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NCAA Basketball

Askew Leads ‘Nova

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Villanova connected on 13 3-pointers – led by five from Devin Askew – as the Wildcats improved to 16-5 and 7-3 in the BIG EAST with a win over Providence at home on Friday night.
Friday, Jan. 30
Villanova 87, Providence 73 – Box Score
Devin Askew scored a game-high 20 points, connecting on 5-of-8 from beyond the arc as Villanova used its long-distance shooting to propel it to a win over Providence.  The opening eight minutes of the game saw three ties and three lead changes before a 13-3 Nova run pushed the lead to 10 (28-18) with 9:16 left in the half.  The Wildcats would not trail the rest of the way.  In the second half, a 3-pointer from Providence’s Stefan Vaaks got the Friars within eight (59-51) with 9:51 to play, but a 13-1 push from Nova put the game out of reach. In addition to Askew, four Wildcats reached double-digits in the scoring column – Tyler Perkins added 19 points and six boards; Acaden Lewis had 12 points and eight assists; Bryce Lindsay finished with 11 and Matthew Hodge 10.  Providence was led by Vaaks’ game-high 25 points, as the freshman made 10-of-18 shots from the floor including five 3-pointers.  Jaylin Sellers added 16 and Ryan Mela 14.
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Of  Note:
Saturday’s Action: Four games are set for Saturday, beginning with a trio of early afternoon tips – Marquette at Seton Hall (Peacock/NBCSN) and Georgetown at Butler (TNT/HBO Max) and noon ET and DePaul at Xavier (FS1) at 1 p.m. ET. Saturday’s action concludes with UConn visiting Creighton at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
Saturday, Jan. 31
Peacock; NBC Sports Network
Marquette at Seton Hall – Noon ET
John Fanta (pxp); Jordan Cornette (analyst)
TNT; HBO Max
Georgetown at Butler – Noon ET
Brian Anderson (pxp); Grant Hill (analyst); Andy Katz (reporter)
FS1
DePaul at Xavier – 1 p.m. ET
Jack Kizer (pxp); Nick Bahe (analyst)
FOX
UConn at Creighton – 8 p.m. ET
Tim Brando (pxp); Donny Marshall (analyst)

Big East: Bizjack Player of Week

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Finley Bizjack of Butler and Nigel James Jr. from Marquette were selected to earn BIG EAST Weekly Honors.  Bizjack averaged 26.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in a pair of wins for the Bulldogs.  James Jr. posted 26.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in a 1-1 week for the Golden Eagles.
BIG EAST Player of the Week
Finley Bizjack, Butler, G, Jr.
Bizjack shined in a pair of wins for Butler, averaging 26.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.0 steal per game.  The 6-4 guard connected on 54.2% (13-24) of his shots from the floor, including 7-of-15 from beyond the arc and 19-of-21 from the free throw line.  Bizjack scored 24 points in a home win over DePaul, connecting on 7-of-11 shots and three 3-pointers.  Last time out against Marquette, he poured in a game-high 28 points to go with five rebounds and four assists.  The junior guard made 12-of-13 shots from the foul line in the win.  Bizjack has tallied at least 24 points in each of his last three outings and ranks third in the BIG EAST in conference scoring, at 19.0 points per game.
BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Nigel James Jr., Marquette, G, Fr.
James Jr. shined for Marquette this past week, posting 26.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game in a 1-1 week.  The 6-0 guard connected on 64.5% of his shots from the floor, including 5-of-9 from the perimeter.  James Jr. poured in 38 points to go with three boards eight assists, and two steals in an overtime win over Providence on Jan. 19.  The 38-point performance is the most in a single-game in the BIG EAST this season.  Last time out at Butler, the freshman from Huntington, N.Y. tallied 15 points, four boards, eight assists, and two steals.  At the halfway point of the conference season, James Jr. leads the BIG EAST with 19.6 points per game in league contests. He is one of four freshmen nationally to lead his respective league in conference scoring.
BIG EAST Honor Roll
Solo Ball, UConn, G, Jr. 
Ball led all scorers with 24 points in UConn’s lone game of the week – an overtime win against Villanova.  The junior guard knocked down five 3-pointers, while also tallying five rebounds and three assists in 38 minutes of play.
Austin Swartz, Creighton, G, So.
Swartz scored 16 points and grabbed four rebounds in Creighton’s win over Xavier on Jan. 21.  The 6-4 guard corralled a missed free throw and scored the game winner high off the glass at the buzzer to propel the Bluejays to their sixth win in BIG EAST play.
KJ Lewis, Georgetown, G, Sr.
Lewis averaged 19.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game in a 1-1 week for Georgetown.  His best performance came at Providence, pouring in 21 of his game-high 26 points in the second half – including a key 3-pointer with 27 seconds left – to complete the Hoyas’ comeback.
Dillon Mitchell, St. John’s, F, Sr.
Mitchell shined in a pair of wins for St. John’s, averaging 17.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 3.0 steals.  He had a double-double – 17 points and 11 rebounds – in a win over Seton Hall, before tallying 17 points, seven boards, six assists, and four steals at Xavier.
Tre Carroll, Xavier, F, Gr.
Carroll averaged 30.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 blocks for the Musketeers last week.  The 6-8 forward had 29 points and four rebounds at Creighton and scored a career-high 31 points to go with three boards, two assists and four blocks versus St. John’s.

Gunn, Vaaks Take Big East Honors

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NEW YORK – CJ Gunn of DePaul and Stefan Vaaks of Providence earned BIG EAST Weekly Honors.  Gunn poured in a career-high 31 points – including seven 3-pointers – to go with seven rebounds in the Blue Demons’ lone contest of the week – a home win over Marquette.  Vaaks averaged 22.5 points and 4.0 assists in two games for the Friars.
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BIG EAST Player of the Week
CJ Gunn, DePaul, G, Sr.
Gunn had a career-high performance in DePaul’s win over Marquette, pouring in 31 points to go with seven rebounds and three assists.  The 6-7 guard connected on 11-of-23 from the floor, including a career-best seven 3-pointers for the Blue Demons.  Gunn scored six of DePaul’s final seven points down the stretch to seal the win in their lone contest of the week.  The seven 3-pointers tie him for fourth-most in program history.  Gunn’s 31 points were the most by a Blue Demon since Dec. 29, 2022 and it marked the seventh 30-point performance of the season by a BIG EAST player; the fifth in a conference game.
BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Stefan Vaaks, Providence, G, Fr.
Vaaks shined for Providence, averaging 22.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in a 1-1 week.  The 6-7 guard connected on 50.0% (16-32) of his shots from the floor, including five 3-pointers, and was 8-for-8 from the free throw line.  Against Villanova, Vaaks tallied 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting (three 3FG) in 37 minutes of play.  He finished his week with 24 points  and a season-best seven assists in a home win over Creighton.  He has scored in double figures in each of his 18 games this season, including tallying 20 or more points in each of his last three outings.  It marks the second time Vaaks has earned BIG EAST weekly honors as a freshman.
BIG EAST Honor Roll
Tarris Reed Jr., UConn, C, Sr. 
Reed averaged a double-double in a 2-0 week for UConn.  The 6-11 senior averaged 18.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, 2.0 steals, and 1.0 assist, while connecting on 54.2% (13-24) of his shots from the floor.  Reed finished with 21 points, nine boards, and three blocked shots at Seton Hall.  Last time out at Georgetown, the senior recorded a double-double with 15 points, 11 rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.
Jamier Jones, Providence, G, Fr.
Jones averaged 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.5 steals in a 1-1 week for Providence, connecting on 57.1% (16-28) shots from the field.  Against Villanova, the 6-6 newcomer scored a season-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting.  In a win over Creighton, Jones logged his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds to go with three steals.
Zuby Ejiofor, St. John’s, F, Sr.
Ejiofor averaged 19.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while connecting on better than 65% (15-23) of his field goal attempts in a 2-0 week for the Red Storm.  The senior forward tallied 22 points, seven rebounds, and three assists in a win over Marquette.  Last time out in a win at Villanova, Ejiofor finished with 17 points, seven boards, an assist, and a blocked shot.
Devin Askew, Villanova, G, Sr.
Askew averaged 20.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in a 1-1 week for Villanova.  He connected on 54.5% (12-22) from the floor, including 6-of-11 from the perimeter.  In a win at Providence, Askew scored 20 points and dished out seven assists.  Last time out against St. John’s, the 6-5 guard tallied 21 points and four rebounds, while making 6-of-10 shots from the floor (3-4 3FG).
Tre Carroll, Xavier, F, Gr.
Carroll poured in 29 points to go with nine rebounds and five blocked shots in Xavier’s lone game of the week – a home win over Butler.  The 6-8 forward connected on 12-of-22 shots from the floor in 34 minutes.  His five blocked shots were a career-high and the most by a Musketeer this season.

Demary Jr. Takes Big East Honor

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NEW YORK – UConn’s Silas Demary Jr. was named BIG EAST Player of the Week, while teammate Braylon Mullins was picked to be BIG EAST Freshman of the Week.  Demary Jr. averaged a near double-double in points and assists – 18.5 points and 9.5 assists – in a pair of wins for the Huskies.  Mullins led UConn in scoring in both games this past week, averaging 20.0 points to go along with 4.5 rebounds per outing.
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BIG EAST Player of the Week
Silas Demary Jr., UConn, G, Jr.
Demary Jr. averaged 18.5 points, 9.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 4.0 steals in a 2-0 week for UConn. The 6-4 guard was brilliant in an overtime win at Providence on Jan. 7, finishing with 23 points, a career-high 15 assists, and five steals.  Demary Jr. logged one turnover against the Friars – marking only the fifth time in BIG EAST history that a player had 15 assists with one or fewer turnovers. He became the first BIG EAST player since the 2017-18 season to log at least 20 points and 15 assists in a game.  Last time out against DePaul on Jan. 10, the junior from Raleigh, N.C. tallied 14 points, three boards, four assists, and three steals.  For the week, Demary Jr. connected on 61.1% of his attempts from the floor (11-18), including 6-of-9 from beyond the arc, while posting a 3.80:1 assist/turnover ratio.
BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Braylon Mullins, UConn, F, G.
Mullins led UConn in scoring in a pair of wins last week, averaging 20.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.0 blocks.  His best game of the week came at Providence on Jan. 7, scoring a game and season-high 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including 6-of-10 from beyond the arc.  Eight of his 24 points came in the overtime period for the Huskies.  Against DePaul on Jan. 10, the 6-6 guard registered a team-high 16 points, a season-best seven rebounds, three assists, three steals, and two blocks.  Over the two games, he connected on nearly 55% (13-24) of his field goal attempts, including 8-of-15 from the perimeter.  It marks the second weekly honor for Mullins this season.
BIG EAST Honor Roll
Nigel James Jr., Marquette, G, Fr.
James Jr. averaged 20.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 2.5 steals in a 1-1 week for Marquette.  He poured in a career-best 31 points, knocking down seven 3-pointers, to go with six assists and three steals against Villanova on Jan. 10.  The freshman guard added 10 points, six assists, and four boards in a win over Xavier on Jan. 7.
Zuby Ejiofor, St. John’s, F, Sr.
Ejiofor averaged 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.5 steals in two road wins for St. John’s.  His best game of the week came on Jan. 7, finishing with 18 points, five boards, two assists, and three steals at Butler.  Last time out at Creighton, the senior finished with 12 points, six assists, four boards, and four steals.
Budd Clark, Seton Hall, G, Jr.
Clark scored 22 points to go with five rebounds, two assists, and a steal in a comeback win for Seton Hall at Georgetown on Jan. 10.  The junior guard scored 13 of his 22 points in the second half while connecting on 6-of-12 from the floor and 10-of-12 from the free throw line on the night for the Pirates.
Acaden Lewis, Villanova, G, Fr.
Lewis averaged 20.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game in a 1-1 week for Villanova.  Against Creighton on Jan. 7, the freshman guard finished with 20 points, four boards, seven assists, and three steals.  In a win at Marquette on Jan. 10, Lewis again tallied 20 points to go with eight assists.
Malik Messina-Moore, Xavier, G, Sr.
Messina-Moore averaged 22.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 3.0 steals in a 1-1 week for Xavier.  The senior guard had 22 points, three boards, three assists, and five steals at Marquette on Jan. 7.  Last time out, he finished with 23 points – including five 3-pointers – in a home win over Providence.

Big East Break – January 10th

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STORRS – (Wire Service Preview) – After a two-day break, BIG EAST men’s basketball returns with five games – and 10 of its 11 teams in action – on Saturday. The full day of action begins with a doubleheader on TNT and truTV, as DePaul visits UConn at 12:30 p.m. ET. In the second game, Villanova travels to Marquette for a 2:30 p.m. ET start. Marquette head coach Shaka Smart will be wired for sound throughout the game, adding a unique perspective to the matchup in Milwaukee.

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The first of three games airing on FS1 begins at 2 p.m. ET as St. John’s heads to Creighton. That game is followed by Providence at Xavier at 4 p.m. ET and is capped off by a 6 p.m. ET matchup as Seton Hall takes on Georgetown in Washington, D.C.

Saturday, Jan. 10

TNT & truTV
DePaul at UConn – 12:30 p.m. ET
Spero Dedes (pxp); Greg Anthony (analyst)

Villanova at Marquette – 2:30 p.m. ET
Brian Anderson (pxp); Grant Hill (analyst)

FS1
St. John’s at Creighton – 2 p.m. ET
Tim Brando (pxp); Donny Marshall (analyst)

Providence at Xavier – 4 p.m. ET
Connor Onion (pxp); Nick Bahe (analyst)

Seton Hall at Georgetown – 6 p.m. ET
Chris Vosters (pxp); Tarik Turner (analyst)

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Looking Ahead: The BIG EAST is off on Sunday, Jan. 11 and returns to action with four games on Tuesday, Jan. 13: Villanova at Providence, Marquette at St. John’s, Connecticut at Seton Hall, and Georgetown at Creighton.

Zuby Doobie, Do

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Zuby Ejiofor from St. John’s and Jamier Jones from Providence were selected to earn BIG EAST Men’s Basketball weekly honors for games played between Dec. 29 and Jan. 4.  Ejiofor averaged nearly 30 points and 13 rebounds this past week, while Jones tallied a double-double (15 points/10 rebounds) for the Friars.
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BIG EAST Player of the Week
Zuby Ejiofor, St. John’s, F, Sr.
Ejiofor averaged 29.0 points, 12.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.0 steals, and 2.0 blocked shots while connecting on 60.0% from the floor (15-25) in a 1-1 week for St. John’s.  His best performance of the week came at home on Jan. 3 against Providence, as the 6-9 forward finished with career-highs in points (33) and rebounds (15) to go with two assists, two steals, and three blocks in 34 minutes.  Ejiofor was 8-of-16 from the floor, including 3-of-6 from the perimeter.  Eleven of his 15 rebounds came on the offensive glass – tying for the most offensive boards in a game this season.  At Georgetown on Dec. 31, the senior forward posted a near triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-best seven assists.
BIG EAST Freshman of the Week
Jamier Jones, Providence, F, Fr.
Jones posted his first collegiate double-double, with 15 points and 10 rebounds, in Providence’s win at St. John’s.  Five of Jones’ 10 boards came on the offensive glass, leading to nine second-chance points for the Friars – including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:59 left in the game.  The 6-6 forward was 5-for-7 from the floor and scored 10 of his 15 points over the final 20 minutes of play.  He added two assists and two steals in 25 minutes of action.  For the season, Jones is averaging 10.4 points per game and is connecting on nearly 69% of his field goal attempts (57-83).
BIG EAST Honor Roll
Solo Ball, UConn, G, Jr.
Ball led UConn this past week, averaging 17.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.0 blocked shot while connecting on nearly 55% shooting from the floor in a pair of wins.  He scored 17 points at Xavier on Dec. 31, before tallying 17 points and eight rebounds at home vs. Marquette.
Jasen Green, Creighton, F, Jr.
Green averaged 18.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.0 steal in two games last week. He tallied a career-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting at Butler on Dec. 30 before narrowly missing a double-double at Seton Hall – 13 points and a career-best nine rebounds.
CJ Gunn, DePaul, G, Sr.
Gunn tallied 18.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.0 block over a two-game span this past week.  He had 15 points and seven rebounds at Villanova before finishing with a game-high 22 points in a home win over Xavier.  The 6-7 guard shot 50% (14-28) from the floor on the week.
KJ Lewis, Georgetown, G, Jr.
Lewis poured in a career-high 27 points, connecting on eight field goals and a perfect 10-of-10 from the foul line.  The 6-4 guard added three rebounds, an assist, three steals, and a blocked shot in 28 minutes.  It was Lewis’ third game with at least 20 points this season.
Bryce Lindsay, Villanova, G, Jr.
Lindsay was terrific in a pair of Villanova wins last week.  Against DePaul, Lindsay tallied 19 points while knocking down 5-of-10 from the perimeter.  The 6-3 guard scored 11 of his 18 points in the second half, keying a comeback for the Wildcats at Butler on Jan. 3.

Big East Brings In New Year

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CINCINNATI – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – UConn led wire-to-wire in a win at Xavier, Villanova used a second half rally to get past DePaul, and St. John’s set a new program standard for 3-point shooting at Georgetown.
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Wednesday, Dec. 31
UConn 90, Xavier 67 – Box Score 
Alex Karaban led all scorers with 19 points as UConn won its ninth straight game.  The Huskies started strong out of the gate and led for the entire game.  Xavier got within 13 points twice in the second half, but the Huskies maintained their advantage by shooting nearly 60 percent from the floor over the final 20 minutes.  Karaban added seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block.  Solo Ball and Braylon Mullins each added 17 points, combining to make seven of UConn’s season-high 13 3-pointers on the night.  For Xavier, Malik Messina-Moore scored a team-high 16 points while Filip Borovicanin added a double-double with 14 points and 11 boards.
Of Note
Villanova 71, DePaul 66 – Box Score 
The Wildcats erased a 10-point second half deficit, using outscoring DePaul 31-16 over the final 11 minutes to move to 2-0 in BIG EAST play. A 9-0 run early in the first half for the Blue Demons gave them the lead the rest of the way, including a 32-28 edge at the break.  DePaul would grow its lead to 50-40 with 11 minutes remaining before Villanova run kickstarted its comeback.  A Tyler Perkins 3-pointer would tie it at 56-56 with six minutes and change left before a Devin Askew trifecta gave Nova the lead for good.  Perkins and Bryce Lindsay each had 19 points for Villanova, combining for nine of Nova’s 10 made 3-pointers.  DePaul was led by CJ Gunn’s 15 points and seven rebounds, while Layden Blocker added 13.
Of Note
St. John’s 95, Georgetown 83 – Box Score 
The Red Storm’s long-range shooting set the tone in their win at Georgetown.  The first three field goals for the Johnnies all came from beyond the arc as they took an 11-9 lead less than four minutes in.  But a 9-0 run by the Hoyas allowed them to retake the lead in a back and forth first half that featured four ties and seven lead changes.  SJU held a 52-47 advantage at the break and led the rest of the way.  Zuby Ejiofor posted one of his most complete stat lines of the season, finishing with 25 points, 10 rebounds, a career-best seven assists, and two steals.  Oziyah Sellers added 16 points and Ian Jackson 14 in the win.  The Hoyas’ KJ Lewis led all scorers with 27, while Malik Mack added 18 points and eight assists.
Of Note
There are no BIG EAST games on Jan. 1 and 2

Big East Round-Up: Nov. 27

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LAS VEGAS – (Wire Service Report) – Creighton earned a 76-66 victory over Oregon in its final game of the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas.  Providence and Georgetown dropped their MTE openers on Thanksgiving night.  Friday features seven BIG EAST teams in action throughout the day.
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Creighton 76, Oregon 66 – Box Score 
Blake Harper led three Creighton players in double figures with 18 points and the Bluejays used a 14-3 run down the stretch to pull away from Oregon in the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas.  Harper also grabbed nine rebounds.  CU led by as many as 17 in the second half before the Ducks got within one – 60-59 – with 6:15 to play.  Owen Freeman had 14 points and seven boards and Nik Graves 12 points and five assists in the win.
Wisconsin 104, Providence 83 – Box Score
Jason Edwards scored a team-high 20 points but it was not enough as Providence dropped the opening game to Wisconsin at the Rady Children’s Invitational in San Diego.  Providence fell behind midway through the first half and could not recover, despite making 11 3FG. Stefan Vaaks had 11 while Jamier Jones and Oswin Erhunmwunse each tallied 10 points.
Dayton 84, Georgetown 79 – Box Score
Malik Mack’s 3-point attempt near the end of the overtime period rattled out as the Hoyas dropped their first game of the season to Dayton in the ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando.  Trailing by 14 with just under six minutes left in regulation, GU used a 16-2 push to force an extra frame.  Mack had 24 points while KJ Lewis scored 19 and Julius Halafonua had 16.
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Friday is a busy day with seven BIG EAST teams in action.

BIG EAST Update: Nov. 23

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WASH DC – (Staff Report from Official Conference News Release) – BIG EAST teams were 3-0 on Saturday.  Georgetown moved to 5-0 with a home win over Wagner, Marquette used a strong second half to down Central Michigan, and late long-range shooting propelled Providence past Penn State at Mohegan Sun.
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Georgetown 92, Wagner 75 – Box Score
The Hoyas are now 5-0 for the first time since the 2017-18 season.  Balanced scoring efforts were in full display, tallying a season-high 92 points in a win over Wagner.  Malik Mack led Georgetown with 18 points, connecting on four 3-pointers while also tallying five assists.  Julius Halaifonua registered new career-highs in scoring (16) and rebounding (9).  GU also tallied 21 assists on 29 made field goals for the game.
Marquette 85, Central Michigan 71 – Box Score
Chase Ross was outstanding once again for the Golden Eagles, finishing with 27 points (7-8 FG; 12-14 FT), five rebounds, and seven assists.  Zaide Lowery added 12 points and five assists as seven Marquette players tallied at least six points.  For the game, MU tallied 42 of its 85 points in the paint and connected on nearly 53% of its shot attempts, while recording 21 assists on 28 field goals.
Providence 77, Penn State 65 – Box Score
Stefan Vaaks’ pair of late-game 3-pointers pushed the Friars ahead of Penn State at the Hall of Fame Showcase at Mohegan Sun.  Leading by three – 68-65 – late, Vaaks connected on a 3-pointer out of a timeout with 1:58 to play and added a second trifecta off a PSU turnover. Jason Edwards tallied 14 points and six rebounds, while Jaylin Sellers added 13 points.  Oswin Erhunmwunse narrowly missed a double-double (11 pts/8 reb) to go with four blocks.
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Sunday features four BIG EAST games, beginning with Butler and Virginia in the title game of the Greenbriar Tip-Off at 2 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.  Xavier finishes up play in the Shriners Children Charleston Classic, taking on West Virginia at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN.  No. 3/3 UConn hosts Bryant in Hartford at 6 p.m. on truTV, while DePaul takes on Detroit Mercy at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
CBSSN
Butler vs. Virginia – 2 p.m.
Jack Benjamin (pxp); Anne O’Neil (analyst)
ESPN
Xavier vs. West Virginia – 3:30 p.m.
John Schriffen (pxp); Scott Williams (analyst)
truTV
Bryant at UConn – 6 p.m. ET
Brendan Glasheen (pxp); Steve Smith (analyst)
ESPN+
Detroit Mercy at DePaul – 6 p.m. ET – Watch
Evan Stockton (pxp); Jerel McNeal (analyst)

Big East Update: Nov. 22

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WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS – Butler held a commanding 48-29 rebounding advantage in its win over South Carolina at the Greenbrier Tip-Off on Friday afternoon.  Xavier erased a 14-point second half deficit but ultimately fell, 78-77, against Georgia at the Shriners Children Charleston Classic.
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Butler 79, South Carolina 72 – Box Score 
The Bulldogs led wire-to-wire over the Gamecocks, jumping out to a double-digit lead early after a 10-0 run midway through the first half. Butler led by as many as 15 with 14 minutes to go.  Finley Bizjack led four Butler players in double-digits with 18 points, while Michael Ajayi posted his fifth consecutive double-double, with 15 points and 14 rebounds.  Butler’s 79 points was a season-low; its 92.4 points per game is good for 35th nationally.
Georgia 78, Xavier 77  – Box Score
Xavier powered back from 14 points down in the second half to take a 77-75 lead after a 3-pointer from All Wright with 1:38 to play.  Georgia connected on the game winning shot from beyond the arc with 11 seconds to go.  Tre Carroll posted his first double-double of the season, with 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Wright and Jovan Milicevic each had 19.
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Three BIG EAST teams are in action today, beginning with 4-0 Georgetown hosting Wagner at noon.  Marquette and Central Michigan play at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee at 2 p.m. ET, followed by Providence and Penn State in the Basketball Hall of Fame Showcase at Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut at 4 p.m. ET.
ESPN+
Wagner at Georgetown – Noon ET – Watch
Jeremy Huber (pxp); Martin Bahar (analyst)
truTV
Central Michigan at Marquette – 2 p.m. ET
Brian Anderson (pxp); Grant Hill (analyst)
Providence vs. Penn State – 4 p.m. ET –
Brandon Gaudin (pxp); Robbie Hummel (analyst)