FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Northeastern men's basketball team (5-2) erased a 10-point second half deficit to take a one-point lead with five minutes to play, but a late CSU Bakersfield run gave the Roadrunners the 68-60 win over the Huskies on Sunday afternoon at Alico Arena.
 
LA Pratt (6-of-13 overall, six rebounds) and Masai Troutman (4-of-9 overall) had 15 points apiece for a Northeastern squad that finished the day 19-of-45 overall and 6-of-17 from deep. Luca Soroa added six points and three assists in 17 minutes off the bench.
 
Corey Stephenson was the difference for Bakersfield (4-3), going for 21 on 8-of-16 from the field to lead four Roadrunners in double figures. CSUB was 24-of-64 overall and turned 15 offensive boards into 17 points.
 
It was slow going early on, with the team combining to shoot 6-of-25 through the Under-12 timeout before a 10-2 CSU Bakersfield run gave the Roadrunners a five-point lead at the break, 34-29.
 
The Huskies shot 38% (8-of-21), led by eight points from Pratt on 3-of-6 overall, and stayed within striking distance thanks to a 11-of-14 showing at the stripe. Stephenson led the Roadrunners with nine points for a CSU Bakersfield squad that was 13-of-33 overall and hauled in nine offensive boards resulting in 11 second chance points in the first half.
 
A 7-2 CSUB run out of the half gave the Roadrunners its largest lead of the afternoon at 41-31 three minutes into the second half before Troutman began to get it going as the Huskies started to chip away.
 
Northeastern held Bakersfield to 1-of-13 over more than eight minutes, and went to work on the offensive end to erase the deficit and take a one-point lead with seven minutes left on a Troutman jumper.
 
An 11-3 CSU Bakersfield run from there, though, put the Roadrunners back up by two possessions before icing the game at the free throw line.
 
The Huskies will head back on the road next weekend when Northeastern travels to Vermont on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. on ESPN+.