Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Pitt (Exhibition) on October 19, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.
Men's Basketball
at Pitt (Exhibition)
2:00 p.m.
Providence College Athletics
Saturday, March 3
Piscataway, N.J.
4:00 PM ET
Providence College
69
at
66
Rutgers
Friars Hold On To Top Rutgers, 69-66
3/3/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 3, 2001
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) - Rutgers players insisted they did not know that Seton Hall had eliminated the Scarlet Knights from qualifying for the Big East Tournament earlier in the day.
It hardly mattered, as Rutgers ended its season in typical fashion by coming close before losing to a conference opponent.
Erron Maxey scored 16 points, including the last four of the game, as Providence took a 69-66 win over Rutgers Saturday. It was the Knights' seventh loss by seven points or less to a conference foe this year.
Moments after the game started, Rutgers (11-16, 3-13) officially joined Virginia Tech as the first two teams in Big East history to miss the conference tournament. Seton Hall clinched the West Division's final berth by defeating Connecticut in a game that ended as Rutgers' game was beginning
Rutgers assistant Bruce Dunfee informed the coaching staff of the Seton Hall score after the game began, but the message was not relayed to the players nor was it announced over the public address system.
"I really didn't know who won until there were five minutes left in our game," said forward Rashod Kent. "I doubt I'll even watch the Big East Tournament now. No competitive person can sit there and watch that when you know you're supposed to be there."
"It's hard knowing that you're not going to the Big East Tournament after doing it for three years," said senior Jeff Greer, who also said he did not hear the Seton Hall score. "To not go in your last year is really tough."
It is the first time Rutgers will not go to a conference tournament since 1975-76, and the first time it will not play a post-season game since 1971-72.
Providence (21-8, 11-5), which became the first Friars team to win 11 conference games, had already clinched the East Division's second seed.
"I would hope that 11 league wins in one of the power conferences in America pretty much locks things up," said Friars coach Tim Welsh concerning an NCAA bid.
Welsh also felt the win was important because it helped the Friars avoid a two-game losing streak entering the tournament.
"You want to feel good about yourself going into the tournament," Welsh said. "Kids' psyches are fragile and if you go into the post-season losing two in a row, maybe a little self doubt will creep into you and your game. You want to limit the pressure at this time of the year and keep confident."
With Rutgers holding a 66-63 lead with 2:29 remaining, Karim Shabazz hit a layup before Maxey sandwiched a baseline jumper and dunk around a Rutgers turnover to make it 67-66 with 28.6 seconds left. Rutgers used three timeouts before Todd Billet missed a three-pointer as time ran out.
Billet scored 21 points and his three three-pointers set the school record with 82 this season, breaking Tom Savage's mark of 81 in 1988-89. Karim Shabazz had 15 for Providence while John Linehan added 13 and Abdull Mills 11.
"As adults (the coaches) just wanted to win a basketball game," Rutgers coach Kevin Bannon said. "Of course we feel bad, but I thought our kids' response was incredible. Particularly getting down a number of times and then getting back."
Providence enjoyed two 12-point leads in the first half and led 43-31 early in the second half before Billet scored 10 points in a 25-11 run that gave Rutgers its first lead, 56-54. Billet's record-setting three-pointer put Rutgers ahead, starting a sequence of six lead changes and two ties before Maxey's jumper gave Providence the lead for good.
Rutgers, which reached the NIT the previous two seasons, finishes with its third losing record in Bannon's four years as head coach, and its eighth losing season in nine years.
2018-2019 Men's Basketball Highlight Video
Saturday, April 13
