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TBA
Providence College Athletics
Saturday, February 21
Providence, R.I.
2:00 PM
Providence College
70
vs
57
Miami
Friars Roll Past Miami, 70-57
2/21/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb 21, 2004
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - This late in the season, Providence coach Tim Welsh doesn't like weeklong breaks between games.
His concern seemed evident Saturday as Miami played No. 19 Providence tough, even taking the lead in the second half, before the Friars pulled away for a 70-57 victory.
"That's the way the schedule goes," Welsh said. "Good teams fight through it. We didn't have that crispness that we usually have, but we tightened up the defense when we needed it."
Rob Sanders scored 14 points to lead five players in double figures for Providence, which has won four in a row.
Providence (18-5, 9-3) remained in second place in the Big East and matched the 2000-01 team for the school's best conference start.
Robert Hite had 15 points for Miami (13-14, 3-10), which lost its ninth straight.
A 3-pointer by Donnie McGrath, who had 13 points, gave Providence the lead for good at 49-47. It was 50-47 when Sanders grabbed the rebound of a missed free throw by Tuukka Kotti and kept possession for the Friars.
After a timeout, Sanders followed his missed 3-point attempt by converting an opposite hand layup to put the Friars up 52-47 with about 11 minutes left.
Miami never got closer than three points the rest of the way.
"Maybe they took too much out of us (during the lead changes)," Miami coach Perry Clark said. "Our defensive intensity was not the same (after that). We got our backs against the wall."
Sanders had his best game since returning from two broken fingers on Feb. 1.
"I'm starting to get it back," he said. "It has taken a few games."
Providence led 35-26 at halftime, but a 3-pointer by Hite with 13:52 left gave Miami its first lead since 1-0. The lead changed five times over the next 4 minutes.
"We didn't bring any energy out of the locker room, and we'll address that," Welsh said. "We were one or two possessions from going man-to-man."
Ryan Gomes and Sheiku Kabba each had 11 points for the Friars, while Kotti added 10, including five points when the game hung in the balance.
 Rob Sanders dribbles past Miami defenders during the second half.  | |
"That's something I have to do," Kotti, a reserve, said. "If other guys don't get it going early, I need to bring in some energy. I was able to have some success at both ends (today)."
Providence's bench contributed 15 points, to three for Miami.
"It wasn't just Ryan and Donnie," Welsh said. "Everyone made plays."
Darius Rice, Miami's leading scorer at 16.7 points per game, did not play. He's been out since spraining his foot Feb. 14 against Syracuse.
Clark thought about inserting his star when Miami got close.
"I made the decision not to play him," Clark said. "I was worried about a possible setback."
Rice, a senior, said he wanted to play.
"I would have added energy on the court, but I have to respect the coach's decision," he said.
Providence shot 52 percent (25-for-48) for the game, while Miami recovered from a 1-for-6 start to finish 23-for-54 (42.6 percent).
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