Providence wiped out by Alabama, 88-71

The Providence Friars skidded out on Wednesday night in Asheville. The Friars’ last Maui Invitational game didn’t go as planned, as the Alabama Crimson Tide rolled 88-71.

After holding an 8-0 advantage out of the gate, the Friars let up a 17-3 run by the Tide. Once ‘Bama wrestled the lead away from the Friars at the 13:55 mark of the first half, the Friars never led again. They played catchup the rest of the way and only saw their deficits fluctuate.

Providence cut into the Tide’s lead at the start of the second half with an A.J. Reeves 3-pointer. but three quick points put the lead back up to nine, and they only got to as close as seven the rest of the way. Alabama led by as many as 23 points with 9:31 to go in the second half, comfortably riding the wave to a victory on Wednesday night.

3-point shooting in particular doomed Providence in this one. The uphill battle they faced was only made worse by their woeful 5-for-23 mark from 3-point land. By comparison, the Tide shot 12-for-29, including 8-for-12 from the second half. This was the recipe Alabama needed to pull away, and the one the Friars just didn’t need at all. But so went the night, and into the loss column went Providence.

David Duke (19), Nate Watson (17) and A.J. Reeves (10) finished in double figures. Alyn Breed finished with nine points and no other player who played for the Friars on Wednesday night scored more than six.

Providence is currently scheduled to play Fairfield on Saturday.