BOSTON — William and Mary’s final victory margin at Northeastern on Saturday night was 12 points, but it looked like it would be far worse. The Tribe was that dominant for most of the game.
Junior guard Marcus Thornton scored 25 points, helping W&M build a big lead and hold on for an 82-70 victory at Matthews Arena.
Thornton was one of four players who scored in double figures for William and Mary (15-8, 7-3 Colonial Athletic Association), which has won five of its last six games and is in third place in the nine-team CAA.
Senior forward Tim Rusthoven and freshman swingman Omar Prewitt scored 13 points apiece, while senior guard Brandon Britt added 12 for the Tribe.
Junior guard Demetrius Pollard — a Cape Henry Collegiate product — scored 13 points for Northeastern (8-17, 5-6), which has lost three of its last four. Freshman guard T.J. Williams had 12 points and junior forward Scott Eatherton added 11.
W&M started the game with an 8-0 run and took a 15-4 lead on a layup by Thornton with 14 minutes remaining in the opening period. The Tribe extended its lead to 23-8 on a 3-pointer by senior guard Julian Boatner with 10:59 to go.
The Tribe continued to build on its advantage, mounting a 17-2 run to take a 40-11 lead on two free throws by Britt with 4:15 remaining. The Tribe shot a sizzling 60.7 percent in the first half and made 5 of 8 from 3-point range, while the Huskies shot 23.1 percent and missed all 10 of their attempts from beyond the arc.
William and Mary led 45-18 at the break and continued to dominate early in the second half. The Tribe took a 60-27 lead on a dunk by senior forward Kyle Gaillard with 13:13 to play, but then Northeastern began to battle back.
The Huskies staged 6-0, 8-0 and 14-0 runs to cut William and Mary’s lead to 67-57 with 2:30 remaining, but they couldn’t get any closer.
