Local Teams

Nate Watson scored 21 points and Alpha Diallo registered a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead Providence past St. John's 78-59 on Wednesday night in Providence, R.I.

Isiah Jackson and Maliek White both had 11 points for the Friars (15-12, 5-9 Big East), who snapped a two-game losing streak. Watson and Jackson both finished one rebound shy of posting double-doubles.

St. John's (19-8, 7-7) shot 22-for-61 (36.1 percent) from the floor while struggling to build sustained momentum. LJ Figueroa paced the Red Storm with 16 points. Justin Simon and Marcellus Earlington followed with 10 points apiece.

Providence capitalized on the Red Storm's uneven play for good after halftime, stretching an eight-point cushion to 21 by the 12:17 mark. The Friars' 43.1-percent shooting effort included 7-for-17 (41.2 percent) success from 3-point range.

The Friars gelled offensively despite missing starting guard Makai Ashton-Langford for much of the night. Ashton-Langford left with an ankle injury after making a 3-pointer to put Providence ahead 7-0 just 2:03 into the game.

Providence led by as many as 28 points in the second half, while St. John's never held a lead.

St. John's started 0-for-8 from the floor as Providence opened the game on a 9-0 run. The Red Storm scored their first points on a Figueroa trey at the 13:21 mark of the first half and were within 9-7 two minutes later.

Providence led by as many as 12 points in the first half, but its own shooting swoon allowed the Red Storm to cut the deficit to 28-25 on a Figueroa dunk with 1:49 to play before halftime. The Friars recovered to take a 34-26 lead into the break as Watson scored on a layup just before the buzzer.

The Friars defeated the Red Storm 70-56 on Feb. 9 at Madison Square Garden. St. John's leads the all-time series 61-53.

--Field Level Media