BOSTON – Junior guard LA Pratt made his Huskies debut in style, going for a career-high 24 points to lead the Northeastern men's basketball team (1-0) past Boston University (0-1) on Opening Night at the Case Center, 80-72.
 
In a rivalry that dates back to 1920, the 152nd between the two squads did not disappoint. With the Terriers leading by a point at halftime, the teams went punch for punch down the stretch before Northeastern closed the game on an 11-4 run to earn the hard fought victory.
 
Pratt, who finished the night 9-of-13 from the field and 4-of-8 from deep, led four players in double figures, joined by Harold Woods (17 points, nine rebounds), Rashad King (16 points, four assists) and a career-high 14 points and five steals from William Kermoury.
 
Northeastern finished the night 30-of-47 (64%) from the field and 7-of-16 from three while holding the Terriers to a 29-of-62 evening, including 13-of-34 (38%) in the second half. Kyrone Alexander led the hosts with 16 points on 6-of-12 from the floor.
 
The Huskies started red hot from the field, opening the game on a 15-5 run led by eight points from Pratt to take control early. Northeastern would go on to shoot 60% from the field and 45% from deep, with Pratt going for a game-high 16 on 6-of-9 overall, leading by as many as 12 in the half.
 
BU stayed within striking distance, and used a 9-0 run over 2:31 to take its first lead of the night late in the half before going into the break up 39-38. Alexander had nine points on 4-of-6 shooting to lead a Terriers squad that finished the half shooting 57% overall.
 
Neither team led by more than five points for the first 16:15 of the second half with three ties and four lead changes as the teams continued to go back and forth before Pratt went over the 20-point plateau with a layup to give the visitors a 69-62 advantage with 3:45 to go.
 
A quick 6-0 Terrier run brought them back within one, however, with less than three minutes to play. But the Huskies wouldn't be denied, closing the game on an 11-4 run and icing the game with free throws.
 
The Huskies will be back in action on Sunday when Northeastern hosts No. RV/RV Princeton in its home opener. Tip-off at Matthews Arena is set for 2 p.m. and tickets are available by visiting NUHuskies.com/tickets.