March 1, 2005

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - Senior forward Ryan Gomes, playing in his final home game, scored 23 points and Donnie McGrath added 22 to lead Providence to a 86-75 victory against St. John's on Tuesday night.

The Friars (13-16, 3-12 Big East) led from the outset and went into halftime with a 42-31 lead. St. John's cut the deficit to 48-44 early in the second half and had a chance to make it a four-point game with less the four minutes left, but Providence senior Tuukka Kotti sank five foul shots in the final 3:30 to put the game out of reach.

Gomes, the school's all-time leading scorer, now has 2,092 career points.

Providence beat St. John's (9-17, 3-12) for the eighth straight time. The last time that the Red Storm beat the Friars was a 61-46 victory on Feb. 8, 2000 at Providence.

St. John's finished the regular season 0-11 on the road, marking the first time since 1953-54 that the program failed to win a road game. The Red Storm, who are ineligible for next week's Big East Tournament, will play their final game of the season Saturday at home against Villanova.

Kotti finished with 17 points. Darryl Hill had 26 points to lead St. John's while Lamont Hamilton and Eugene Lawrence added 14 apiece.

Providence freshman Randall Hanke posted the first double-double of his career with 17 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.

PC had four players with at least 17 points including two (Gomes and McGrath) who scored 20 or more points for the first time since Feb. 2 against Virginia.

Providence College men's basketball returns to action at Georgetown on Saturday, March 5. The opening tip is slated for 7:30 p.m.