PC Battles Villanova With Return Trip to Title Game on Line
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PC Battles Villanova With Return Trip to Title Game on Line
"We know we are playing a juggernaut, I'm pretty sure that nobody in this room is giving us a chance, but we've been in this position before," Friars head coach Ed Cooley said after the victory over St. John's.
The Villanova Wildcats
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe Wildcats are the top seed in the Big East and are currently projected to be one of four number one seeds in the NCAA Tournament.
"Villanova is the team to beat, but, they were the team to beat last year to, them and Creighton, and they both lost so," said Friar great Joe Hassett.
Villanova is coming off an 84-49 victory over Marquette in their quarterfinal game, in fact, the Wildcats have not lost a game since mid-January.
The Wildcats are led by Darrun Hillard who averages 14 points per game while Ryan Arcidiacono, the co-Big East Player of the Year, averages 11 points and four assists per game.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 28-13 lead in the first half but the Friars only trailed by nine, 35-24 at the half.
In the second, Providence got as close as six points, 38-32, before the Wildcats went on a 10-2 run to go up 48-34 and win in blowout fashion, 89-61.
Darrun Hilliard led Villanova with 24 points while Tyler Harris led the Friars with 18 off the bench.
Villanova vs PC - Feb. 11 - Nova wins 74-68
The Friars trailed 37-34 with 11 minutes to go in the half before the Wildcats used an 11-0 run to go up 48-34 with 7:38 left to play.
Providence would climb back to within six points but would not be able to get over the hump. Wildcats would win 74-68.
Ryan Arcidiacono led Nova with 20 points in the game while LaDontae Henton led the Friars with 23 points.
PC vs Villanova
Two major keys for the Friars in if they want to advance to Saturday night. PC has to limit turnovers and therefore limit the Wildcats fast break opportunities. The Wildcats are a great offensive team, they don't need help.
The other key is defending the three-point line. In Villanova's last two games, the Wildcats have knocked down 17 and 11 three-pointers against Marquette and St. John's respectively. Villanova knocked down 13 three-pointers against Providence in the February 24 game.
If Providence can do those two things, they will have a chance to win the game.
Return trip to the title game on the line
As Ed Cooley said in regards to the Friars Friday night date with Villanova at the Garden.
"There's no better place to play on a Friday night than in this building"
The game can be seen on Fox Sports 1.
Providence College Friars 2014-2015 Projected Starting Lineup
Guard- Kris Dunn
Kris Dunn will start at point guard for the Friars this season. Dunn hasn't played much over his first two years with the Friars because of injury but when he is in the game, he makes things happen. Last season against Vanderbilt, Dunn led the Friars in an epic comeback from an 18 point second half deficit. The 6'3" Dunn posted ten points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals in that game and then recorded six assists in the next game before having season ending shoulder surgery.
The Friars will be in good shape if Dunn can stay healthy this season.
Guard - Junior Lomomba
Junior Lomomba is a 6'5" sophomore guard who has found his way into the Friars starting lineup this season.
This season, Lomomba has averaged 1.5 points and 1.2 rebounds per game but a major reason why he is in the lineup is because he does not turn the ball over, only having three turnovers in the last four games for Providence.
Forward- LaDontae Henton
Last season, the 6'6" LaDontae Henton averaged 14 points per game which was second best to Bryce Cotton and just under eight rebounds per game which was the best on the team and second best in the Big East. Henton is a scrappy player who is not afraid to mix it up a bit and brings toughness to this Friars line up.
Henton seems poised for a big year.
Forward- Ben Bentil
6'8" freshman forward Ben Bentil will be one of the first players off the bench for Ed Cooley this year. Bentil can play three positions for the Friars, center, forward and small forward plus he is a good shooter and loves to rebound the ball.
Bentil is a player that is going to give coach Cooley several different options with his lineups and allow him to play the matchup game to perfection.
Center-Carson Desrosiers
Carson Desrosiers is a seven foot senior forward who last season finished fourth on the team in rebounding, averaging 4.8 rebounds per game. He also had 82 blocks on the season, an average of just over two blocks per game. His 82 blocked shots led the team.
Desroisers is a player that is mostly in the line up for his work on the defensive end and so like last season, he will be in and out of the line up depending on the situation.
6th man- Tyler Harris
Tyler Harris comes into this year as a 6'9" junior, however this is only his second season with the Friars after transferring from NC State. Last season, Harris averaged 11.6 points and five rebounds per game for the Friars and got better as the year went on.
"Harris and Henton will be more effective this year, then they were last year" said PC Alum and Radio Analyst Joe Hassett
