PC Beats Georgetown - Friars Now 4-0 Against Hoyas’ Cooley

PC Beats Georgetown - Friars Now 4-0 Against Hoyas’ Cooley

The Providence College men’s basketball team fell behind by double digits in the first half, and then, they put together a high-energy, gutsy effort to beat Georgetown University 78-68.

Georgetown, led by former Friars coach Ed Cooley, was the favorite coming into Providence, but PC, with the win today, elevates the Friars to 4-0 against Cooley.

Last year’s game was marred by near-relentless personal chanting directed at Cooley by Friars fans.

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This year, the crowd was not welcoming but less personal. It was a sold-out crowd in Providence.

READ KEVIN STACOM'S INTERVIEW WITH COOLEY

On Saturday, PC got balanced performances from Jayden Pierre with 14 points, Bensley Joseph with 14 points, and Jabri Abdur-Rahim added 12 points and was 2-of-3 from behind the 3-point line.

Abdur-Rahim’s big 3-pointer with 3 minutes left in the game stretched PC’s lead from 3 to 6.

While not the leading scorer, Corey Floyd had a tremendous impact on the game with great defense and 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.

Georgetown’s Thomas Sorber had an outstanding performance with 25 points and 15 rebounds.  He is seen as a one-and-done for the Hoyas.

The Friars played tenacious defense, especially in the second half. Georgetown shot 53% in the first half from the field, but just 33% in the second half.

The Friars won the battle of the boards 37-32 for the game.

"I thought our guys really competed and played together," said PC head coach Kim English. "When that happens, and you're disciplined, you take care of the ball, you rebound, and you take good shots, you usually come out on the right side of the win column."

With the win, the Friars are now 10-10 in the season and 4-5 in the Big East.

 

First Half Come Back

Georgetown’s biggest lead of the game was 25-13 at the 10:03 mark of the first half.

But the Friars dug in and battled back to lead at the half 38-33.

 

FIRST HALF:

- Joseph and Wesley Cardet (Tallahassee, Fla.) opened the game with three-pointers. PC trailed 9-7 through five minutes of action. 
- Georgetown answered with a 9-0 surge to seize an 18-7 lead.
- The Friars found a rhythm and cut the deficit back to five - 29-24 - with seven minutes until halftime. Pierre led the charge on offense.
- At the 2:49 mark, Pierre capped off a 9-0 Friars run, making a nifty move and finishing a reverse layup. PC pulled ahead - 34-31 - while Georgetown had not scored in over three minutes.
- The Friars finished the half on a 13-2 run over the last 5:53, as well as a 27-10 run over the final 11:04. 
- After trailing by 12 earlier in the half, the Friars led 38-33 at halftime. 

 

SECOND HALF:

- Oswin Erhunmwunse (Benin City, Nigeria) finished a second-chance dunk to open the half. 
- At the 16:19 mark, Ryan Mela (Natick, Mass.) found Corey Floyd Jr. (Franklin, N.J.) for an alley-oop slam in transition. The Friars held a seven-point advantage, 44-37.
- Georgetown engineered an 8-0 run, regaining the lead 45-44 with 12:54 left to play. 
- At the 11:44 mark, Christ Essandoko (Clichy, France) answered with a triple. The three-ball ended a Providence scoring drought of over four minutes. PC led 47-45.
- Joseph finished through contact and converted an and-one with eight minutes remaining. The Friars extended their lead to 58-52.
- PC went on a quick 6-0 run to take a double-digit lead - 66-56 - with 4:39 left. Floyd capped off the run with an alley-oop dunk off a Joseph assist.
- Georgetown answered with its own 7-0 push in under a minute, trimming it to a one-possession game. Abdur-Rahim countered with a timely triple. PC led 71-65 with 2:09 to play. 
- On the ensuing possession, Abdur-Rahim drew a foul on a three-pointer and knocked down all three free throws. Providence took a seven-point cushion - 74-67 - into the final minute of action. 

 

HIGHLIGHTS:

- Five players finished in double figures for the Friars: Joseph (14), Pierre (14), Abdur-Rahim (12), Floyd (11), and Erhunmwunse (10). 
- The Friars controlled the rebound battle by a margin of five (37-32).
- The Friars recorded 26 bench points, while Georgetown had zero.
- Essandoko hauled in a team-high seven rebounds. Floyd dished a game-high five assists.
- Pierre and Georgetown's Thomas Sorber each played all 40 minutes. 
- Abdur-Rahim drew two fouls from three-point territory in the second half, knocking down all six free throws.
- Micah Peavy and Thomas Sorber combined for 52 of Georgetown's 68 points. 

 

NOTES:

- The Friars improved to 38-47 all-time versus Georgetown, including a 23-15 record at home.
- PC extended its win streak against Georgetown to eight games, as well as 10 of the last 11 contests. 
- The Friars were 3-0 versus Georgetown last season. The last time the two teams played in Providence, the Friars earned an 84-76 win on Jan. 27, 2024.
- The Friars moved to 5-5 when leading at halftime this season.
- The Friars have used 11 different starting lineups this season.
- Cardet notched 1,500 career points in today's game. 
- Ed Cooley is one of two former PC coaches that the Friars played this season (Rick Pitino of St. John's).
- PC has posted a 1-1 mark this season against former coaches (0-1 vs. Pitino, 1-0 vs. Cooley).
- The Friars improved to 9-2 at home this season.

PC and Georgetown meet again on Feb 19 (Wed) at 7:00 PM in D.C.

UP NEXT:

The Friars travel to take on the Seton Hall Pirates (6-13, 1-7 Big East) on Tuesday, Jan. 28 at the Prudential Center in South Orange, N.J.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The game will air live on Peacock.