HELENA, Mont. -- One streak had to end.
Carroll College had not lost at home this season.
Providence had a perfect record wherever it played -- until Saturday.
The No. 23 Fighting Saints slew the giant, taking down No. 7 Providence 93-88 and keeping its perfect 7-0 record in the PE Center unblemished.
"Not sure what to say other than I'm so happy for our kids," Saints coach
Kurt Paulson said. "They earned that one. Wish we could have closed it out earlier than we did, but credit Providence, they kept fighting and hitting shots."
Carroll (13-3, 4-0 Frontier Conference) used a balancing scoring effort, as five Saints reached double figures, led by
Jovan Sljivancanin's near triple-double of 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
Dane Warp and
Shamrock Campbell each added 17 -- both responsible for timely, momentum-changing threes -- while
Ifeanyi Okeke rocked the rim with 14 points and
Dennis Flowers III added in 11 points.
Providence (15-1, 3-1) had a monstrous performance from Zach Darko-Kelly, who scored 33 points and added in nine rebounds and five assists. The Argonauts also got big efforts from Rashee Stocks (18 points), Jaxen Hashley (17 points) and Brandon Cotton (14 points).
The game became a torrid affair from the get-go. The Argonauts looked like they might enact control in the first few moments until the Saints unleashed a flurry of three-pointers to take the lead. Then, it was back and forth between two evenly matched teams.
The Saints managed a 43-39 lead at halftime, but the score may as well have been even. Neither team could shake the other as both shot 54% from the field, while Providence shot 52% from deep and the Saints turned in a 46% clip.
The Saints finally built a two-possession lead late before two technicals from the Argonauts allowed the Saints to build a 12-point lead with about three minutes left.
Even then, the Argonauts were not finished. They hung around until the final buzzer.
"They wanted it," Paulson said of his team. "They're working hard. It's only January, so we have a lot of improvement to do. I'm happy with them getting us the win. They're ready and they're having fun."
It's the third time this season the Saints have defeated a ranked opponent.
Next up, the Fighting Saints head to Billings on Wednesday to face Rocky Mountain College.
"Everybody is very good," Paulson said. "Every night is a battle. We're taking them one at a time. We have to start looking ahead at Rocky. They're very good as well."
