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
Friday, December 20
Providence, R.I.
8:00 PM
Providence College
7-6,1-1Big East
70
vs
72
St. John's
10-2,2-0Big East
1
2
F
St. John's (NY)
29
43
72
Providence
42
28
70
Men’s Basketball Falls to St. John’s, 72-70
12/20/2024 11:06:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Three players finished in double figures for the Friars.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Providence College men's basketball team was defeated by the St. John's Red Storm (9-2, 1-1 BIG EAST), 72-70, on Friday, Dec. 20 at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R.I. The Friars fell to 7-6 overall and 1-1 in BIG EAST play. Senior Bensley Joseph (Arlington, Mass.) led the way for the Friars with 17 points and recorded a career-high eight rebounds. Junior Jayden Pierre (Elizabeth, N.J.) added 16 points.
FIRST HALF:
- Pierre put the Friars on the board first from the free throw line.
- Both teams got off to a hot start offensively, each shooting above 60% through their first 10 shots. The Friars held a slim 17-16 lead with 14 minutes left in the half.
- Midway through the first half, the Friars pulled ahead with an 18-5 scoring run, holding St. John's scoreless for over three minutes. PC gained a nine-point advantage, 27-18.
- Pierre was the first player to notch double figures. He connected on two three-pointers early in the half.
- PC constructed another scoring run - this time a 9-0 surge - to extend the lead further. With three minutes remaining in the half, the Friars led 38-22.
- The Red Storm offense endured a long cold spell in the first half. Ahead of the final media timeout, St. John's had missed 12 of its last 13 shots and had not scored in nearly five minutes of action.
- The Friars led by 13 points - 42-29 - heading into halftime.
SECOND HALF:
- Anton Bonke (Port Vila, Vanuatu) entered the scoring column with a second-chance bucket on the first possession.
- St. John's engineered a 9-3 run and chipped away at the deficit early in the half.
- Pierre found Bonke for a wide-open slam at the 13:27 mark. The basket ended a brief field goal drought for the Friars. PC led 50-42.
- Momentum swung in favor of St. John's as the half progressed. With just over seven minutes remaining, the Red Storm capped off a 7-0 run to take the lead.
- At the 5:36 mark, Wesley Cardet Jr. (Tallahassee, Fla.) finished through contact and converted a timely and-one. The Friars regained the lead, 61-60.
- St. John's went on an 8-0 run, aided by a flagrant foul on the Friars. PC trailed 68-65 with two minutes left.
- With 20 seconds remaining, Joseph buried a long-range triple to tie the game at 70.
- On the final possession, Zuby Ejiofor hauled in the offensive rebound off a miss. His second-chance layup beat the buzzer to win the game for St. John's.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Three players finished in double figures for the Friars: Joseph (17), Pierre (16) and Cardet (10).
- Joseph's eight rebounds marked a new career high.
- The Friars out-rebounded St. John's by a margin of four (43-39).
- There were 10 lead changes in the game.
- Ryan Mela (Natick, Mass.) contributed seven points and six rebounds off the bench.
NOTES:
- Tonight marked the first home game for the Friars since Dec. 3, which was a win over BYU.
- The Friars have registered a 58-67 mark all-time versus St. John's.
- Last season, the Friars posted a 1-1 record versus St. John's with each team winning at home.
- In the last game between the PC and St. John's, the Friars earned a 75-72 win in Providence on 2/13/24.
UP NEXT:
- The Friars host the No. 9/9 Marquette Golden Eagles on Tuesday, Dec. 31 at the Amica Mutual Pavilion.
- Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. and the game will be televised on FS1.
-GO FRIARS!-
Team Stats
SJU
PROV
FG%
.397
.481
3FG%
.167
.368
FT%
.423
.765
RB
39
43
TO
6
17
STL
12
1
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
C
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