Butler cruises to 70-58 victory over Providence, winning sixth in a row

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Kamar Baldwin scored 17 points and Bryce Golden had 14 as Butler held Providence scoreless for the first 6 1/2 minutes and held on to win 70-58 on Friday night.

Jordan Tucker scored 17 points for the Bulldogs (15-1, 3-0 Big East), who have won six in a row.

Alpha Diallo scored 21 points for Providence (10-7, 3-1).

Providence missed its first 13 shots before David Duke crashed the lane for an off-balance, falling layup with 13:23 left in the first half. The Friars finished the first half shooting 20% — hitting just 2 of 13 from 3-point range.

But Butler wasn’t able to create much distance, scoring just nine points in that span. PC quickly cut the deficit to four points before Butler began to pull away at the end of the half and went into the break leading 30-18.

Providence scored eight straight points to cut the deficit to 57-49 with four minutes left on a 3-point play by Maliek White. But they couldn’t get any closer.

BIG PICTURE

Butler: Having beaten Providence, the Bulldogs turn to Seton Hall — the only other unbeaten team in conference play. It’s a stretch that will start to separate the best from the rest in the Big East.

Providence: The Friars picked up their first loss in the conference against the best team in the league. They’ll need to shoot better to beat even the lesser opponents.

UP NEXT

Butler: Hosts Seton Hall on Wednesday night.

Providence: Hosts St. John’s on Wednesday night.