The Boston University men’s basketball team started their 2025-26 season with a 76-75 win in overtime against their crosstown rivals, the Northeastern University Huskies.
After overcoming a first half filled with turnovers, poor outside shooting and an injury to junior guard Kyrone Alexander, the Terriers (1-0, 0-0 Patriot League) won in overtime — despite a late comeback attempt from the Huskies (0-1).
“What a win for us, with so many things going against us,” said BU Head Coach Joe Jones. “A lot of things went wrong for us, and we were able to fight through it, which was awesome to see.”
The Terriers overcame a stagnant offensive first-half performance due to freshman forward Sam Hughes’ stellar shooting. Hughes finished his first college game with a team-leading 21 points, five rebounds and five made three-pointers.
“Sam Hughes was awesome,” Jones said. “Without him, we’ve got no shot to win the game.”
Hughes made an offensive impact as soon as he stepped on the court for the Terriers, hitting his first three-pointer of the night to stop a 13-5 Northeastern run early in the first half. He continued to punish the Huskies from the perimeter, hitting four three-pointers in the first half — one of which gave the Terriers their first lead of the game just before halftime.
The freshman’s stellar debut continued into the second half, where he scored a team-high nine points. With three seconds to go, Hughes hit a game-tying free throw to send the game into overtime, showing the poise that led BU to recruit Hughes from neighboring town of Brookline.
“We were in a real heavy recruiting battle for [Hughes], and thank goodness we won it,” Jones said. “He just plays with so much poise and confidence, and he’s highly skilled.”
The Terriers shot 6-for-28 from the three-point line, committed 16 turnovers and overcame the extended absence of two starters — junior guard Michael McNair battled foul trouble in the first half, while Alexander faced an injury that caused him to head to the locker room near the end of the first half. Alexander returned to the bench at the beginning of the second half but did not play for the rest of the game.
“I don’t even know what to say, man. It’s just been awful. The injuries have just been awful,” Jones said of Alexander’s injury, after he led the Terriers in points and rebounds last season.
Jones did not provide an update on Alexander’s injury status or when he would return to play.
The Terriers also saw a dominant performance from sophomore forward Ben Defty, who scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds while also anchoring BU’s defense with five blocks. He scored six points in overtime to help the Terriers close the game out.
Guard LA Pratt, who finished the game with 26 points and four assists led the Huskies. Pratt nearly won the game in regulation, making a fadeaway corner three-pointer after the buzzer sounded — a shot that sent Northeastern fans into a frenzy before the referees waved it off and sent the game to overtime.
In the extra period, with under a minute remaining, Pratt again had a chance to break the Terriers’ hearts after Northeastern cut BU’s six-point lead to one. But Pratt’s game-winning attempt rimmed out, giving BU a win in its trip to Matthews Arena.
“They’ve beaten us in a lot of these close games,” said Jones. “It’s good to see us execute down the stretch and win a close one.”
The Terriers travel to Illinois to play Northwestern this Friday at 6 pm.