DePaul Rings in New Year Against Providence on Saturday

Saturday, January 1

Chicago, Ill.

2:00 P.M. CT

DePaul University

Providence

DePaul Rings in New Year Against Providence on Saturday

12/31/2021 10:55:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL

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Blue Demons and Friars set for 2 p.m. matchup at Wintrust Arena

CHICAGO – DePaul opens 2022 at Wintrust Arena when the Providence Friars visit for a New Year's Day matinee. The Blue Demons dropped a 63-59 decision at Butler on Wednesday to open conference action while the Friars have won back-to-back BIG EAST games to open their league slate. DePaul returns to Wintrust Arena for the first time since Dec. 7 where the team is 7-1 this season on Ray and Marge Meyer Court.

Saturday's game can be seen on FOX starting at 2 p.m. with Alex Faust (play-by-play) and Steve Lavin (analyst) handling the broadcast duties. The game can also be seen online at foxsports.com/live. DePaul's radio tandem of Zach Zaidman (play-by-play) and Dave Corzine (analyst) can be heard on WSCR (670 AM) and online on DePaul All-Access at depaulbluedemons.com/live. In-game updates can be followed on Twitter at @DePaulHoops and live stats are available at depaulbluedemons.com.

Providence - ranked No. 21 in both the AP and Coaches polls - enters the game at 12-1 overall and 2-0 in the BIG EAST following a 70-65 win against No. 15/13 Seton Hall on Wednesday while DePaul is 9-2 and 0-1 after the four-point loss at Butler.

Demon Doings: Notes following DePaul's 63-59 loss at Butler on Wednesday:

The game was the first for the Blue Demons since Dec. 14... Butler was playing for the first time since Dec. 18.
Yor Anei played in his 85th career game.
Javon Freeman-Liberty grabbed his 500th career rebound in the first half and eclipsed the 250-assist plateau in the second half.
Brandon Johnson's 16-point, 12-rebound double-double was the 17th of his career and first this season... Johnson also passed 850 career rebounds.
Javan Johnson made his DePaul debut after joining the team as a graduate transfer... he finished with six points and two rebounds.
Nick Ongenda scored in double figures for the eighth time in the last nine games... he took sole possession of 16th on the program's all-time blocked shots list... he has 74 blocked shots.
Jalen Terry made his first start at DePaul.
Wednesday was the 23rd all-time meeting between the two programs... Butler leads the series, 16-7... the two sides are scheduled to meet again on Feb. 15 at Wintrust Arena.

It Could Happen: A win snaps a six-game losing streak against ranked opponents... DePaul last win over a ranked team was a 79-66 decision against No. 5/5 Butler at Wintrust Arena on Jan. 18, 2020... on Feb. 2, 2016 at Allstate Arena, the Blue Demons knocked off No. 11/11 Providence, 77-70... Nick Ongenda (74 blocked shots) needs four blocked shots to move into a tie for 15th all-time and five blocks would place him in a tie for 14th... Terry Cummings (1979-82) is 15th with 78 blocks... Kevin Holmes (1982-86) is 14th with 79 rejections.

The Opponent - Providence Friars: Providence - ranked No. 21 in both the AP and Coaches polls - is 12-1 overall this season and 2-0 in BIG EAST play... the Friars defeated No. 15/13 Seton Hall, 70-65, on Wednesday night for their seventh straight win... Nate Watson leads the team with 14.8 points while Aljami Durham adds a scoring average of 12.8 with a team-best 45 assists... A.J. Reeves chips in 11.2 points per game... Noah Horchler averages 10.5 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds per contest... head coach Ed Cooley is in his 11th season leading the Friars.

The Series: Saturday is the 48th all-time meeting between the two programs... the Friars hold a 34-13 advantage in the series... Providence won both meetings during the regular season last year before DePaul claimed a win in the BIG EAST Tournament First Round... the Friars held off DePaul, 95-90, in double overtime on Dec. 27 and 57-47 on Feb. 13 at Wintrust Arena... the Blue Demons posted a 70-62 win over the Friar on March 10 at Madison Square Garden... that victory snapped a four-game run in the series for Providence.

Up Next: DePaul plays at St. John's on Jan. 5 in Queens, N.Y.:

DePaul travels to St. John's on Wednesday... start time is 6:30 p.m. ET at Carnesecca Arena... the game can be seen on FS1 and heard on WIND (560 AM).
St. John's is 8-3 overall this season... Wednesday's game is the first BIG EAST contest for the Red Storm... St. John's dropped a 59-57 decision to Pittsburgh on Dec. 18.
The Red Storm leads the all-time series, 27-21... DePaul knocked off St. John's, 88-83, in the last meeting on Feb. 20, 2021 in Queens... that win snapped a four-game win streak in the series for the Red Storm.