National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Syracuse 87, Providence 73
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Where: Dunkin' Donuts Center, Providence, Rhode Island
Officials: # Bob Donato, # Ray Natill, # Mike Roberts
Attendance: 12252
By SportsDirect Inc.

Providence pushed No. 1 Syracuse into serious foul trouble but still couldn’t prevail, as the Orange survived on the road Wednesday night, 87-73.

Syracuse (16-0, 3-0 Big East) was tested for the first time in nearly a month but still recorded its seventh straight double-digit victory. This win came on the stroke of Brandon Triche, who scored 16 points and tied a season high with four 3-pointers. Triche hit three straight 3s to stretch a four-point halftime advantage into a 14-point lead five minutes into the second half. Two of those were assisted by Scoop Jardine, who finished 11 dishes and 10 points.

Syracuse needed every one of them as Providence (11-5, 0-3 Big East) got within seven after fouling out Syracuse big man Rakeem Christmas with nine minutes left. Fab Melo also had four fouls for the Orange, who had their height advantage neutralized without injured backup center Baye Moussa Keita.

Vincent Council led Providence with 17 points, as all five Friar starters recorded double figures. They looked much improved on the offensive end after scoring just 40 points on 25.5 percent shooting last time out against Georgetown. Six Syracuse players, though, finished with double figures and combined to shoot 61 percent and connect on 10 of 18 3-pointers.

Top Game Performances
 
Syracuse   Providence
Brandon Triche 16 Scoring Gerard Coleman 17
Scoop Jardine 11 Assists Vincent Council 5
Rakeem Christmas 5 Rebounds LaDontae Henton 13
C.J. Fair 4 Free Throws Made Kadeem Batts 8
Kris Joseph 2 Steals Kadeem Batts 1
Fab Melo 2 Blocks Brice Kofane 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Syracuse 87 61.1 10-17 11-16 20 22 5 5 8
Providence 73 48.9 6-13 21-28 13 26 3 4 13