PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Providence College men’s basketball team defeated the Green Bay Phoenix (1-3), 79-65, in a non-conference game on Saturday, Nov. 16 at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R.I. With the win, the Friars improved to 4-0 on the season for the first time since the 2021-22 season. Junior Jayden Pierre (Elizabeth, N.J.) scored a team-high 18 points by shooting 7-10 from the field and 4-6 from three. Wesley Cardet Jr. (Tallahassee, Fla.) anchored the team with seven rebounds.
“I’m proud of our guys finding a way to win,” Head Coach Kim English said. “We did some good things in the second half. We were better with the turnovers, and that number keeps coming down as we continue. Now, on to the next one. Short turnaround before Delaware State on Tuesday and we just got to keep getting better.”
FIRST HALF:
• Corey Floyd Jr. (Franklin, N.J.) opened PC’s scoring with a pull-up jumper.
• Both teams experienced scoring droughts, each lasting over two minutes.
• Pierre put the Friars ahead for the first time with a three-pointer at the 15:58 mark. By the first media timeout (15:05), the Friars held a narrow 9-8 lead.
• Coming out of the timeout, the Phoenix reclaimed the lead with a three-pointer, to make it 11-9. Jayden Pierre quickly responded with a jumper to tie the game. Eli DeLaurier (Shipman, Va.) followed up with a layup to put the Friars back in front. With 13:34 remaining, Providence held a 13-11 advantage.
• Green Bay went on a 6-0 scoring run over a two-minute stretch. At the under-12 timeout (11:00), Friars trailed, 17-13.
• Led by Floyd Jr., who contributed three points, the Friars went on an 8-0 scoring run. With 7:35 remaining in the half, they held a two-point lead, 21-19.
• With 6:44 on the clock Mela knocked down a jumper, drew a foul, and sank the free throw to push the Friars to their largest lead of the game, 26-20.
• Providence began to pull away late in the first half, fueled by back-to-back three-pointers from Rich Barron (Chicago, Ill.) and Jabri Abdur Rahim (South Orange, N.J.). By the final media timeout, the Friars had built a six-point lead, 35-29.
• The Phoenix gained momentum in the final minute, hitting five of their last seven field goal attempts. Foster Wonders capped the run with a three-pointer that cut the deficit to a one-possession game and prompted a Providence timeout.
• Green Bay finished the half on a 7-0 run as they tied the game with a layup with three seconds left. The score was deadlocked at 36-36 heading into halftime.
• The Friars went scoreless in the final 2:14 of the half.
• Pierre and Floyd contributed 16 of the team’s 36 points (44.44%), with each scoring eight entering halftime.
• Providence shot 12-29 (41.4%) from the field, 6-14 (42.9%) from three, and 6-9 (66.7%) from the free-throw line.
• Green Bay shot 13-30 (43.3%) from the field, 5-17 (29.4%) from three, and 5-8 (62.5%) from the free-throw line.
SECOND HALF:
• Pierre opened the second-half scoring with a reverse layup. The Phoenix countered in the following possession with two points.
• At the first media timeout (15:51), Friars trailed, 48-43.
• Highlighted by an alley-oop dunk from Floyd Jr., the Friars entered a 7-0 scoring drive that tied the score at 50 entering the second media timeout (13:15).
• Pierre extended the run to 10 unanswered points with a three from the top of the key. At the under-12 media timeout, the Friars led, 53-50.
• Oswin Erhunmwunse (Benin City, Nigeria) landed an emphatic dunk that marked the Friars’ 60th point of the match. Friars led, 60-54 (9:33).
• The Friars kept their momentum going. With about five minutes remaining in regulation, Joseph stretched the Friar scoring run to seven points to give them an 11-point advantage over Green Bay, 69-58.
• The Friars maintained the lead for the remainder of the game. PC finished on top, 79-65.
• HIGHLIGHTS:
• Providence finished 27-62 (43.5%) from the field, 9-29 (31.0%) from three and 16-28 (57.1%) from the free throw line.
• Green Bay finished 24-56 (42.9%) from the field, 8-29 (27.6%) from three and 9-15 (60.0%) from the free throw line.
• The Friars scored a season-high 79 points.
• Pierre scored 10 points in the second half. He finished with a team-best 18 points by shooting 7-10 from the field and 4-6 from three.
• Providence outscored Green Bay, 43-29, in the second half.
• PC outrebounded the Phoenix, 42-33, including 24-14 in the second half.
• The Friars outscored Green Bay in points off turnovers (18-8), bench points (27-9), points in the paint (36-32), and fast-break points (10-2).
• Marcus Hall led the Green Bay offense with 19 points.
• Pierre and Floyd Jr. both recorded double-digit scoring performances for the Friars. Pierre led with 18 points, while Floyd Jr. added 12.
NOTES
• Attendance: 11,927
• The Friars played their first game ever versus Green Bay.
• Providence has now posted a 9-0 mark versus current teams in the Horizon League.
• The Friars opened their season with four-straight wins for the first time since the 2021-22 season.
• Providence is now 30-1 in its last 31 non-conference home games.
UP NEXT
The Friars will play their final home game of November against Delaware State (2-2) on Tuesday, November 19, at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R.I. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on FS2.
This will be the first matchup all-time between the two schools.
-GO FRIARS!-
