A ranked Big East Conference team is going to head into the new year with a loss to open league play, as No. 12 Providence visits No. 9 Butler on Thursday afternoon.
Providence (12-1) is off to its best start since 1988-89, its only loss coming to top-ranked Michigan State, while Butler (11-1) is riding an eight-game win streak that includes victories over Cincinnati and Purdue.
Butler has the No. 2 scoring offense in the country, averaging 89.9 points per game, opening the season with a 144-point effort against The Citadel. Providence, which scores 75.9 points per game, is led by the trio of Ben Bentil, Rodney Bullock and Kris Dunn.