Providence started 0/4 from the field, but their zone kept Villanova on their heels early. Back to back baskets by Nate Watson from Maliek White feeds was capped off by a triple from White to put the Friars ahead, 7-2, a little more than 4 minutes in. The Providence run would be 9-0 before Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree scored to make it 9-4. That was the beginning of Villanova’s answer to Providence’s run with a 13-0 spurt of their own to take a 6-point lead, 15-9, with just under 11 minutes to go in the first half. Providence answered with 6 straight points to tie the game at 15 with 8:02 to go in the half. The first time the teams traded points without a scoring run came after Alpha Diallo and Eric Paschall traded 1/2 at the free throw line between 5:32 to go and 4:41 to go. The first time the teams traded field goals came after that with Diallo hitting a jumper at the 3:51 mark followed by Collin Gillespie nailing a 3-pointer to pull Villanova back in front, 25-23, with 3:26 to go in the half. Providence went on a scoring drought over the final 3:07 of the half and Villanova took advantage to finish on a 6-0 run and take a 7-point lead, 31-24, into the locker room.
After Jermaine Samuels opened with 1/2 at the free throw line Providence went on a 6-0 run to bring them within 2 a few minutes into the second half. Every time Villanova looked like they were going to get a more comfortable lead the Friars had an answer to keep the deficit within reach. Through a little more than 8 minutes of action there were only 21 points scored between the two teams, and the Villanova lead never got larger than 8 but never less than 2 at this point. Providence tied the game at 44 after Diallo converted a 3-point play with 9:18 to go. Villanova pulled back ahead and maintained a small lead over the next several minutes of back and forth basketball. Villanova would pull ahead by 11 after some turnovers by the Friars. Diallo picked up his 4th foul with 5:19 to go, but Cooley kept his junior in the game. The Friars attempted to get back into the game late, but it wasn’t enough to against the top seed Wildcats. Providence only got as close as 5 with 3:18 to go before Villanova got 5 points from Samuels to give them a 10 point cushion with 1:29 to go. The Wildcats sealed the game at the free throw line to advance to the semifinals on Friday night against the winner of (4) Xavier and (5) Creighton.
Providence was led by Watson with 15 points. Diallo and Jackson added 14 points a piece.
Villanova was led by Paschall with 20 points. Gillespie also added 19 points and Booth had 13.
Villanova owned offensive rebounds and turnovers in this game. The Wildcats grabbed 12 of their own misses and forced 16 Providence turnovers. Villanova only gave up 2 offensive rebounds on the other end, and they only turned it over 11 times. The Wildcats score 21 second chance points.
Providence now awaits their postseason fate with hope for an NIT bid in play.
How: FS1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery & Lisa Byington)/Fox Sports GO app (where available)/WPRO 99.7 FM & 630AM, TuneIn and Friars.com (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)/FriarTV
Providence and Butler started off slowly on offense in the inaugural contest of the 2019 Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden. Providence scored the first bucket, but Butler answered with 10 straight points to lead, 10-2, about 6 minutes into the action. This was a far cry from the offensive barrage Providence put on Butler early in last Saturday’s Senior Day game at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Isaiah Jackson came off the bench and hit a 3-pointer that stopped the Butler run. The Friars continued to be cold and Butler got out to a 10-point lead before Nate Watson made a shot near the rim and AJ Reeves made a triple to cut the Butler lead in half. A pair of blocks by Kalif Young and Makai Ashton-Langford on Nate Fowler seemed to spark Providence. The Friars hit a few buckets and played solid defense before David Duke nailed a 3-pointer to put Providence ahead, 23-21 with just over 4 minutes to go in the first half. Providence would end up with an 8-0 run over a 1:25 span, and a 13-2 run over the previous 4:07 of play. Butler tried to stem the tide, but the Friars jetted out to a 7-0 run this time, largely on the back of Maliek White. White was en fuego over the final few minutes and buried his third 3-pointer of the half just before the buzzer to give Providence their largest lead of the half, 38-27. Providence closed the half making their final 8 field goals and turn a 10 point deficit at the 10:01 mark into an 11 point lead at the break.
Butler opened the half with 5 straight points and made their first 3 field goals. Providence didn’t falter, though. White stayed hot, and Diallo scored 6 of the Friars’ first 12 points of the half, including a triple with 15:27 to go that extended Providence’s lead to 13, their largest of the night at that point. The offense didn’t slow down for Providence. The Friars stretched the lead to 21 on the back of a 15-0 run that coincided with a scoring drought of more than 5 minutes for Butler. Aaron Thompson, who was the best player for Butler on the offensive end in this game, snapped the Providence run. Kamar Baldwin dealt with foul trouble much of the night and was forced to the bench with his 4th foul at the 11:15 mark of the second half with just 6 points on 3/7 shooting. The Friars didn’t take their foot off Butler’s neck and led by as many as 26 points in the second half on their way to a date with (1) Villanova on Thursday at noon.
Butler led by 10, 17-7, with 10:01 to go in the first half. Since that point the Bulldogs were outscored by Providence, 73-40, over the final 29:59 of the game.
Providence was led by White with a career-high 19 points. Also in double figures for the Friars were Diallo with 18, Duke with 16 and Jackson with 13. Diallo led the way with 8 rebounds and White led the Friars with 5 assists.
Butler was led by Tucker with 14 points. Thompson was the only other Bulldog to score in double figures with 12 points on 5/5 shooting.
Butler is now 1-6 all-time in the Big East Tournament since joining the league for the 2013-14 season.
Providence returns to Madison Square Garden for a 12pm tip against (1) seed Villanova. The game will air on FS1.
How: FS1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery & Lisa Byington)/Fox Sports GO app (where available)/WPRO 99.7 FM & 630AM, TuneIn and Friars.com (John Rooke and Joe Hassett)/FriarTV
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