PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Cold shooting kept BYU at bay in an 83-64 loss to Providence in the Big 12-BIG EAST Battle on Tuesday night at Amica Mutual Pavilion.
“I’m disappointed with the outcome,” said BYU head coach Kevin Young. “This was an uncharacteristic game for us with a lot of things that haven’t happened for us thus far in the season. This is something we have to respond to for sure.”
The Cougars traded buckets with the Friars in the early going but fell behind by double-digits with 7:48 to play in the first half and struggled to find its way back into the game with an inefficient 23 field goals on 69 attempts, including 7-of-25 from 3-point range. Despite just 42 field goal attempts, Providence shot 60-percent from the floor and hit 12 triples along with 21 free throws.
BYU won the turnover battle with 10 takeaways to five giveaways and outrebounded the Friars 39-32, including 21-2 on the offensive glass. Providence held the advantage in defensive rebounding at 30-18.
Dawson Baker gave the Cougars a spark off the bench with 16 points, 14 of which came in the second half. Baker went 7-of-11 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc with four boards and a steal.
Trevin Knell and Keba Keita each pitched in nine points, with Keita adding 10 rebounds.
First Half
BYU began the game with each of its first two field goals coming from distance. Demin swung a pass outside to Catchings who connected from deep to put the Cougars up 3-2. Moments later, BYU converted a Keita steal into three more with Saunders draining one from the corner.
Keita made his presence felt on the offensive end as he finished an alley-oop and cleaned up an errant jumper with slam dunks on consecutive possessions. The Cougars’ then led at 10-9 but retaking the lead proved elusive despite consecutive scores from Traore and a triple from Knell.
ATTACK MODE.
— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) December 4, 2024
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Traore knocked down his third shot of the night to bring BYU within five at 24-19 with 9:37 to play in the half but Providence found its stroke and went on a 7-0 run to lead 31-19 just over a minute later.
BYU battled back from the double-digit deficit with Demin draining four free throws, Baker making a floater and Knell burying another three. The Cougar defense kept the Friars scoreless over nearly three minutes and pulled BYU within four with 2:52 before the break.
Providence responded to the two-possession game with three-straight triples and quickly had a half-high 14-point lead. Demin got to the line for the third time in the first half and knocked down both free throws as period ended.
BYU went to the locker room down 46-34 after shooting 32-percent from the field to the Friars’ 71. Three-point shooting wasn’t kind to the Cougars with a 4-of-12 first-half mark to Providence’s 8-of-12. Traore led BYU at the break with eight points followed by Demin and Knell with six a-piece.
Second Half
BYU’s cold shooting continued in the opening minutes of the second half until Baker took the floor and heated up to spark a 10-2 run.
After the Cougar defense forced a shot clock violation, Baker took the lid off the basket for BYU as he spun through defenders and scored at the rim. Baker drained a floater moments later and kept the Cougars within 13 at 51-38. Providence would hit a pair of free throws but BYU pulled within seven following treys from Baker and Knell in transition.
. @kanoncatchings 👉 @trevin_knell 👌
— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) December 4, 2024
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The Cougars were down 53-46 with 13:15 to play before the Friars fought back with an 8-0 and eventually 21-5 run over the ensuing seven minutes. After drawing within seven on the 10-2 run, shooting struggles took hold of BYU once again. The Cougars shot 11-of-32 from the field in the second half, including 3-of-13 from distance and 5-of-10 from the free throw line. Providence’s 40-percent from the field and 13-of-16 from the free throw line proved too much for the Cougars to overcome.
Baker continued be BYU’s spark off the bench down the stretch with a 6-of-9 second-half, including two 3-pointers, three rebounds and a steal.
After three games away from home, BYU returns to the Marriott Center to host Fresno State on Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. MST. Watch the Cougars face the Bulldogs on ESPN+ or tune-in for live play-by-play on BYU Radio.