Northeastern men’s basketball (0-1, 0-0 CAA) lost in a tight matchup against the Boston University Terriers (1-0, 0-0 Patriot League) Nov. 3. The season opener was a thrilling back and forth between the local rivals, ending in overtime 76-75 Terriers.
After the game, head coach Bill Coen said the team “played hard” but conceded that it “could play smarter.”
The Huskies won the tip off and immediately pinned the Terriers to their own half.
Freshman guard Miles Newton opened the scoring for the Huskies 20 seconds in. The Terriers seemed less fluid and were unable to break down the Huskies’ defense in the opening minutes of the game. Senior forward Youri Fritz opened his account for the season with a three-pointer early on. The Terriers responded immediately with a layup from sophomore forward Ben Defty, making the score 2-5 after a minute and a half of play.
Two minutes of end-to-end play resulted in a three-pointer by junior guard William Kermoury, bringing the score to 8-2 with 16 minutes to play in the first period. A foul by BU on Fritz saw him on the line for two. He scored one and extended the Huskies’ early lead to 9-2.
Freshman forward Ty Francis had his introduction this season with a blocked dunk by BU’s graduate student forward Malcom Chimezie.
Junior guard JB Frankel’s foul sent Chimezie to the line; he shot two but only scored one, making the score 9-3 for the Huskies. Junior guard Mike Loughnane responded immediately with a layup for two.
BU’s freshman guard Chance Gladden had a quick answer with a layup in the paint. Frankel was back in action with a shot to bring the score to 13-5, the Huskies on top with 13 minutes to go. The Terriers missed two three-point attempts before a break through three from freshman forward and guard Sam Hughes.
Fritz added to his scorecard with a dunk, giving the Huskies momentum before a media timeout with 11 minutes left on the clock.
The game returned with a Kermoury three to recharge the Huskies. The Terriers were unperturbed and scored a tip in, but a BU foul sent Kermoury to the line for two. He scored one, and the Huskies were up 19-12.
BU failed to capitalize on two free throws. A steal by senior guard LA Pratt saw him score his first of the season with a stunning solo effort.
Defty scored again, closing the gap, and junior guard Kyrone Alexander added a free throw to bring the score to 21-15 in the Huskies’ favor.
The Huskies kept driving, and Pratt went 4-0 with two layups in quick succession. BU found momentum and went on an eight-point run with two three pointers and a dunk that brought the score to 25-23 Northeastern.
Frantic action at both nets ended with a BU basket by Chimezie, leaving the Huskies with a slim lead of two points before a time out with four minutes to go in the frame.
A foul on Defty post-resumption gave BU the opportunity to close the game even more with a free throw.
The Huskies wrestled the ball back and won a foul in the paint, sending freshman center Petar Pintar to the line. He shot and scored two to open his account as a Husky. Northeastern made the most of the time the team didn’t have the ball. BU then shot for three to close the gap with only a minute and a half to go, 31-29.
A BU foul gave the Huskies double bonus, but they failed to capitalize. The Terriers took the lead for the first time in the game with a three-pointer at the buzzer.
The second period saw eight of the nine lead changes, with slim margins tightly contested.
BU opened scoring in the second half, but Newton stepped to the line and scored both free throws to cut the deficit to one. The Huskies kept the ball and applied pressure, and another Kermoury three restored the Huskies’ lead.
Two and a half minutes of frantic scoring from both sides ended with a five-point lead for the Huskies with 15 minutes left in regulation time.
A slip from Pratt gave the Terriers opportunity to score and take a slim lead 44-43 on the back of a six-point run.
The lead swapped hands again, with Fritz, Pratt and Kermoury among the scorers.
Both teams played aggressively, and a BU foul gave the Huskies possession.
Defty extended the Terriers’ lead to four points, and they piled on the pressure. The Huskies played the ball out of bounds and called a timeout with seven minutes to go.
Newton got involved after the break, scoring a layup in the paint before Chimizie responded; the score was 57-53 to the Terriers.
A tussle at halfcourt resulted in a foul, giving Frankel two shots that he sank. Pratt went 4-0 again to give Northeastern a three-point lead with three minutes to go.
On a Northeastern foul to give BU possession, the Terriers scored and brought the gap down to one. Fritz netted another to bring it to three. The Terriers took a full timeout, and the game slipped away from them slightly with two minutes left on the clock.
BU regained momentum when Defty brought the gap back down to one. Frankel stole the ball for a stunning solo run, returning the three-point lead to the Huskies with one minute to go, 66-63.
A Pratt foul sent Defty to the line, shooting two and scoring one. With 40 seconds left, the game was 66-64.
Another foul sent BU to the line, shooting two and scoring both. The game was tied at 66 apiece with four seconds left. Pratt sent a last gasp shot to win the game, but it did not stand.
BU scored first in overtime, courtesy of Defty, 68-66. The Terriers continued to widen the gap, scoring two free throws.
With one minute to go, a Husky foul gave BU the double bonus. BU made both free throws, making the score 76-70. Pratt shot and scored two at the line, bringing the gap down to three points before throwing another lifeline three to catch up to the Terriers. Pratt missed his final attempt, and the game ended 76-75 for the Terriers.
Despite the tough loss, Pratt tied his career-best at 26 points, and three Huskies hit double figures in points. On Pratt’s impressive performance, Coen said he is “a gamer.”
“The effort was there, but the execution needs to improve,” Coen said of the loss, adding that the team was sloppy with handling the ball and should have extended its lead early on through free throws.
However, he praised the whole team, especially the newcomers.
“Everyone that came in gave us a little something,” Coen said. “This is a marathon, not a sprint … we’ve got a whole season ahead of us.”
The Huskies will hit the road Nov. 7 to take on the Colgate University Raiders (0-1, 0-0 Patriot League) at Cotterell Court in Hampton, N.Y.
