Monmouth University secured an 89-83 win over Northeastern University in men’s basketball on Tuesday night at the Cabot Center in Boston. The game saw Northeastern nearly erase a 17-point deficit, narrowing the gap to just three points in the final minute, but Monmouth held on for the victory.
Mike Loughnane led Northeastern with 22 points, while teammates Ryan Williams, Xavier Abreu, and Youri Fritz also scored in double figures. The Huskies shot 57% from the field, including 9-of-17 from three-point range, and registered a season-high 23 assists. JB Frankel contributed a career-high nine assists.
Kavion McClain paced Monmouth with 24 points as one of four Hawks players scoring in double digits. Monmouth shot 36-of-55 overall and made eight three-pointers out of twenty attempts.
Northeastern started strong, hitting eight of its first eleven shots and building an early eight-point lead behind Williams’ shooting performance. The team had fifteen assists on sixteen made baskets in the first half. However, Monmouth closed the half with a decisive 24-7 run, going 9-of-10 from the floor during that stretch to take a ten-point halftime lead.
The Hawks maintained their advantage until late in the second half when Northeastern mounted a comeback with a 12-2 run over less than three minutes. Ty Francis scored five points during this span to help close the gap to three points with just over two minutes remaining.
Despite forcing Monmouth into turnovers late in the game and getting within one possession after a steal and score by Loughnane, Northeastern could not complete the comeback as McClain sealed the win for Monmouth with a basket and free throws.
Northeastern will now prepare for the upcoming Air Force Reserve CAA Men’s Basketball Championship starting Friday. They are set to face North Carolina A&T at 2 p.m., with tournament games broadcast on FloCollege. The winner will advance to play against the No. 5 seed on Saturday afternoon.
