PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Time ran out on the No. 22/23 Orange women's basketball team as Providence converted on all eight of its free throws down the stretch en route to a 62-58 victory on Tuesday. Junior guard Chandrea Jones scored a team-best 17 points and grabbed a team-high tying six rebounds as the Orange go to 19-6 overall and 7-5 in the BIG EAST. The Friars improve to 12-13 and 2-10 in the conference.
Syracuse trailed by seven at 13:45 in the second half after a Providence 11-2 run, but responded with an 8-3 streak, which closed the gap to within two (44-42) at 9:41.
Each team battled up and down the court for the next four minutes until Jones made two free throws and started a 6-0 Syracuse run, which resulted with SU grabbing its last lead of the game (52-51) at 4:35.
Three points by sophomore forward Emily Cournoyer put the Friars ahead for the last time (54-53) with 4:11 remaining. The senior front court of Fantasia Goodwin and Vaida Sipaviciute produced six points during the last four minutes, but the Friars converted on all eight of their free-throw attempts to seal the victory.
Goodwin tallied 12 points, four rebounds and two steals, while Sipaviciute registered six points, four rebounds and a game-high three blocks.
Jones has led the team in scoring 12 times this season and for the game was 4-for-13 from the field and 9-for-11 from the charity stripe. The Baltimore, Md. native added six rebounds, three steals and three assists to her game totals.
Sophomore forward Nicole Michael posted nine points and freshman guard Erica Morrow, who led the team with four assists, joined Sipaviciute with six points.
A slow start plagued the Orange, but SU had a cure for the Friars 14-2 run, which gave them its largest lead, 16-5, at 14:13. After the two teams exchanged buckets, Jones made a free throw and followed up with a layup at 11:32 to start a 16-2 Orange run.
Syracuse's streak lasted 9:24 and had five different contributors. Jones had four points, while Goodwin converted two layups, including one at 4:10 to give the Orange its second lead of the game (23-20). Senior forward Tracy Harbut added to the Orange advantage with a free throw to cap the run at 2:40.
Two free throws by Providence sophomore guard Kendria Holmes with three seconds remaining gave the Friars a one-point halftime lead, 28-27.
The Orange scored 11 points off of 12 turnovers, including six steals, in the first half. Seven different Syracuse student-athletes scored two or more points in the first with Goodwin, Jones and Harbut each producing a team-high five points in the first.
For the game, Syracuse finished with a 36.7 percent mark (18-49) from the floor and shot 61.8 percent (21-34) from the free-throw line. The team grabbed 38 rebounds and scored 30 points in the paint.
The Friars, who were led by freshman guard Mi-Khida Hankins' game-high 22 points, shot 42.0 percent (21-50) from the field and 90 percent (18-20) from the freebee line. Providence grabbed 32 boards and scored 18 points in the paint.
Cournoyer was second on the team with 16 points and led the team with nine rebounds.
BIG EAST rival Cincinnati comes to the Carrier Dome on Saturday, Feb. 23 for a 1 p.m. tip-off against the Orange, which is 10-2 at home this season.
Tickets for the outing may be purchased on-line (
click here), over the phone (1-888-DOMETIX), or in person at the Carrier Dome Box Office during normal business hours. Once again, fans will be able to receive their tickets immediately after their purchase, using the "Print At Home" delivery method. For additional information, fans can contact the Carrier Dome Box Office toll free (888-366-3849) or (315-443-2121).