Blue Demons defeat Providence, improve to 2-0 in conference play
No let down for the Blue Demons coming off their upset win over No.16 Villanova on Thursday, as DePaul beat Providence on Saturday night 70-65. Despite only eight points from their leading scorer Draelon Burns, DePaul (6-7, 2-0) won their their second straight game over a Big East opponent, marking the first time in their history they have won their first two conference games.
Dar Tucker led DePaul with 15 points and Will Walker added 13. Walker was a huge factor down the stretch, helping DePaul to the win. Walker hit a three-pointer to put the Blue Demons up 67-60 with less than three minutes to go. Then Walker sealed the deal, stealing an inbounds pass and went the all the way to rack, only to have his layup attempt goaltended with one second to play.
Providence (9-5, 0-2) made a good game of things, cutting their 13-point deficit at halftime (37-24) to five points after a 10-3 run got the Friars back in it early in the second half. With DePaul lagging and in need of boost, Tucker drained two 3-pointers and threw down a slam dunk to get the juices flowing again for the Blue Demons. Providence refused to fold, cutting the DePaul lead to three on two different occasions, 60-57 and then 68-65 with a minute to go. Providence, however, couldn’t get any closer.
The Friars had a chance to tie the game at 68 twice in the final 10 seconds. After a Tucker miss, Providence couldn’t connect on a 3-point attempt, but got another chance after Tucker missed a free-throw. Off the inbounds, however, Walker stole the ball and had his layup goaltended at the other end to seal the victory.
Weyinmi Efejuku had a game-high 20 points and Jeff Xavier added 15 points for the Friars, who remain winless in conference play. Providence will be idle until Wednesday night when they host Rutgers at 7:30 p.m. DePaul will square off against Georgetown on Tuesday night at 9 p.m.
Tags: Big East Basketball, DePaul Blue Demons, NCAA Men's basketball, Providence Friars