Horchler carries No. 21 Providence over No. 15 Seton Hall

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Noah Horchler scored 17 points with 13 rebounds, and Nate Watson added 14 points to carry No. 21 Providence to a 70-65 victory over short-handed, 15th-ranked Seton Hall on Wednesday night.

Watson, a 6-foot-10 center, became the 18th player in Providence history to reach 1,500 points.

Playing its first game since a victory over Rutgers on Dec. 12, Seton Hall had only eight players in uniform. Five were in COVID-19 protocols, but only one starter, 7-foot-2 center Ike Obiagu, was out.

Jared Bynum also had 14 points for Providence (12-1, 2-0 Big East), which is off to its best start since opening 2015-16 by winning 14 of its first 15 games.

Alexis Yetna had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Pirates (9-2, 0-1). Bryce Aiken scored 11 points, and Jared Rhoden and Tray Jackson each had 10.

Providence led by nine points at halftime and pushed it to 40-27 on Al Durham’s steal and breakaway jam in the opening minute of the second half.

Seton Hall closed within 57-50 with just under six minutes left on Yetna’s put-back before Providence pushed it back to double digits.

Yetna’s layup cut it to 66-63 with 17.3 seconds left, but Durham hit two free throws.

Seeing their first action since beating then-No. 20 Connecticut on the road 11 days ago, the Friars rode the hot 3-point shooting of Horchler to a 36-27 halftime edge.

Neither team held more than a one-possession lead until Horchler connected from beyond the arc on three straight possessions in just under two minutes during a 15-0 spree that pushed Providence ahead 34-22.

BIG PICTURE

Seton Hall: The Pirates’ season had been derailed by COVID-19 before Wednesday, so it’ll be interesting to see if they can regain the form that led to them climbing in the AP Top 25 before three games were canceled. … The school announced before the game that reserve guard Jahari Long had surgery on his right knee on Dec. 20 and will miss the remainder of the season.

Providence: If experience means anything, the Friars could be in for a strong season. They have a ton of it and some well-balanced scoring, too. Their starting lineup consists of four graduate students and a senior. Three of the starters are averaging double figures and a fourth came in at 9.9 points per game.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Despite having an extremely limited bench on Wednesday, Seton Hall will likely drop a bit in next week’s poll unless the Pirates have a solid showing in their conference home opener on Saturday. Providence almost certainly will climb barring a bad showing over the weekend.

UP NEXT

Seton Hall: Hosts No. 21 Villanova on New Year’s Day.

Providence: At DePaul on New Year’s Day.

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