Pierre's 19 help Providence take down Villanova 75-62

Audio By Carbonatix

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Jayden Pierre had 19 points in Providence's 75-62 victory over Villanova on Saturday night.

Pierre shot 6 for 14 (5 for 9 from 3-point range) and 2 of 5 from the free-throw line for the Friars (12-14, 6-9 Big East Conference). Bensley Joseph scored 17 points while going 5 of 9 from the floor, including 2 for 6 from 3-point range, and 5 for 6 from the line and added six rebounds and six assists. Ryan Mela shot 3 of 5 from the field and 5 of 8 from the free-throw line to finish with 12 points, while adding nine rebounds, six assists, and three steals.

Wooga Poplar led the Wildcats (15-11, 8-7) in scoring, finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds and two steals. Jordan Longino added 18 points for Villanova. Eric Dixon had 15 points and nine rebounds.

Providence took the lead with 19:40 remaining in the first half and never looked back. The score was 36-24 at halftime, with Pierre racking up 11 points. Providence pulled away with a 10-0 run in the second half to extend a 12-point lead to 22 points. They outscored Villanova by one point in the final half, as Mela led the way with a team-high nine second-half points.

Providence plays Wednesday against Georgetown on the road, and Villanova visits UConn on Tuesday.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.