CINCINNATI, OHIO – Providence College earned a 50-48 victory over Xavier in BIG EAST action on Jan. 28 at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Grace Efosa finished with a game-high 16 points, including the game-winning jumper with 4.4-seconds left in regulation. Providence improved to 13-10 (4-8 BIG EAST), while the Musketeers dropped to 7-14 overall (0-12 BIG EAST).
1ST QUARTER:
•
Brynn Farrell got the Friars on the board first with a three from the top of the key at 8:51.
• Providence got out to a 7-0 start overall as Efosa scored four-straight, forcing a Xavier timeout with 6:07 on the clock.
• The Friars extended their lead to 9-0 before Xavier finally cracked the scoring column at the 5:15 mark, sparking a 7-0 run for the Musketeers (9-7).
• Farrell and
Kylee Sheppard drilled back-to-back threes and
Nariah Scott buried a turnaround jumper to cap an 8-0 run, giving Providence a 17-7 advantage.
• The Friars took a 17-9 lead into the intermission, shooting 44-percent from the field (7-16), including a 60-percent clip from beyond the arc (3-5).
2ND QUARTER:
• Xavier started the second quarter with a 14-0 run to take a 23-17 lead.
• Sheppard and Efosa hit back-to-back field goals to halt the Musketeers' run (23-21).
• Scott scored seven-straight points to help Providence regain the lead at 28-25.
• The Friars took a 28-26 lead into halftime.
• Scott paced Providence with nine points, which matched her career high.
3RD QUARTER:
• The teams traded basket for basket through the opening six minutes of the third to produce a 38-38 tie at the media timeout (3:54).
• Providence went scoreless for 4:13 before Scott converted one of two free throws to get the Friars within 40-39.
• Xavier maintained its one-point advantage heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
4TH QUARTER:
• Efosa recorded the first bucket of the fourth to give Providence a 41-40 lead (8:18).
•
Meghan Huerter followed with a three-pointer in transition on the Friars' next possession to provide a four-point cushion and force a Xavier timeout (44-40).
• Providence went scoreless for 3:40, while Xavier regained the lead (45-44).
• Olsen put home a lay-up at the left block as the shot clock expired on a nice feed from Sheppard at the 3:51 mark, but Xavier answered just seconds later to regain the lead (47-46).
• Providence called a timeout with 2:25 left in regulation, trailing 48-46.
• Providence tied the game, 48-48, with 2:05 left on an Efosa jumper.
• The Musketeers had possession with under a minute to play and Olsen grabbed a defensive board on a Xavier miss to take control of the ball.
• The Friars called timeout to advance the ball and Efosa cashed in for the go-ahead bucket with 4.4-seconds left.
• Xavier called its final timeout of the game to advance the ball, with the Friars leading 50-48.
• The Providence defense held strong in the closing seconds to claim the win.
NOTES:
• Efosa led all scorers with 16 points and added eight rebounds and two steals.
• Scott finished with a career-high 10 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots.
• Farrell finished the day with nine points, six boards and a career-high five assists.
• Sheppard, a Cincinnati, Ohio native, finished with eight points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
• Aanaya Harris paced Xavier with 10 points and added five rebounds, four assists and two steals.
UP NEXT:
• The Friars will host No. 5/4 Connecticut on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at Alumni Hall in Providence, R.I. Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m. and the game will be televised on SNY.
- GO FRIARS! -