sport news UConn survives wild comeback attempt by rivals Providence, reach Big East ... trends now

A grudge match was guaranteed, because their story wasn't over. Providence College and the University of Connecticut (UConn) had two dramatically different results in their two regular-season matchups and things had to be settled with a third game on Thursday afternoon.

The two bitter rivals separated by less than 60 miles of US Route 44 through the forested north of Rhode Island and the eastern Connecticut countryside exchanged heavy blows to each other in their two regular season matchups. What better place to throw another than history's greatest boxing venue.

First, Providence took a home victory front of an incendiary crowd at Amica Mutual Pavilion by a score of 73-61. Then, nearly two months later, the Huskies returned the favor in front of a raucous, $2 beer-fueled fanbase at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs by a 87-69 blowout.

Yes, a grudge match was guaranteed. The Friars and the Huskies haven't met in the Big East Tournament since 1998 - which ended with a UConn win, en route to the school's third conference title. Not only were the teams deadlocked on the season, they're deadlocked across their history in the Big East Tournament at two wins a piece. The story didn't end until this afternoon.

In front of an iconic crowd at Madison Square Garden, UConn went up early, but had to stave off an inspired Providence comeback attempt to take a close victory, 73-66. The Huskies had a 26 point lead at their peak, but saw the Friars crawl back to within five.

The turnout by the fans from Storrs, Connecticut offered more of a reason why UConn fans have christened Madison Square Garden as 'Gampel South'.

Anyone who needs further evidence of that need only look back at the second weekend of the 2014 NCAA Tournament - when crowds donned in National flag blue drowned out both Iowa State and Michigan State, powering their team on to what would be their fourth national title.

But the fans who traveled all the way from Rhode Island's capital were not silent. Friars fans are equally known for their ability to blow the roof off a building. All one needs to do is look back on that UConn game in Providence that could very well have caused an earthquake due to the noise.

The same crowds turned out today. For a game played on a Thursday at mid-afternoon, the Garden was about 60 percent full around the 12 minute mark of the first matchup of the day in the form of Marquette v. St. Johns.

With the building full as the Golden Eagles and Red Storm played in overtime, impatient Huskies fans began chanting.

By the time the pre-game festivities were underway, both sets of fans were fully engaged - as were the players who hoped a victory here could turn the tide of the season's series. Both regular-season games saw the winning teams have four players with double-digit points.

They went back and forth at the very beginning of the first half. After scoring quickly, both teams went on lengthy droughts. Providence went on a dry spell of over four minutes before Devin Carter hit a three. In that time, they continually turned the ball over - as UConn punctuated with an Andre Jackson dunk.

The Garden's famous concave roof was not safe from the noise. A 3-pointer from UConn's transfer guard Tristen Newton to make it a 16-7 game gave the building its true coliseum feel. An explosion of sound was sustained from all corners of the room as it reflected down onto the court.

The proverbial fighters continued their sparring, but before long, UConn started landing uppercuts. A triple from San Diego transfer Joey Calcaterra put UConn up by eight just beyond the halfway point of the first quarter. A block by Huskies star junior Adama Sanogo continued to raise the pressure and the volume.

By the time that Providence had broken its second four-minute scoring drought, the under-four minute media timeout had taken place and UConn was up by ten.

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