PC Begins Big East Season Against DePaul Tuesday Night

PC Begins Big East Season Against DePaul Tuesday Night

After a tough loss against in-state rival Rhode Island, Providence College needs to put that loss in the rearview mirror. Time to get back on the saddle and get a bounce-back win in their first Big East clash of the season against DePaul.

The Friars and the Demons tip off Tuesday night in Chicago at 8:30 PM. TV coverage is on FS1.

The Big East honchos in charge of schedules ended up being kind to the Friars.  Far better to open against DePaul than Creighton.

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DePaul, a perennial basement dweller in the Big East, is once again picked by the Big East coaches in the preseason poll to be looking up at every other Big East team. It has always been a head-scratcher for me to figure out why DePaul can’t capitalize on the local basketball talent available in Chicago.

The Friars enter the game 6-4 and have lost 4 out of their last 5.

 

DePaul Is 7-1

In any case, PC needs to capitalize on the Demons. DePaul does have a gaudy 7-1 record.  But those 7 wins have all come at home against their version of cupcakes—the likes of Prairie View, Southern Indiana, and Northern Illinois.  In their only legitimate Division I opponent, an away game against Texas Tech last week in the Big East-Big 12 showdown, the Demons fell easily 76-62.

It’s hard to put too much faith in DePaul’s numbers largely achieved against some of the weakest teams in Division I, but here are some of the Demons’ team stats: Points/game: 85; FG%: 49%; 3 PT FG%: 40%; FT%: 69%; Rebounds/game: 41; Assists game: 20.  These are all impressive numbers, but one has to count on the Friars playing hardnosed Big East defense to flatten those numbers.

An unusual aspect of the Demons lineup is their balance. They don’t feature any big-time scorers.  The top point-getter is sophomore guard Jacob Meyer who comes off the bench and averages 14.6 pts/game and can shoot the trey. His 3-pt FG%/game is 47%. They regularly play 8 players a game—all of whom average more than 18 minutes/game, and all of whom average at least 7 pts/game.

DePaul will be the tallest lineup that PC has faced this season so far.  Five of the players who regularly play are all over 6’7”, accounting for their respectable 41 rebounds/game. Their top rebounder is 6’11” David Skogman who cleans the glass with 7.3 rebounds/game.

Their point guard is a junior Conor Enright who averages 7.5 assists/game.  But he can be torched by good defense, as he also averages three turnovers a game.

 

Friar Opportunity

This is a game where the Friars can get their confidence back with a convincing win, a solid stepping stone for facing the rest of the Big East schedule. A loss would send shockwaves through Friartown,