PROVIDENCE – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – No. 17/17 St. John’s extended its win streak to 11 games with a road win at Providence, while Villanova moved to 6-1 in BIG EAST away games with a victory at Creighton. Xavier made a season-high 16 3-pointers at home in a win over Marquette, and No. 6/5 UConn saw Alex Karaban become the program’s winningest player, pulling away late against Georgetown.
At the St. John’s vs Providence game, seven players were ejected between both teams in the second half, including a technical foul for fighting by Providence’s Duncan Powell at the 14:25 mark.
St. John’s 79, Providence 69 – Box Score
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Dylan Darling tallied 18 of his game and season-high 23 points in the second half to lead No. 17/17 St. John’s to a win at Providence.
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The win extended the Johnnies’ overall win streak to 11 games – the fourth-longest streak in the country.
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The Red Storm built as much as a 13-point advantage in the first half.
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Providence answered with a 7-0 push of its own and got within five at the half (34-29).
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The Friars started the second half on a 7-1 push, regaining the lead early into the period.
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St. John’s took the lead for good after a pair of Bryce Hopkins free throws with 14:25 to play.
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Zuby Ejiofor finished with 14 points, while Oziyah Sellers added 11 for the Red Storm.
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Stefan Vaaks led Providence with 20 points to go with five rebounds and three assists. Ryan Mela added 14 points and nine boards.
Of Note:
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St. John’s held a 31-3 advantage in bench scoring
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The win marked SJU’s 10th straight BIG EAST road victory – the longest such stretch of conference road wins in program history
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Providence’s Stefan Vaaks logged his sixth game with 20 or more points and is one of only three freshmen nationally to have at least 70 made 3-pointers on the season
Villanova 80, Creighton 69 – Box Score
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The Wildcats got double-doubles from Duke Brennan (21 points/12 rebounds) and Tyler Perkins (17 points/11 rebounds) in a road win at Creighton
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It was Brennan’s team-best 11th double-double, while Perkins logged his second of the season
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Nova used an extended 23-8 run en route to building a 16-point lead in the opening frame. The Cats would lead 41-27 at halftime.
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Creighton would get within single digits in the second half, cutting the deficit to seven (49-42) with 16:17 left and eight (68-60) with just under two minutes to play.
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Devin Askew (13) and Malachi Palmer (10) tallied double-digits off the bench for Villanova.
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Nik Graves led the Bluejays with 15 points to go with five assists. Josh Dix added 14 points and Austin Swartz 12.
Of Note:
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Villanova improved to 6-1 in BIG EAST road games and has seven road victories on the season – tied for the second-most among power conference teams
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Devin Askew logged his ninth double-digit scoring output off the bench; six have come in BIG EAST play
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Creighton has logged five or more 3-pointers in 97 straight games
Xavier 96, Marquette 88 – Box Score
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Four Musketeers scored in double figures, led by a career-high 23 from Jovan Milicevic.
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Marquette’s Nigel James Jr. logged his third 30-point performance in BIG EAST play, finishing with 30 points and a career-best 12 assists.
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Xavier trailed for only 19 seconds on the day, after Marquette’s James Jr. opened the game with a 3-pointer.
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The Musketeers connected on 11 first half 3-pointers, opening up as much as a 21-point lead (46-25) with 4:25 left in the opening period
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Marquette’s offense shifted into high gear in the second half, connecting on nearly 58% from the floor
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A Ben Gold dunk got the Golden Eagles as close as three (72-69) with seven and a half minutes to play.
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MU was within four with 2:08 to go before Xavier closed the game on a 9-5 push.
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For Xavier, All Wright finished with 19 points, while Tre Carroll added 18. Filip Borovicanin registered a double-double with 15 points and 11 boards.
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Royce Parham logged 24 points and 10 boards for the Golden Eagles; his second double-double in as many games.
Of Note:
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Xavier has scored 90 or more in BIG EAST play on three occasions and 80 or more seven times.
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The Musketeers logged a season-best 16 3-pointers on 34 attempts
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Marquette’s Nigel James Jr. is the first BIG EAST freshman since Notre Dame’s Troy Murphy to have at least three 30+ point games in conference regular season play
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It was also the first 30 point/12 assist performance in BIG EAST play since Feb. 23, 2002 (Chris Thomas, Notre Dame)
UConn 79, Georgetown 75 – Box Score
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Solo Ball scored 20 points and Alex Karaban added 18 as No. 6/5 UConn improved to 14-1 in BIG EAST play.
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Karaban became UConn’s all-time winningest player, logging his 116th victory in a Husky uniform.
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The Huskies made 56% of their shot attempts in the first half, leading by as many as 11. UConn led 41-33 at the break.
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The lead would rise to as many as 14 (49-35) in the second half before Georgetown began to chip away
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The Hoyas’ Kayvaun Mulready would score 12 of his 15 points over the final 12:30, including a free throw with 11 seconds left that made it a two-point game (77-75).
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Two Karaban free throws with 10 ticks to play sealed the win for the Huskies
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Silas Demary Jr. narrowly missed his second triple-double of the season for UConn, finishing with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists. Freshmen Braylon Mullins and Eric Reibe tallied 10 points apiece.
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Georgetown’s KJ Lewis led all scorers with 24 points. The junior guard added nine rebounds, three assists,, and five steals.
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Vince Iwuchukwu finished with 16 points and seven boards, while Kayvaun Mulready had 15 points (4-7 3FG).
Of Note:
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Alex Karaban also logged his 136th start for UConn, also a new program standard
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Over his last two games, Solo Ball has hit 11 3-pointers on 27 attempts for the Huskies
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Georgetown’s KJ Lewis registered his third game with at least 20 points and five steals. He is one of two power conference players to do so on at least three occasions.
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Today’s action: There is one game scheduled for Sunday, as Seton Hall heads to Butler for a 6 p.m. ET tipoff on FS1.