Anthony had 21 points against Wake Forest, but Cline really had it going on with a career-high 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting. However, the Spiders watched their four-point lead dissipate over the final 30 seconds of that contest as Wake Forest made back-to-back threes down the stretch.

Both of these teams are coming off overtime losses of games they had a chance to win. The Huskies are built to win their share of those types of games, considering they consistently hit free throws (.747) and crash the boards (+10.5 rebounding margin). If this one comes down to the wire, it could spell trouble for the Spiders.