Providence Weathers First Half Storm, Comes Up Short in the Second
On paper, this had the look of a Providence road victory in some ways.
At the end of the first half, the Friars held a 16-0 advantage in second chance points, made one more 3-pointer than St. John’s, enjoyed a 29-14 edge on the glass, and hit five more free throws than their hosts at Madison Square Garden.
Yet, they trailed, 37-35, at the break after falling behind by 16 points midway through the first half.
PC had to have felt good about where things stood at the break. After stumbling out of the gate and seeing St. John’s surge ahead, 25-9, the Friars seemed to have all of the momentum by halftime.
Their first half comeback was highlighted by a pair of Devin Carter blocks on Joel Soriano on the same possession, and a 9-2 spurt featuring an and-1 from Bryce Hopkins and consecutive 3-pointers from Carter and Jared Bynum.
By the time Providence cut the lead to two with a minute to play in the first, MSG (once again) sounded more like a Providence home game.