MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Jeremy Hunt scored a career-high 24 points and five Memphis players scored in double figures, leading the Tigers to a 90-65 win over Northeastern in a first-round NIT game Wednesday night.
Hunt shot 10-for-15 from the field and finished with seven rebounds for Memphis (20-15), which will face Virginia Tech in the second round. Virginia Tech opened the tournament with a 60-50 win over Temple.
Northeastern (21-10) played without star guard Jose Juan Barea, who was suspended for "unnecessarily rough play" while scrambling for a loose ball in the team's loss to Vermont in the America East championship game. Barea ranks ninth in the nation in scoring average at 22.2 points, and ranks seventh nationally in assists with 7.3.
Rodney Carney finished with 14 for the Tigers. Darius Washington scored 13, and Duane Erwin and Arthur Barclay each added 10 points.
Marcus Barnes led Northeastern with 19 points, and Adrian Martinez scored 15. Shawn James, the America East conference rookie and defensive player of the year, finished with 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked seven shots.
Memphis forced the Huskies into eight turnovers early and 12 in the first half. It wasn't until Bennet Davis hit a 3-pointer for Northeastern with 9:29 left in the half, cutting Memphis' lead to 21-10.
The miscues and Northeastern's 31 percent shooting helped Memphis to a 44-23 lead at the break.
Barclay scored all of his 10 points in the half, missing only one of his five shots. He also had six rebounds.
The second half was more of the same. Memphis maintained at least a 20-point lead through much of the period, and Northeastern never threatened.
