Comeback Falls Short, #24 PC Falls 68-64 to #21 Butler
GoLocalProv Sports Team
Comeback Falls Short, #24 PC Falls 68-64 to #21 Butler
See the five takeaways slideshow below.
"We didn't have any pop for 27 minutes for whatever reason, I thought for 13 minutes we played really well, but then your trying to play perfect basketball and every mistake is accentuated," Friars head coach Ed Cooley said after the game.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe Butler Bulldogs led by as much as 16 in the second half but a Tyler Harris layup with 7:30 left cut it to one, 50-49, sending the Dunkin' Donuts Center into a frenzy.
However, Butler scored the next eight points to go up 58-50 and some key offensive rebounds prevented PC from getting any closer than four points the rest of the way.
Providence was led by Kris Dunn, who netted a game high 23 points and dished out six assists while Tyler Harris followed up with 17 points off the bench.
Butler was led by Roosevelt Jones, who poured in 16 points while Kellen Dunham added 15 for the Bulldogs.
Next up for the Friars is the Big East tournament starting on Thursday against St. John's.
For a further look at the Friars loss, see the five takeaways slideshow below.
Five Takeaways From the Friars 68-64 Loss to Butler
Tyler Harris
Tyler Harris had one of his better games of the season and will look to carry it into the Big East tournament.
Harris netted 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 from the free throw line.
Harris also grabbed five rebounds, recorded two blocks and had two steals in the game for the Friars.
Tyler Harris has now reached double-figures in three of the last four games for Providence.
LaDontae Henton
LaDontae Henton did not have a good final home showing on Saturday for the Friars only netting eight points on 2-of-10 shooting from the field. Seven of the eight points came in the first half.
Henton's eight points snaps a streak of 22 games in which he reached double-figures scoring for the Friars.
Henton also pulled down 7 rebounds and turned the ball over a team high four times.
But as coach Cooley reminded everyone in his post game press conference, "we're here because of LaDontae"
Kris Dunn
Kris Dunn led the Friars with 23 points in the game on 9-of-20 shooting from the field, including 2-of-6 from three-point land.
Of Dunn's 23 points, 21 of them came in the second half as he helped get the Friars back into the game and tried to will them to victory.
Dunn also grabbed three rebounds and dished out six assists in the game as well as recording four of the eight steals that PC had.
Rebounding
The Friars were dominated on the boards, getting out rebounded 39-27 in the game including 10-6 on the offensive glass.
Butler beat Providence 10-9 in second chance points.
Carson Desrosiers in his second game back grabbed two rebounds in 27 minutes of play while Ben Bentil and Paschal Chukwu had one each.
LaDontae Henton led the Friars with seven rebounds while Tyler Harris pulled down five.
What this means
With the 68-64 loss to Butler the Friars now will either be a four or five seed in the Big East tournament which for them will start Thursday, March 12. Tip-off will be 2:30 p.m. at Madison Square Garden in New York.
No matter which seed they are, Providence will play St. John's in the first round, a team they have lost to twice already this season. St. John's will be playing on their home court.
NCAA tournament
Depending on what happens in New York, Providence could stay as a six seed or drop to a seven seed, which is where this loss would hurt.
In Joe Lunardi's latest bracketology, as of March 7, the Friars are seeded sixth as is Butler.
