PC Hangs on to Steal Win at Seton Hall

PC Hangs on to Steal Win at Seton Hall

Oh my!

The Providence College men's basketball team was down early in the first half. Up at hall time, and then the Friars appeared to have the game in hand, building a 15-point lead with 15 minutes to play, but almost everything went wrong.

Seton Hall put a full-court press on the Friars, and the turnovers started.

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The Friars had 19 turnovers for the game, which led to 27 Seton Hall points.

The Friars got so discombobulated that Seton Hall surged ahead 53-51

Providence retook the lead with a seven-point run, capped by a 3-pointer and a jumper, both from Jabri Abdur-Rahim, to go up 60-55 with 3:56 left.

The Friars held on.

PC defeated the Seton Hall Pirates (6-15, 1-9 BIG EAST), 69-67, on Tuesday at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Former Friar Garwey Dual had 13 points and three steals.

The Friars improved to 11-10 overall and 5-5 in BIG EAST play. Three New Jersey natives, Jayden Pierre, Corey Floyd Jr., and Abdur-Rahim, each recorded double-digit performances to pace the Friars. Pierre ended the night with a team-high 16 points, four rebounds and three assists, shooting 6-9 from the field and 3-5 from three. Senior guard Bensley Joseph tacked on 12 points, three assists, and a game-high seven rebounds but added four turnovers.  

"It was a hard-fought Big East battle against one of the toughest, hardest-working teams," said Head Coach Kim English. "I'm glad we came away with the win. Credit to Seton Hall—they're a relentless team that never stops fighting." 

 

FIRST HALF: 

- Oswin Erhunmwunse (Benin City, Nigeria) kicked off the Friars' scoring, knocking down a pair of free-throws. PC trailed 7-5 through five minutes of action.  
- Both teams continued to play back-and-forth over the next ten minutes.  
- With approximately seven minutes remaining, Erhunmwunse ignited a quick run that featured a 3-for-3 shooting stretch that propelled the Friars to an 18-14 lead at the 7:39 mark. - Meanwhile, the Pirates' offensive struggles continued as they went 0-for-6 from the field, made just one of their last eight attempts, and endured a 2:17 scoring drought. 
- Back-to-back baskets from Bensley Joseph (Arlington, Mass.) prompted the first Seton Hall timeout of the game as the Friars led, 23-15, with 6:54 on the clock.  
- Providence capitalized on a 3:40 scoring drought by the Pirates to take a 30-26 lead into halftime. 

 

SECOND HALF: 

- Erhunmwunse sank an emphatic dunk to start the half.  
- Joseph buried a corner three to stretch the Friars' lead to 10, 37-27, with 16:56 remaining. 
- The Friars stayed hot, knocking down their final four shots before the second media timeout of the half. They extended their lead to double digits, 42-29, with 15:28 remaining. 
- PC hit a three-minute lull that allowed the Pirates to come within 10, 54-44. The Friars called a timeout with 12:06 to play.  
- Seton Hall sparked a 9-0 run to bring the score within six. PC led, 44-38.  
- SHU closed out a dominant 25-9 scoring run to reclaim the lead for the first time since the first half with approximately five minutes remaining in the game. 
- The Friars answered, taking a five-point lead entering the final media timeout, 60-55 (3:48 mark).  
- Seton Hall's Prince Aligbe cut the deficit to a one-possession game with a dunk in the final 23 seconds of regulation but the Friars remained in front, 65-63. 
- With three seconds left, the Pirates had a chance to tie the game at 69 after being awarded three free throws. Isaiah Coleman converted one of three. Providence secured a 69-67 win.  

 

HIGHLIGHTS: 

- Five players finished in double figures for the Friars: Pierre (16), Jabri Abdur-Rahim (13), Joseph (12), Floyd (11), and Erhunmwunse (11).  
- The Friars controlled the rebound battle by a margin of three (31-29). 
- Bensley hauled in a team-high seven rebounds. Floyd dished a game-high five assists. 
- SHU's Prince Aligbe finished with a game-high 19 points. Isaiah Coleman and Garwey Dual added 13 points each. The three players contributed 45 of the Pirates' 67 points  

 

NOTES: 

- PC has now registered a 60-56 mark all-time versus Seton Hall, including a 25-31 record on the road. The Friars are finished the regular season 2-0 against the Pirates.  
- Seton Hall is the Friars' fourth most common opponent with 116 games played against the Pirates (URI-134, Brown-125, and St. John's-125). 

 

NEXT: 
The Friars travel to take on the No. 15/14 St. John's Red Storm (18-3, 9-1 BIG EAST) on Saturday, Feb. 1 at the Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. 
Tip-off is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. The game will air live on CBS Sports Network.