Six players tossed as St. John's-Providence clash turns chippy

After a heavy brawl during Providence’s match against St. John’s on February 14, which has resulted in Duncan Powell’s suspension for two games, announced by the BIG EAST on Sunday, February 15.

Powell was ejected from the game due to a hard foul with 14:25 left in the second half.

Game officials, after reviewing the on-court video review, announced that Powell engaged in a brawl that formed a fighting act subsequent to the hard foul.

St. John’s won the match over Providence on Saturday, February 14, after a chaotic mess erupted from a hard foul by Friars forward Duncan Powell on Bryce Hopkins.

St. John’s coach made every effort to stop the fight, but after multiple players entered the ruckus as it moved slowly toward the Red Storm bench.

The NCAA rules however, strictly prohibit players from leaving the bench area during a fray. This was the main reason why the four St. John’s players were ejected from the game.

As per the rule, it doesn’t matter whether the ejected players have thrown punches or simply stepped onto the court.

Head coach, Rick Pitino acknowledged the rule but also spoke in favor of his players.

He said, “You’re not supposed to come off the bench, but you can’t let your players get beat up.”

“You can’t fight. Back when I was the Kentucky coach we fought almost every SEC game, and it was not a big deal. But you can’t fight any more, so toughness has to come between the lines.”

The brawl caused the game to stop for about 20 minutes while referees took their time to announce the ejections: Four St. John’s players were kicked out and two from Providence.

St. John travels to Marquette on Wednesday night, February 18, while Providence heads to DePaul on February 21, 2026.