PC Suffers Embarrassing Loss to DePaul at Home

Providence College men’s basketball team led by 16 points in the first half but went cold as DePaul University got hot.

DePaul won for the first time in seven years in Providence 80-77.

The loss was the Friars' 8th in their last nine games.

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After a 16-point lead in the first half, the Friars continued to lead by 11 at the half, 39-28.

But DePaul rolled in the second half, scoring 52 points, to record their third conference win on the season.

The loss to DePaul marks a low mark for the Friars — giving up a double-digit lead, losing at home and falling to DePaul.

The Friars fall to 12-18 and 6-13 in the Big East.

The Friars battled in the final two minutes. Down by 9 with 1:45 in the game, the Friars cut the lead to 3 points several times.

Bensley Joseph coaxed a Blue Demon into committing a foul as he was shooting a three-pointer from beyond half-court. If he hit all three, he could have tied the game, but he missed twice and then intentionally missed the third shot.

The Friars were led by Corey Floyd, Jr., with 25 points, and Ryan Mela added 18.

 

FIRST HALF: 

Floyd Jr. kicked off the night's scoring with a layup in the Friars' first possession. PC ensued with seven additional unanswered points highlighted by an alley-oop dunk from Oswin Erhunmwunse (Benin City, Nigeria) (9-0). 

Friars held an 11-6 advantage leading into the first media timeout (15:38). 

Providence kept the lead as it mounted a 9-0 run that was capped off by an emphatic dunk from Christ Essandoko (Clichy, France). PC led, 26-13.  

Mela flushed his first three from deep with four minutes left to become the first Friar to reach the double-digit scoring column. PC led, 36-24.  

Floyd Jr. wrapped up the half with 12 points, shooting a flawless 5-for-5 from the field, including a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. 

Providence led 39-28 at halftime.  

 

SECOND HALF: 

Floyd Jr. started the team's second-half scoring with a pair of free throws.  

The Blue Demons found a second-half surge as they mounted a 19-8 run, including an 11-0 spurt to take a 48-47 lead with 11 minutes to go. 

Providence quickly regained the lead as the two teams began to exchange baskets. The Friars led 58-54 at the under-eight timeout (7:13). 

DePaul took the lead in the final minutes. Despite a strong comeback effort from the Friars, the game ended with a scoreline of 80-77 in favor of the Blue Demons. 

HIGHLIGHTS: 

• Three Friars finished in double figures: Floyd Jr. (25), Mela (18) and Joseph (11). 

• DePaul's CJ Gunn led the Blue Demons with 23 points and seven rebounds.  

• The Friars outscored the Blue Demons in points off turnovers (17-7), second-chance points (15-11), points in the paint (40-32) and fast-break points (5-4).  

• Mela and Floyd Jr. finished with career-highs in points scoring 18 and 25, respectively. • Mela had a career-best four steals.  

• The Friars outrebounded DePaul by margin of 31-25. 

• There were three lead changes in the game.  

• The Friars are now 41-14 all-time versus DePaul. 

• The Friars are now 22-5 all-time versus DePaul at home. 
 

NEXT: 

• The Friars will play their final game of the regular season in Cincinnati, Ohio on March 8, against the Xavier Musketeers (20-10, 12-7 BIG EAST). 

• Tip-off is slated for 4:00 p.m. on FS1. 

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