Providence sinks Wisconsin behind Nate Watson

Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images When the Providence Friars (3-0) defeated Fairfield in the opener, their inability to separate in the second half left doubts about their ability to finish against a power conference team. With a win at the Wisconsin Badgers (2-1) Monday night, Providence showed they could keep their opponent at bay, even with an imperfect performance.

Like against Fairfield, the Friars never trailed in the second half. An 8-0 Wisconsin run capped by a Tyler Wahl layup with under four minutes to play brought the Badgers within five points, but Al Durham, the Indiana transfer, hit the dagger three-pointer against his former conference rival to push the lead back to eight.…