Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Late Night Madness on October 4, 2025 at TBA
Men's Basketball
vs Late Night Madness
TBA
Providence College Athletics
Saturday, February 15
Providence, R.I.
8:00 P.M.
Providence College
14-12,7-6Big East
74
vs
71
Seton Hall
18-7,10-3Big East
1
2
F
Seton Hall
27
44
71
Providence
41
33
74
Photo by: Ryan Feeney
Alpha Diallo’s Career Night Leads Men’s Basketball Past No. 10 Seton Hall, 74-71
2/15/2020 11:33:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Diallo scored a career-high 35 points and 10 rebounds.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Providence College men's basketball team defeated the No. 10 Seton Hall Pirates, 74-71, on Saturday, February 15 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, R.I. With this win, the Friars' record advanced to 14-12 on the season and 7-6 in BIG EAST play. This marked the Friars third win over a ranked opponent this season. The last time the Friars defeated a top-10 team at home was the win against Villanova on Feb. 14, 2018.
"I'm proud of the group," said Head Coach Ed Cooley. "Now we have to go on the road against Georgetown coming off of a big-win today. I am very proud of the team's toughness."
Alpha Diallo (New York, N.Y.) had a career night with 35 points and 10 rebounds. He shot 11 for 15 in the game and was 5-5 five three-point territory, which tied his all-time high. This marked his ninth double-double of the season.
"I haven't seen many people have a performance like that in my 14 years as a head coach," said Cooley.
After more than three minutes of being held scoreless, the first Friars' first point of the game came from a Nate Watson (Portsmouth, Va.) free throw. Diallo gave the Friars their first lead and field goal of the game with a three-point basket. Following the media timeout, Pipkins stole the ball from Myles Powell and made the layup in transition.
Over a nearly five minute span, the Friars posted a 20-0 run led by threes from Diallo and Pipkins. A.J. Reeves (Roxbury, Mass.) contributed with a slam in the paint on the fastbreak. The Pirates did not scored a field goal in seven minutes. David Duke (Providence, R.I.) converted on an and-one three pointer with 11:45 remaining in the first half.
Seton Hall head coach Kevin Willard was called for a technical foul just before the media timeout. Duke made both free throws to give Providence a 25-5 lead. The Pirates had made only one of their last 16 shots at the 10-minute mark.
Diallo made his fourth three of the night to keep the Friars rolling. Kalif Young (Vaughan, Ontario) finished in the paint to extend the lead to 22 points. The Friars had made 10 of their last 11 shots. The Friars extended their lead, 32-8.
The Friars had kept Seton Hall under 10 points for just under 14 minutes of the first half. The Pirates reached 10 on a made free throw with 6:06 left on the clock. Duke drew the fifth Pirates turnover of the half when he forced an offensive foul on Myles Powell.
Right before the final media timeout of the half, Watson forced a steal, leading to a Reeves layup in transition. With just under two minutes, Myles Powell stole the ball and laid it in to force a Providence timeout. The score was 39-22 with 1:53 on the clock. Seton Hall went on a 12-2 run to close out the half and decreased their deficit to 14.
The Friars led the way at halftime, 41-27. Providence shot 12-29 (41.4%) from the field, 6-10 (60.0%) from three, and 11-16 (68.8%) from the free throw line. Seton Hall shot 8-28 (28.6%) from the field, 3-13 (23.1%) from three, and 8-11 (72.7%) from the free throw line. Providence's largest lead of the half was 25 points.
Diallo opened up the second half for the Friars with a second-chance layup. Seton Hall continued to close the gap by adding a Jared Rhoden three pointer. The Friars struggled early, only converting on two of their first nine shots of the half. The score was 45-34 going into the first media timeout.
Seton Hall's comeback effort continued with a 13-2 run over a nearly six minute span. Sandro Mamukelashvili dunked it with 13:20 remaining to force a Friars timeout. The Pirates had cut the deficit to five, 45-40.
With 11:35 left, Diallo ended a Friar scoring drought that lasted longer than five minutes. He continued his strong performance with a three-pointer on the next offensive possession. Maliek White (Richmond, Va.) added a layup to extend the Friar lead back to eight. The score was 52-45 with 9:33 to play in regulation.
Diallo kept the Friars on top scoring back-to-back field goals. The Pirates stayed in it at the line making their last four. With just under five minutes to play, Pipkins sunk a mid-range jumper to extend the Friar lead to six. Young stole it on the ensuing Pirates' possession. Providence held the lead 61-54 with 3:08 on the clock.
Up 65-59 with 52 seconds, the Friars went back to the line. Pipkins sank two free throws following a foul by Jared Rhoden, who fouled out of the game. The Pirates were not done though, as Myles Powell, hit a three with 47 seconds remaining to cut the deficit back to five.
At the 32 second mark, Diallo made two free throws at the line. The game continued to be back-and-forth as Powell knocked down another three. Duke made two at the line, yet Seton Hall made another three. The Friars were able to close it out in the closing seconds of the game.
Providence finished 21-59 (35.6%) from the field, 7-17 (41.2%) from three, and 25-35 (71.4%) from the free throw line. Seton Hall finished 20-55 (36.4%) from the field, 9-28 (32.1%) from three, and 22-27 (81.5%) from the free throw line. Myles Powell was the leading scorer for the Pirates with 27 points.
The Friars finished with two players in double-figures in Diallo and Pipkins. They had eight players in the scoring column. The Pirates finished with three players in double-figures and seven in the scoring column.
"I just tried to do whatever it took to get the win," Diallo said. "My teammates were finding me and it gave me the confidence that they would go in."
Up next, the Friars head on the road to take on the Georgetown Hoyas on Wednesday, Feb. 19. Tip-off is at 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
-GO FRIARS-
Team Stats
SHU
PROV
FG%
.364
.356
3FG%
.321
.412
FT%
.815
.714
RB
35
47
TO
15
15
STL
7
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
35
FGM
11
3FGM
5
FTM
8
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
5
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
Guard
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