Ticket Gaines, hot-shooting Providence cruise past Wagner

Ticket Gaines scored 21 points on seven 3-pointers to lead Providence to a dominant 86-52 win over visiting Wagner on Tuesday night.

Providence (6-1) shot 52.7 percent from the field, drained 13 shots from deep and logged 25 assists on 29 baskets en route to its third consecutive victory.

Bryce Hopkins added 20 points (7-of-11 shooting), six rebounds and two assists.

Devin Carter had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds along with six assists and two steals.

Josh Oduro (12 points) was the fourth Friar scoring in double figures.

The Friars put together a 13-1 run for a 38-20 halftime lead and cruised with the help of a 16-0 run early in the second half.

Melvin Council Jr. paced Wagner (2-4) with 17 points, eight rebounds and a pair of steals. Zaire Williams added 12 points.

Gaines' first two shots helped the Friars to a 9-5 lead at the opening timeout. Providence scored its first nine points on 3-pointers, with Hopkins also adding one during that stretch.

Gaines started 4-for-4 from beyond the arc, extending the advantage to 13 points when he hit a triple from the left corner just after the midway mark of the first half.

The visitors got back within 25-19 on a Council Jr. layup with 6:27 left, but the closing run moved the Providence lead to 18 at intermission. Five of Gaines' 3-point makes came in the first half.

Di'Andre Howell-South's first-minute layup opened the second-half scoring for Wagner before the hosts went on a 16-point scoring run that spanned less than three minutes.

Gaines dished to Hopkins to finish a transition layup through traffic and start a 3-point play early in the key stretch. A Gaines triple and Hopkins dunk finished the run.

After Wagner scored eight of the next 11 points with the help of two Council Jr. threes, the Friars posted a 13-3 run that Oduro capped with back-to-back buckets.

Donovan Santoro hit a 3-pointer with 3:14 to go and he marked the Friars' scoresheet with five late points.