Tre’Von Spillers and Juke Harris each scored 17 points and Wake Forest defeated visiting Northeastern 86-73 on Friday afternoon at Winston-Salem, N.C.
The Demon Deacons (6-2), who extended their winning streak to three games, also received a boost from the reserves as Sebastian Akins poured in 13 points and Myles Colvin added 11 points. Wake Forest had a 35-21 advantage in bench points.
Miles Newton, who was 4 of 6 from 3-point range, scored 19 of his 22 points in the first half for Northeastern (3-4). Xander Alaire posted 15 points, Xavier Abreu had 12 points and Youri Fritz checked in with 10 points.
The Huskies committed 22 turnovers that the Demon Deacons turned into 26 points. Northeastern’s loss came despite shooting 51.0% shooting from the floor that included 10 of 18 (55.6%) on 3-pointers.
Spillers shot 8 of 11 from the field, while Harris compensated for 3-of-11 shooting by going 10 of 11 on free throws.
Wake Forest had scoring runs of 8-0 and 7-0 across the first eight minutes of the second half. Northeastern had a stretch of nine turnovers in 11 possessions
Akins, who made six of his eight shots, posted seven points in the first 7 1/2 minutes of the second half as the Demon Deacons surged to a 68-55 lead.
Wake Forest established a 73-58 lead with 9:11 remaining. After Abreu drained a 3-pointer, the Demon Deacons called time out after their lead dipped to 79-70 with 4:20 remaining.
Harris hit a jumper and Colvin nailed a 3-pointer as the Demon Deacons regained control. Northeastern managed three points in the final four minutes.
Wake Forest’s halftime lead was 45-44 after Akins’ late basket was deemed after the buzzer. Both teams shot above 60% in the first half, led by Wake Forest at 64.0%.
The Demon Deacons committed 10 of their 17 turnovers in the first half.
–Field Level Media
