PROVIDENCE -- One day last week, Dave Gavitt made an appearance at a Providence College basketball practice.

PC coach Tim Welsh asked the recently installed Hall of Famer to address his team. With his name about to be permanently affixed to the court at the Dunkin' Donuts Center, Gavitt had a timely message for the Friars.

"I told them that once my name goes on that court, I don't want any blemishes," Gavitt said with a smile.

On the night that "Dave Gavitt Court" was formally unveiled in front of a crowd of 10,086 appreciative fans and more than 60 former PC players, the current Friars heeded Gavitt's advice by pulling away from a pesky group of Pirates from Seton Hall and posting a 91-69 win.

Providence is now 12-3 overall and 2-0 in the Big East with a trip to Louisville next Saturday. The Hall fell to 9-5 and 1-1 in the conference.

The game featured a dramatic difference in styles as the Friars emphasized their size and power, while a small and quick Pirate squad tried to scramble the game with their aggressive play. After trading jabs through the majority of the first half, the Friars led by six points (38-32) at intermission, but tore away from the visitors and carried a double-digit lead through most of the final 14 minutes.

PC's two biggest players, Herbert Hill and Geoff McDermott, led the way for the second straight game. Hill scored a game-high 25 points and grabbed 9 rebounds while McDermott stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 15 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals.

The Friars also had a few answers to counteract Seton Hall's guard-oriented team. The leader there was sophomore Weyinmi Efejuku, who flew all over the court for 24 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists.

"It feels great to start 2-0 in the league but we know it's only going to get harder," said Hill. "After two losing seasons, it feels great to be winning again."

Welsh said he felt a little pregame pressure when Gavitt took the floor along with several former greats including Marvin Barnes, Ernie DiGregorio and Kevin Stacom.

"Tonight was pressure," he said. "When you have Ernie D., Marvin, Kevin and Dave Gavitt out there, I said to myself 'Welsh, you better not screw this one up.' "

PC raced out to a 12-0 lead as its zone defense held Seton Hall scoreless for the first 4:35. But the Pirates raced back with a 19-5 run to take a 19-12 lead. The lead flip-flopped for the next several minutes but with Hill and McDermott dominating the backboards (47-26 PC edge), the Friars eventually wore down the Pirates.

Former Friars assistant coach Bobby Gonzalez made his return to town as a head coach with a Hall team that's scrappy and persistent but lacks size and power right now. Brian Laing led The Hall with 24 points and freshman Eugene Harvey added 16.

"Their inside game just wore us down. We had no answers for Hill and McDermott," said Gonzalez. "They are one of the better frontcourt duos in the league. We just got killed on the boards."

PC did a good job with Seton Hall's pressure defense, turning the ball over only 16 times. In fact, the Friars also forced 16 miscues and limited the Pirates to 40-percent shooting with their long-armed zone defense.

"Seton Hall wasn't letting up. They keep coming at you," said Charles Burch, who gave PC a strong boost in the second half and finished with 11 points and 6 rebounds. "But we can play a few different ways right now."

The Friars will get leading scorer Sharaud Curry back in their lineup for Saturday's game against Rick Pitino's Louisville squad. PC went 3-1 without Curry and, if anything, gained even more confidence in their team.

"We got a few younger guys some experience that will be real important as the season goes on," said Hill. "Right now we can take a few days off and just get ready to hit the road and keep playing well."

kmcnamar@projo.com / (401) 277-7340