PC Falls to Top Seeded North Carolina in 2nd Round of NCAA Tourney
Joe Calabro, GoLocalProv Sports Team
PC Falls to Top Seeded North Carolina in 2nd Round of NCAA Tourney
"I thought North Carolina played real well, really well. They played well. They made shots and we didn't. And I think that was the determinant factor of the game.
Just tough to walk away from this. It's tough to see a young man that has grown up in front of my eyes in Kris and what he's meant to our organization, and to see where he was, and now where he's at, and then where he's going. You know, you look at it where, damn, you're like a dad seeing somebody grow up in front of your eyes. I can't tell you how much I love this kid and this team, what they've meant to Providence and what they've meant to me this year. I'm going to really miss them," said PC Head Coach Ed Cooley in his post game press conference.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTOver powered in the Second Half
The Friars had the game tied at 41 points, North Carolina went on a 67-51 with minutes to play in the game.
The game took a turn the wrong way for PC when Ben Bentil fouled out with 7:23 left to play. Providence was down 63-50 at the time.
"Yeah, we got in foul trouble. I think they took advantage of that. They made a couple of runs. In the first half I thought we withstood it. Once I got in foul trouble, the guys they kept fighting. They kept being resilient. Everybody was making plays. Once Ben had foul trouble, they took another run. We tried to withstand it but they overmatched us," said Kris Dunn after the game.
Prior to that, the Friars held a 36-34 lead early in the second half.
Grinding in the First Half
The Friars held a 28-25 lead before Carolina closed the half on a 9-2 run and took a 34-30 lead at half time.
Prior to that, the Tar Heels led by as much as 7 points before Providence rallied and took a 22-21 lead.
Kris Dunn only played 8 minutes in the first half as he picked up two fouls and sat on the bench.
The Leaders
Kris Dunn led the Friars with 29 points on 10-16 shooting from the field, but sat most of the first half due to foul trouble.
Season Over
Providence finished the regular season with a record of 23-10 overall and 10-8 in the Big East Conference and held the 4 seed in the Big East Tournament.
In the first round of the Big East Tournament, the Friars defeated Butler behind Ben Bentil's 38 points before falling to Villanova in the semifinals.
The Friars got an At-Large Bid into the NCAA Tournament where they beat the University of California in the first round. The win was the program's first tournament win in 19 years.
More to come...
5 Takeaways From PC's NCAA Tournament Loss to North Carolina
Season Over
The Friars season comes to an end after the loss to North Carolina.
PC finished with an overall record of 23-10 and a Big East record of 10-8, advancing to the Big East Tournament's semifinals for the second straight season.
The Friars then made the NCAA Tournament for the 3rd straight season and won a game in the tournament for the first time in 19 years.
Ryan Fazekas
Ryan Fazekas did not see any action in the NCAA Tournament due to back spasms.
The Friars really could have used his three-point shot in both games, but especially the North Carolina game.
The Others
The other three starters besides Bentil and Dunn, Lomomba, Bullock and Lindsey combined for 4 points in the game
Kyron Cartwright came off the bench and contributed 7 points but other than that, the Friars got almost nothing from guys not named Bentil and Dunn.
This has been an issue most of the season for the Friars in losses and even in some wins.
Ben Bentil
Ben Bentil finished the game with 21 points on 7 of 17 shooting from the field while grabbing 3 rebounds. Bentil was the Big East's leading scorer and earned the league's most improved player award.
However, he fouled out of the game with 7:23 left, effectively sealing North Carollina's win.
Now the question is, will Bentil return to Providence next season or go pro?
Kris Dunn
The Friars loss means the end of Kris Dunn's career at Providence. In his final game, Dunn had 29 points on 10 of 16 shooting from the field. He also pulled down 3 rebounds, dished out 3 assists and had 2 steals.
Dunn turned down the NBA last off season and came back to school to improve as a player and try for one more run in the tournament.
"I think that's the reason why I came back. I think a lot of people doubted us in the beginning because of how young we were. Like I said, it's been a roller-coaster ride, but it's been the best roller-coaster ride I ever rode.
These guys, every single one of them are like my brothers. They work hard. In the summer they were working hard. You can see it on and off the court the chemistry, we really like one another. That's how we got to this point through the chemistry and bond we have. We always have each other's back.
The fact the coaches liked all of us. Coach Cooley did a great job with us, making sure everybody goes out there and plays their game and knows their role. As a team, we kind of achieved the accomplishment that we wanted to do, which is get back to the Tournament. The fact that we got past the first round was one of my accomplishments that I wanted to achieve, so I appreciate my teammates getting me through this journey."
