Northeastern guard Quincy Ford will undergo back surgery this week and will miss the rest of the 2013-14 season, coach Bill Coen announced after the Huskies' 72-64 loss to Harvard on Wednesday night.
Ford played in the Huskies' first two games this season, averaging 8.5 points and 2.0 rebounds, but he missed the next six. After experiencing ongoing back pain, Ford consulted with his family and with medical staff and the decision was made to have surgery on a lumbar disk in his back.
The loss is another setback in what's been a bumpy start to the season for the Huskies, who fell to 2-6 with the loss to the Crimson.
"Quincy is just a big, big part of our program," Coen said. "I think everybody's that's come out and seen us play over the last couple of years understands what type of talent he is, what type of kid he is and how much he means to this program.
"We want to support him and his health is of our utmost concern. We want to make sure he's healthy first, and he gets the proper medical treatment. All our guys in the locker room are behind him, all our coaches are behind him. And Quincy is gonna dedicate himself to coming back better than ever."
The 6-foot-8, 212-pound junior averaged 12.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game for the 2012-13 team that won the CAA regular-season championship, the first in Northeastern history. He was the Huskies' leading returning scorer, after Joel Smith and Jonathan Lee graduated.
Ford is expected to recover in time for the 2014-15 season.
Jack McCluskey is an editor for ESPN.com and a frequent contributor to ESPNBoston.com.