PC Falls to UConn in Close Battle

PC Falls to UConn in Close Battle

Providence College men’s basketball team fell to #2 ranked University of Connecticut 87-81 in Storrs, CT on Tuesday night.

The Friars battled all game and had numerous chances to steal the win, but once again, the Huskies pulled away in the final minutes. The Friars led the Huskies earlier this month in Providence by 11 points with 3:12 left in the game. UConn came back and won in overtime.

The Friars fall to 9-12 and 2-8 in the Big East.

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PC was down 41-37 — well within striking distance at the half.

Stefan Vaaks led the Friars with 9 points in the first half.

The Friars had an 8-1 run to tie the game 41-41 at 18:25 in the second half.

At the under-8-minute media timeouts, the Huskies led 67-64.

Jamier Jones, who scored 7 in the first half, ended the game with 20 points. Late in the second half, he scored on a series of spectacular drives and dunks to keep the Friars close.

 

Key Play

At 1:50, the Huskies led 78-73.

After turning the ball over, Jones was called for a flagrant 1 foul. The Huskies' Silas Demary missed both free throws, and then Connecticut’s Tarris Reed was fouled and hit one free throw. The Huskies were up 79-73.

Jaylin Sellers added 18 points, but Vaaks struggled to score in the second half and only added 3 points after the half.

Nilavan Daniels was a surprise contributor. He scored 7 points off the bench and fouled out in the last minute.

This was the Friars third consecutive loss.

The Friars are in last place in the conference.