Things started slow for Providence and Marquette Wednesday night at Alumni Hall. The first basket did not come until more than three and a half minutes had passed, when Alyn Breed’s jumper opened the scoring. Halfway into the first period, Marquette led 9-8. Neither team could find a scoring touch, combining to shoot 7-19 through the opening ten minutes.
David Duke and A.J. Reeves began to catch fire over the final ten minutes of the half. The pair scored all of Providence’s points as the Friars outscored Marquette 17-9 over that period. Duke hit four shots from the field, including a 3-pointer, while Reeves had a 3 of his own plus five shots from the free throw line.