Wednesday, March 5
Providence, RI
5:30 p.m.
DePaul University
12-18,3-16Big East
80
at
77
Providence
12-18,6-13Big East
1
2
F
DePaul
28
52
80
Providence
39
38
77
Blue Demons Walk Away with Win at Providence
3/5/2025 9:00:00 PM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
DePaul tallies road win against Friars for first time since 2018
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – DePaul men's basketball walked out of Providence with a BIG EAST road victory following a nailbiter Wednesday evening, 80-77. Despite being down 11 points at halftime, the Blue Demons had a 52-point second half to win the game down the stretch.
DePaul (12-18, 3-16 BIG EAST) was led by CJ Gunn with 23 points and JJ Traynor with 21, both tallying career highs. Traynor also had a career-best four steals and season-high three blocks. Gunn led DePaul with seven rebounds on the night and added three assists, three blocks and two steals. Isaiah Rivera contributed 11 points, marking his fourth-straight double-digit scoring game.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Providence (12-18, 6-13 BIG EAST) jumped out to an early lead, shooting 53.3 percent as a team in the first half. The Friars forced a handful of DePaul turnovers to take a lead as large 16, 31-15, with seven minutes left in the first. DePaul made four-straight field goals to pull within nine, 33-24, but Providence held onto a double-digit lead going into halftime.
After shooting a perfect 6-of-6 in the first half, Traynor opened the half with the first four points from either team. DePaul continued chipping away, pulling the deficit to six on Gunn's second three-pointer of the night. The Friars lead remained in double-digits, 47-37, until DePaul went on an 11-0 run that included five points off the bench from Théo Pierre-Justin. The Blue Demons took their first lead of the game, 48-47, on a free throw by Layden Blocker. After giving up the lead momentarily, DePaul outscored Providence 20-5 over a four minute stretch for a 74-65 lead with two minutes to play. The Friars fought back with defensive pressure, forcing turnovers, before free throws by Gunn would help ice the game.
OF NOTE
UP NEXT
DePaul will close out its regular season Saturday, March 8 with a 1 p.m. tip against Georgetown. The Blue Demons will honor its three seniors – Troy D'Amico, Isaiah Rivera and David Skogman – pregame.
DePaul (12-18, 3-16 BIG EAST) was led by CJ Gunn with 23 points and JJ Traynor with 21, both tallying career highs. Traynor also had a career-best four steals and season-high three blocks. Gunn led DePaul with seven rebounds on the night and added three assists, three blocks and two steals. Isaiah Rivera contributed 11 points, marking his fourth-straight double-digit scoring game.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Providence (12-18, 6-13 BIG EAST) jumped out to an early lead, shooting 53.3 percent as a team in the first half. The Friars forced a handful of DePaul turnovers to take a lead as large 16, 31-15, with seven minutes left in the first. DePaul made four-straight field goals to pull within nine, 33-24, but Providence held onto a double-digit lead going into halftime.
After shooting a perfect 6-of-6 in the first half, Traynor opened the half with the first four points from either team. DePaul continued chipping away, pulling the deficit to six on Gunn's second three-pointer of the night. The Friars lead remained in double-digits, 47-37, until DePaul went on an 11-0 run that included five points off the bench from Théo Pierre-Justin. The Blue Demons took their first lead of the game, 48-47, on a free throw by Layden Blocker. After giving up the lead momentarily, DePaul outscored Providence 20-5 over a four minute stretch for a 74-65 lead with two minutes to play. The Friars fought back with defensive pressure, forcing turnovers, before free throws by Gunn would help ice the game.
OF NOTE
- DePaul broke its program single-season three-point record, reaching 280 on the season and besting the previous record of 273 from 2022-23.
- Wednesday marked DePaul's first road win in the series against Providence since Feb. 10, 2018.
- The 16-point comeback was the largest for DePaul since a 17-point comeback against Loyola on Dec. 3, 2022.
- DePaul's 52 second half points were the most second half points in a conference game for the team since Feb. 25, 2023.
- Thomas dished out a season-high seven assists, one off his personal-best of eight.
UP NEXT
DePaul will close out its regular season Saturday, March 8 with a 1 p.m. tip against Georgetown. The Blue Demons will honor its three seniors – Troy D'Amico, Isaiah Rivera and David Skogman – pregame.
Team Stats
DePaul
PROV
FG%
.536
.500
3FG%
.417
.333
FT%
.833
.789
RB
25
31
TO
11
12
STL
6
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
9
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
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