The common theme for the three winning teams on Wednesday were impressive first-half scoring runs that resulted in victories by 16, 17 and 21 points.

Providence closed the first half with a 15-3 run to take a 35-18 lead into halftime en route to a 71-55 win over visiting Butler 71-55.  David Duke scored 17 of his game-high 22 points in the first half for the Friars (7-3, 3-1 BIG EAST).  He also grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds and dished eight assists.  Nate Watson added 18 points.  Jair Bolden was the top scorer for Butler (2-4, 1-2 BIG EAST) with 15 points.  The Bulldogs were without guard Aaron Thompson for a fourth straight game.  PC has won five of its last six contests.    

Seton Hall put together a strong team performance in an 85-68 win at Xavier.  The Pirates (7-4, 4-1 BIG EAST) used a 17-2 run late in the first half to gain a 44-28 advantage at the break.  Sandro Mamukelashvili paced six Pirates in double figures with 18 points.  Jared Rhoden added 14 points and eight rebounds.  The Hall has won nine of its last 11 BIG EAST road games, dating to last season.  Zach Freemantle led the Musketeers (8-2, 1-2 BIG EAST) with 20 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

UConn used a 16-3 streak in the first half to go into halftime with a 41-27 edge over DePaul.  The Huskies (4-1, 1-1 BIG EAST) also scored 41 points in the second half in an 82-61 victory.  Tyrese Martin posted a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds.  James Bouknight supported the offense with 20 points.  Darious Hall came off the bench to lead the Blue Demons (1-2, 0-2 BIG EAST) with 14 points.  Nick Ongenda added 13 points and eight rebounds.

The BIG EAST schedule is dark on New Year’s Day and Friday before a four-game slate on Saturday.  No. 11 (AP) Creighton travels to Providence for the first game this season on FOX.  Tipoff time is noon ET.  Also at noon, DePaul’s three-game road swing ends at St. John’s on FS1.  Seton Hall hosts Butler at 4:30 p.m. on FS1.  At 7:30 p.m., Marquette plays at Georgetown on CBS Sports Network.