The Big East had a 4-0 day in basketball on Tuesday with wins by the No. 1 Syracuse Orange, No. 4 Louisville Cardinals, No. 13 Pittsburgh Panthers and Providence Friars. The league is now 7-1 on the week with as it went 3-1 on Monday.
No. 4 Louisville 69, Charleston 62: Louisville improved to 11-0 last night. Up until the last six minutes of the game, that outcome was in doubt. What changed? Rick Pitino, on the suggestion of his son who is an assistant coach, moved Kyle Kuric into the middle of the Charleston zone. Kuric had five points and an offensive rebound during that stretch. During that period of time, he also made a shot to tie the game at 55 and another at the 3:16 mark which sparked an 8-0 run for Louisville. Kuric finished with a team-high 17 points. Gorgui Dieng had five blocks and a double-double for the Cards with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Antwaine Wiggins was 4-8 from behind the arc and paced Charleston with 23 points. The Cougars as a team shot 12-23 from three-point range on the night.
No. 13 Pittsburgh 71, Saint Francis (PA) 47: Pitt was only 2-11 from behind the arc but shot 50% from the field in a big win over Saint Francis. The Panthers jumped all over the Red Flash from the start with a 13-0 run to open the game. With 6:35 to play in the first half, Pitt led 27-4. The Panthers led 39-21 at halftime. A 10-0 run to start the second half sealed the game for Pitt. St. Francis was held to 35.2% shooting and outrebounded 39-18. J.J. Moore led the Panthers with 15 points. Dante Taylor and Lamar Patterson also reached double figures in scoring for Pitt. The Panthers are on a 9-game win streak.
Providence 67, New Hampshire 52: Providence led this game, 29-23, at halftime. The Wildcats started the second half on an 11-3 run and took their first lead of the game at 34-32. The Friars then showed why they are unbeaten (8-0) at the Dunkin' Donuts Center this season. Vincent Council led the way with eight consecutive Providence points to give the Friars a lead they wouldn't relinquish. The defense held New Hampshire to 10 points during the last 10:41 of the second half. Council finished with 17 points, 12 assists, 7 rebounds, a steal and a block. Gerard Coleman led Providence in scoring with 20 points. LaDontae Henton had a double-double for the Friars with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
There are four Big East basketball games on the schedule tonight: Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Cincinnati (7 p.m., TV: Fox Sports Ohio); Seton Hall at Dayton (7 p.m., TV: None); Texas-Pan American at St. John's (7 p.m., TV: ESPN3); Cal Poly at DePaul (8:30 p.m., TV: None)