Butler Drops Road Battle at Providence 73-64

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Box Score PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Butler fell to the Providence College Friars 73-64 on Wednesday evening in Providence, Rhode Island. With the loss Butler slides to 9-16 on the season and 3-12 in BIG EAST play while the Friars improve to 12-14 overall and 5-10 in conference action. 
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BULLDOG HIGHLIGHTS

Kennedy Langham led a trio of Bulldogs in double figures with 12 points on an efficient 4-for-5 shooting performance from the floor. Lily Zeinstra (10) and Nevaeh Jackson (10) rounded out the Bulldogs in double figures. 
Saniya Jackson led the squad on the glass, pulling down six rebounds. 
Mallory Miller paced the offense, dishing out four assists in the contest. 
Butler shot 23-for-53 (43.4%) from the floor and shot 4-for-16 (25%) from beyond the arc. 
BU forced 17 PC turnovers. 
Anna Wypych made her first collegiate start. 

PROVIDENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Sabou Gueye led all scorers with 19 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the floor. Teneisia Brown (16), Orlagh Gormley (13) and Nalani Kaysia (10) rounded out the Friars in double figures. 
Gueye and Brown led PC on the glass, pulling down a game-high eight rebounds apiece. 
Ashley Dinges paced the Friar offense, dishing out four assists. 
Providence shot 26-for-51 (51%) from the floor and shot 4-for-12 (33.3%) from beyond the arc. 
PC outrebounded Butler 36-25. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Both sides traded buckets to open the game after the Friars got on the board first. Providence held the narrow 9-8 advantage at the media timeout of the first quarter. Butler closed the first frame with the narrow 20-18 lead after a buzzer-beater three from Gabby Wilke. 
Providence strung together a 7-0 run early in the second quarter as the Friar lead grew to as many as six (29-23). Both sides continued to go back and forth throughout the frame. PC finished the quarter on a 7-2 run and took the 35-28 lead into the half. 
Both sides continued to go back and forth in the third, trading buckets on nearly every possession. PC held an eight-point lead (49-41) at the end of the third frame as the Bulldogs looked to claw back in the final 10 minutes of action. 
PC attempted to put the Bulldogs away early in the fourth as the PC lead grew to as many as 12 (58-46). BU would not go away as the Dawgs were able to cut the deficit to seven with under a minute left in the game. BU was unable to complete the comeback, as the Friars secured the 73-64 victory at the final whistle. 

 
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Saturday, Feb. 14 as the St. John’s Red Storm visit Hinkle Fieldhouse for a BIG EAST Conference matchup. Tip-off between the two sides is scheduled for 2 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ with Kelsie Kasper and Alexis Ayala on the call.