Nov. 25, 2009

Box Score | Game Highlights

BOSTON - Led by 18 points each from sophomore Jake O'Brien and senior Corey Lowe, the Boston University men's basketball team outlasted cross-town rival Northeastern for a 69-64 overtime victory on Wednesday afternoon at Case Gym. Down by one with 1:14 to go in the first overtime game between the two programs since 2002, the Terriers scored the final six points of the extra session to improve to 2-4, while the Huskies fell to 1-2.

BU also received a strong contribution from John Holland, who scored four of his 15 points in the final nine seconds of the contest with a fastbreak slam dunk and then two made free throws after grabbing his team-leading seventh rebound of the game off a potential game-tying 3-pointer from Baptiste Bataille. Entering the game with 990 career points, the 2009 First Team All-America East honoree and former league Rookie of the Year becomes the 29th Terrier in program history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark.

In a game that see-sawed back and forth with both teams having multiple scoring runs, the contest came down to 3-point and free throw shooting with both battles won by the Terriers. BU was a near-perfect 15-of-16 at the charity stripe for a 93.8 percent mark and hit 8-of-20 (40 percent) from beyond the arc, while the Huskies only hit three treys off 15 attempts at 20 percent and recorded 17 points on 26 shots at the line for 65.4 percent.

Picked to finish second in the Colonial Athletic Association, Northeastern had three men score in double-figures, led by Matt Janning's 18 points. Alwayne Bigby contributed 16 and Bataille had 10. Both Janning and Bigby also had seven rebounds, while Nkem Ojougboh had seven points and a game-high eight boards. The Huskies recorded two fewer turnovers, 18-20, but were edged in rebounds, 38-36. 

The victory gives the Terriers a two-game win streak over the former America East conference member and 2009 College Basketball Invitational participant after losing the previous four meetings. Earning its first win in Case Gym against the Huskies since Feb. 22, 2004, BU now owns a 71-66 lead in a series that dates back to 1920.

Trailing 53-51 with just over 23 seconds remaining in regulation and the shot clock set to expire, the America East Player of the Game Lowe dribbled inside the 3-point line and hit a jumper to tie the game. Janning had a contested jumper to win the game, but it went off the backboard and into the hands of O'Brien to send the game into overtime.

BU jumped out to a 6-0 run in its first overtime of the season with back-to-back 3-pointers by Lowe and Morris and extended the lead to seven, 61-54, off a layup by Holland at 2:51. However, the Huskies battled back by taking advantage of the Terriers' foul troubles by drawing contact and going to straight to the line. Six points during a 10-2 run came from the charity stripe, as they took a 64-63 lead at 1:14 off two made shots from Bigby.

O'Brien though hit a turnaround jumper at 51 seconds to put BU back ahead by one. Chaisson Allen dribbled into the paint trying to draw contact but traveled with just over 35 seconds remaining. After the Terriers inbounded the ball, the Huskies pressured Lowe, who inadvertently traveled and gave the ball back with 30 seconds left.

Janning drove down the baseline towards the basket, but his shot was off and bounced over to Carlos Strong, who stepped out of bounds trying to bring the ball up the court with 16 seconds on the clock.

With the ball in his hands and the shot clock turned off for the second time of the extra session, Janning went down the right side and threw up a shot but missed, allowing Lowe to send a pass deep to an open Holland for the 3-point lead.

At the start of the contest, the Huskies ran out of the gate to a 9-0 lead capped by a slam dunk by Bigby. Ojougboh followed with one of his own at 14:16 to push the lead to the Huskies' largest of the game, 14-4. The Terriers though chipped away and eventually tied it, 25-25, at 2:13 with an 8-0 run ignited and capped by 3-pointers from Lowe and Holland, respectively.

With the score tied, 27-27, Bataille hit an open jumper to give the Huskies the two-point lead entering the locker room at the break.

Continuing the trend of both teams using scoring barrages against each other, the Terriers tallied the first 13 points in the second half with O'Brien contributing seven straight off a 3-pointer, two made free throws and an open jumper. After Holland's layup at 16:30, BU though would fail to score another basket until O'Brien hit another shot from beyond the arc to give BU a 43-36 lead with 12:23 left in regulation.

This time, the Huskies did the clawing, as they enticed BU into five turnovers over the following five minutes to take a 46-45 lead at 7:48 off a layup by Bataille. Janning's jumper at 3:03 pushed Northeastern's lead to six, 53-47. On the ensuing possession, O'Brien drew contact and hit two free throws to cut the deficit to four.

Following a missed 3-pointer by Allen, Holland scored a layup at 1:57 to cut the deficit to one. Janning drove to the basket trying to push the lead back to three, but Lowe was in position for the block. After a BU turnover with over a minute remaining, Strong stole the ball from Janning, setting up Lowe's game-tying shot that would send the game to overtime.

Following the thrilling victory over the Huskies, the Terriers will celebrate Thanksgiving on Thursday as a team and then prepare for Sunday's showdown at Case Gymnasium against Harvard with action set to begin at 5 p.m.