Box Score NATCHITOCHES, La. ? It is a good thing University of New Orleans first-year head coach Joe Pasternack is 30 years old. If he keeps coaching games like Wednesday night, he is going to age quickly.
The Privateers let an eight-point second-half lead slip away before outscoring Northwestern State 14-3 in the final 4:28 to open the season with a 72-66 win at Prather Coliseum.
Kyndall Dykes scored a game-high 19 points and provided some exciting moments down the stretch, and Bo McCalebb tallied 16 as UNO (1-0) won its road opener for the first time since 2003.
The win also marked the first time since Nov. 29, 1974 that UNO opened its season with a road victory.
But it wasn't easy.
UNO was in command for the first 25 minutes ? jumping out to as much as a nine-point lead in the first half before holding onto a 47-39 lead with 16:20 left.
However, the Demons got hot from the 3-point line ? making five treys in the first 12 minutes of the second half. NSU grabbed its first lead since the game's opening minutes following a Gerrell Thomas 3-pointer that gave the Demons a 57-54 advantage.
NSU led for the next five minutes before the Privateers rallied back. McCalebb got it started with a steal of an inbounds pass and a layup with 3:18 remaining.
NSU took it back on Colby Bargeman's jumper just 32 seconds later before UNO took control. A pair of Shaun Reynolds free throws preceded a McCalebb transition dunk to make it 68-65. After Trey Gilder cut the deficit to 68-66, Dykes provided the exclamation mark with a circus layup while being fouled to make it 70-66.
NSU missed four 3-pointers down the stretch to cinch the UNO win.
“Our guys have character and they just fought back,” said Pasternack, downplaying the first game of his head coaching career. “I can't say how proud I am of them.”
NSU (0-4) got 16 points from Keithan Hancock and 10 from Thomas.
UNO's Ben Elias tied his career high with 14 points
“When they made their run, the seniors kept screaming at all of us to keep our head up,” Dykes said after his first Division I game. “Basketball is a game of runs, and they made theirs. We were able to make ours at the end, and we feel great to get a win.”
UNO will continue a three-game road trip on Sunday at North Carolina State. The game will be televised on Fox Sports Net South, which is not available on Cox Cable in New Orleans. Check your local satellite provider for more details.
