Providence controls No. 21 Irish

Kadeem Batts scored 20 points and Vincent Council had 11 assists to become Providence's career leader, carrying the resurgent Friars over No. 21 Notre Dame, 71-54, yesterday in Providence.

The Friars held the Irish (20-6, 8-5) to 39.3-percent shooting, outrebounded them 43-32 and had 20 assists on their 29 baskets.

Bryce Cotton, the Big East scoring leader, had 19 points and LaDontae Henton 13 for the Friars (14-11, 6-7), who won their fourth in a row.

Marquette 79, Pittsburgh 69: Vander Blue scored 19 points, shooting 7-for-8, and No. 18 Marquette (18-6, 9-3 Big East) shot 57 percent, pulling away from No. 16 Pitt (20-6, 8-5) in the second half in Milwaukee.

DePaul 75, Rutgers 69: Worrell Clahar scored a career-high 19 points, including seven in a closing 11-3 run as the host Blue Demons (11-14, 2-10 Big East) snapped a nine-game losing streak. Myles Mack had a career-high 28 points for Rutgers (13-11, 4-9), including all 16 in a 16-4 surge that gave DePaul a 66-64 lead with 2:42 to play.

Syracuse 76, Seton Hall 65: Brandon Triche scored a career-high 29 points, shooting 10-for-18, including a three-pointer in the final minute for No. 6 Syracuse (21-4, 9-3 Big East) in Newark.

Villanova 70, Connecticut 61: Freshman guard Ryan Arcidiacono had 25 points, including two three-pointers during an 11-0 run that turned a three-point halftime deficit into a 52-45 lead in Hartford. Villanova is 16-10, 7-6 Big East. Omar Calhoun scored 16 points for UConn (17-7, 7-5).

Gonzaga 71, San Francisco 61: Kelly Olynyk had 26 points and nine rebounds and Elias Harris 17 points and 13 rebounds as No. 5 Gonzaga (25-2, 12-0 WCC) needed a late 11-0 run in San Francisco.

Butler 68, Fordham 63: Rotnei Clarke scored 22 points and No. 11 Butler (21-5, 8-3 Atlantic 10) hit 4 of 6 free throws in the final 18 seconds at Rose Hill Gym. Chris Gaston returned from a knee injury and scored 21 points for Fordham (6-20, 2-9).-- AP

LOCAL MEN'S GAMES

Sage 98, SUNY Old Westbury 96: Sophomore Josh Hill had a career-high 31 points off the bench for Old Westbury, but Sage's Mason Horne hit a layup with four seconds left in the second overtime in Troy. Tyrik Tucker had 17 points for Old Westbury (22-3, 17-1 Skyline). In the Skyline Tournament, the No. 1 seed Panthers will host the winner of No. 4 Farmingdale and No. 5 Sage on Thursday.

NYIT 81, St. Thomas Aquinas 70: Phil Izevbehai had 21 points and Dominic Scurry 17 points and six rebounds to lead NYIT (16-9, 10-5 ECC).

Nassau CC 83, Ulster CC 53: Orabosa Uwangue had 25 points and eight rebounds to lead Nassau CC (16-9, 11-7 Region XV).

WOMEN'S GAMES

NYIT 64, St. Thomas Aquinas 43: Nikki Jo Rotolo had 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals to lead No. 19 NYIT (22-1, 14-1 ECC).

SUNY Old Westbury 65, Sage 59: DeAndra Scott had 25 points and 11 rebounds, her 14th double-double of the season, and Clarissa Gallagher had 11 points, eight rebounds and three steals for Old Westbury (16-9, 11-4 Skyline). The No. 3 Panthers will play at No. 2 Purchase in a Skyline semifinal Thursday.