• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Top-ranked Syracuse bests Providence

Jan 5, 2012 - 4:56 AM Providence, RI (Sports Network) - Brandon Triche scored 16 points on 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, as top-ranked Syracuse bested Providence, 87-73, on Wednesday night.

Triche was one of six Syracuse players in double figures, and the Orange (16-0, 3-0 Big East) used that depth to pull away in the second half.

Kris Joseph and Dion Waiters contributed 13 points apiece, C.J. Fair supplied 12, Fab Melo had 11 and Scoop Jardine added 10 in the win to go along with his 11 assists.

Vincent Council and Gerard Coleman both scored 17 points for the Friars (11-5, 0-3), who trailed 36-34 at halftime.

Providence, which entered play with an 8-0 record this season at the Dunkin' Donuts Center, knocked off top-ranked Pittsburgh on February 24, 2009, in its last game against the nation's No. 1 team.

The Friars envisioned another upset, leading by five at 16-11 eight minutes into the contest.

Syracuse, though, responded with an 8-0 run, and Triche nailed a three-pointer to put the visitors on top after 20 minutes.

The Orange opened the second half on a 13-4 surge, with another Triche trey extending the lead to 49-38. A Joseph dunk made it 59-45 with a little over 13 minutes to play, but Providence trimmed its deficit to six at 70-64 on a Coleman layup with 5:42 remaining.

Waiters converted a layup and hit from three-point range to restore a double- digit advantage for Syracuse, which led by as many as 16 down the stretch.

Game Notes

The Orange own a commanding 45-10 series edge over Providence...Syracuse shot a sizzling 73 percent in the second half and scored 28 points off 13 Providence turnovers...Kadeem Batts scored 14 points for the Friars, who got 13 points from Bryce Cotton...LaDontae Henton posted a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds in defeat...Providence fell to 2-11 all-time against top-ranked teams...Council became the 44th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points.