 Monday marked the start of the basketball season at Boston University. Both women's and men's teams had their opening games against Northeastern that night. But before any tip-off was in motion, students came out for a celebratory tailgate event outside of Bridge Hall. The tailgate was hosted by BU Athletics and the Sports Business Club to give people the chance to enjoy some free food, games, and promote different clubs on campus. Marco Sterling, a representative for ROTC, said while he isn't directly involved in athletics, the tailgate was a great opportunity to make their organization's work known. ROTC finds athletic programs super important. We're trying to attract athletes all the time, so make sure our presence here is known well. And the athletes on the basketball teams at BU have made headlines, competing in the Patriots League tournament last year. Tommy Connor, a BU Athletics intern since September, said he's seen how the team has prepped for the season ahead. Honestly, I see the energy between all the teammates. Just going through these buildings and everyone seems to really mesh well together. Jin Batour, a BU alumnus, said she came out to the tailgate event to witness the energy of the student community once more. It's definitely fun to be back. I haven't been back in quite a while. It definitely feels fun. But yeah, it's very festive in there. The band, the cheerleaders, the teams, everything. And the energy experienced here on Monday night was not in vain. The men's basketball team actually pulled away with a win, 72 to 63. Unfortunately, the girls' basketball team came to a close loss, 65 to 66, but they plan to regroup for a Miami road trip on this Sunday. Students can get their tickets for the rest of the season by going to Ticketmaster on the Agana Serena website. Reporting from Boston for BU TV 10, I'm Lainey Broussard.