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Robinson's 21 points leads BC past Providence, 79-67 (Dec 23, 2016)
BOSTON (AP) Boston College coach Jim Christian has seen his team play well at times and maddeningly bad others.
The Eagles played about as well as any team could in the second half on Friday.
Jerome Robinson scored 21 points to lead five players in double figures, and Boston College got hot from 3-point range in the second half before holding on for a 79-67 win over Providence.
''That's our team. We're still trying to find consistency,'' Christian said. ''We've shown that when we play the right way and play hard, we can beat anybody in the country. I really believe that. When we don't, we've already proven we can lose to anybody in the country.''
Coming off a loss to Fairfield on Wednesday, the Eagles shot 71.4 percent after intermission, connecting on 8 of 12 from 3-point range.
''It felt good,'' Robinson said. ''I think confidence is the biggest thing and when a team's feeling confidence like that, you feel like every shot is going in.''
Ky Bowman scored 16 points, Mo Jeffers had 13 points with nine rebounds, A.J. Turner added 12 points and Jordan Chatman 11 for the Eagles (7-6).
Rodney Bullock led Providence (10-3) with 23 points, and Emmitt Holt scored 16 and grabbed 11 rebounds. The Friars had their six-game winning streak halted.
''House of Horrors for me boy,'' Providence coach Ed Cooley said. ''We were terrible today. We weren't very good today. We were poorly coached, poor execution. They played great. We played bad.''
Cooley, a former BC assistant, fell to 0-3 as head coach of PC in Conte Forum.
Trailing by three midway into the second half, the Eagles caught fire from beyond the arc and nailed five 3-pointers during a 25-2 run that pushed it to 70-50 with 4:11 to go.
Robinson sandwiched two 3s around one from A.J. Turner when BC nailed a trey in three straight possessions - all in front of its own bench.
The Friars then used a full-court press to rattle BC during a 14-0 run before the Eagles held on.
Turner also had two 3-pointers during the key stretch. The Eagles were just 5 for 14 on 3s before the run.
SHOT OF THE GAME
PC had sliced the score to 70-64 and the shot clock was winding down on BC with Robinson dribbling on the right wing. With no other play to make, he fired up a long 3 that banked in with 1:51 to play.
''When I let it go I was like: `There's no way this might be going in,''' Robinson said. ''The only way it was going in was off the backboard.''
BIG PICTURE
Providence: The Friars entered the day holding opponents to 58.9 points per game. They'll need that tough defense with a rough Big East schedule coming up after losing their top two scorers from last season's team - Ben Bentil and Kris Dunn, who both left early for the NBA draft.
''That's not our team the way we try to defend. I don't know the last time we gave up 79 points,'' Cooley said. ''Normally, we like to think we're a decent defensive team. Today wasn't our day.''
Boston College: The Eagles appear to have found an additional scorer with Bowman's recent play to go along with Robinson, who entered second in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 20.5 per game. Coming off a 33-point effort against Fairfield, Bowman scored nine of BC's initial 13 points to start the second half.
MOVING ON
BC announced before the game that guard Ty Graves asked for and was granted his release from the team.
He was averaging 18.8 minutes and 4.8 points per game, though his minutes declined recently with the play of Bowman.
OLD FRIENDS
It was the 111th meeting between two of the original Big East schools. Their first came in the 1941-42 season. PC owns a 60-51 edge in the series.
UP NEXT
Providence: The Friars open Big East play at Xavier on Wednesday.
Boston College: Hosts Syracuse in its ACC opener next Sunday.
