Providence beat Maine 83–56 in the first game of the Bryan Hodgson era at the Amica Mutual Pavilion. The Friars put Maine away with a balanced scoring effort and clear advantages in rebounding and turnovers.
“Thankful for this great atmosphere we had. This is one of the reasons I came here. The students were phenomenal and the support we get is really special,” lHodgson said. “Credit to Maine. I thought they played really hard and had us in a tough spot in the first half. I think we answered the bell in the second half and played a lot better with the intensity we’re looking for on both sides of the basketball.”
Jacob Bannarbie finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench, making all 7 of his field goal attempts and posted half of his rebounds on the offensive glass. Ryan Mela added 13 points and 6 rebounds, also collecting 5 on the offensive end.
Malik Mack scored 12 points on 5/10 shooting and added 5 rebounds. Freshman Javon Bardwell matched that scoring total in 14 minutes off the bench, shooting 4/8 overall and 2/3 from beyond the arc. Elijah Saunders, fresh off being added to the roster late last week, contributed 8 points in 4 minutes, making all 3 of his attempts from the field, including two 3-pointers. Providence’s bench scoring advantage was 11 points, 39-28, and the Friars grabbed 16 offensive rebounds and took 25 more shots than Maine.
Miles Byrd paired 10 points with 7 steals, 5 rebounds and 3 assists without a turnover. Hightower recorded 7 assists and 5 steals alongside 5 points. At the team level, Providence had 18 assists and 8 turnovers, compared with Maine’s 9 assists and 23 turnovers. Providence also finished with 17 steals to Maine’s 5.
Hudson Franz led Maine with 13 points. Ayden Evans added 11 points and 3 blocks, while Killian Gribben scored 10.
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