thefriarman
Administrator
Global Moderator
Posts: 5,792
|
Post by thefriarman on Mar 3, 2018 22:06:25 GMT -5
Stinky depaul almost beats national powerhouse and reg season league leader Xavier at Xavier. They won't cry just take the W in a competitive league and move on Game was at DePaul today....Xavier last home game was against PC... But X only beat them by 5 at home way back in December.
|
|
friar82
Administrator
BCC Member
Posts: 8,153
|
Post by friar82 on Mar 3, 2018 22:25:39 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by dex on Mar 3, 2018 23:35:08 GMT -5
Chris Mullin: ‘We are dangerous- to ourselves and the opponent.’
Cooley could say the same thing
|
|
thefriarman
Administrator
Global Moderator
Posts: 5,792
|
Post by thefriarman on Mar 4, 2018 8:03:49 GMT -5
Chris Mullin: ‘We are dangerous- to ourselves and the opponent.’ Cooley could say the same thing Ain't that the truth
|
|
|
Post by dex on Mar 4, 2018 8:36:44 GMT -5
I kept yelling to speed up the pace more with surprise presses and zone half-court presses to take advantage of Simon being on an island at PG...not to mention our anemic half-court offense. Most of the Dunk heard my clarion call but apparently Cooley couldn't hear me with Harry The Nuisance pounding in his ear from the ridiculous PA system the the DUMP uses. You would think our great AD and his trusted assistant might notice that they can't hear each other speaking during timeouts.
Kmac's Game Article
PROVIDENCE — It’s only fitting that Providence College’s seniors delivered the winning plays on Saturday.
The Friars watched a 13-point lead melt to just three with two minutes to play on Senior Day at a packed Dunkin’ Donuts Center. That’s when the game reversed course with the team’s three key seniors stepping up to secure a 61-57 win over St. John’s in the regular-season finale for both teams.
An ugly 0-for-10 shooting skid opened the door for the Red Storm to rally in a game the Friars needed to win to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. PC coach Ed Cooley got the ball to his most versatile player — Alpha Diallo — in the post. Instead of forcing a shot under heavy pressure, Diallo kicked the ball out to senior guard Kyron Cartwright. At that point the Friars were an anemic 2-for-13 from the 3-point line but Cartwright swished his trey to give PC a 53-47 lead with 1:35 left.
“I thought that was the game,” Cooley said. “When that went in, it pushed us to six points. Alpha was really unselfish to kick it out and when [Cartwright] made that shot I felt that was the game-winner.”
After a St. John’s free throw, the Friars hurried a key possession with Cartwright missing a shot. But Jalen Lindsey, a trusted classmate, went sky-high for a key rebound. He was fouled and made two free throws. Rodney Bullock, the third senior, added two more and then Diallo canned four more to cement the victory.
Bullock had 13 points and eight rebounds. Diallo added 13 points and seven boards and Cartwright’s 10 points trumped his seven turnovers. PC (19-12, 10-8) will play in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals on Thursday at Madison Square Garden against Creighton at 2:30 p.m.
“It wasn’t pretty, both teams played hard and it was a rock fight at times,” said Cooley, “but I thought our seniors made some timely shots.”
St. John’s (15-16, 4-14) played without star guard Shamorie Ponds (abdominal strain) for the second straight game. The Storm upset Butler in double overtime in their first game without Ponds but this time could not survive playing without a true point guard. PC forced 18 turnovers (10 by Justin Simon) and limited Chris Mullin’s team to 41.5-percent shooting.
Mullin said he planned on slowing the pace and "playing exactly how I don’t want to play,’’ due to Ponds’ absence. That plan seemed to unfold perfectly in the opening half as Tariq Owens scored 12 points to overcome 34.5-percent shooting and nine turnovers.
For the second straight game, the Friars were in a giving mood. Their 10 first-half turnovers were largely inexcusable and kept the Red Storm close. Maliek White came off the bench and shook things up with six points and two of PC's three first-half assists.
“I thought the pace was really slow,” Cooley said. “I don’t know why we were so methodical. In the second half we wanted to pick that up a little bit.”
That faster pace unfolded nicely as freshman Nate Watson supplied the hammer inside. The Friars opened the half on a 17-5 run to take control and Watson had nine points and an eye-catching blocked shot to help his team take a double-digit lead. A Bullock 3-pointer gave the Friars 47-34 lead with 11:11 to play.
Nine straight points by St. John's and a 1-for-11 PC skid combined to cut the lead to 50-45 and a Simon dunk made it 50-47 with 3:30 left.
“We got sloppy with the ball again,” Cooley said, “but it was just one of those games where we had to hold on to win.”
That’s when the seniors finally stepped up. Cartwright’s 3-pointer was huge as was Lindsey’s tough-guy rebound. “My shot wasn’t really falling today so I just wanted to contribute,” Lindsey said. “I saw Kyron hit it off the backboard so I just had to go get it. It probably sealed the deal for us.”
What’s not sealed is a fifth-straight NCAA Tournament berth. The Friars are a bubble team right now, stuck in a group of teams from other top conferences that look very much alike. A win in New York would almost certainly end all arguments, while a quick exit would make for frazzled nerves come Selection Sunday.“It’s now [the] postseason, it’s a one-and-done deal so hopefully we can advance,” Cooley said.
|
|
|
Post by dex on Mar 4, 2018 8:44:14 GMT -5
PROVIDENCE — Even with Friday’s dangerous Nor’easter crippling airline travel across the country, the Providence College family enjoyed nearly perfect attendance for Senior Day.
The team’s four seniors are from California (Kyron Cartwright), Tennessee (Jalen Lindsey), Virginia (Rodney Bullock) and Chicago (Tom Planek), but everyone’s parents made it to Providence and were able to walk to center court in a time-honored pregame ceremony on Saturday at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. Lindsey said it was the first time his parents, Walter and Sandra, have attended a home game this season.
“It’s so far and it’s hard for them to get back and forth with work,” Lindsey said. “It’s so special to have them here for this game. It means a lot. It’s very emotional so I’m glad to come out with the win.”
PC hung on for a 61-57 victory. The Friars haven’t lost on Senior Day since 2015 to No. 21 Butler.
“It was a bittersweet moment,” Lindsey said. “You come out and play in front of the best fans in the country, in my opinion, so it means a lot. To play one final home game and get the love and support of the fans, it was awesome.”
Freshman Nate Watson says he’s learned a lot from the seniors, especially about work ethic, but now he’s excited to join the veterans on the Big East’s grandest stage.
“I can’t wait — New York, Madison Square Garden. It’s going to be good,” Watson said.
Watson said he wanted to help the seniors end their careers at The Dunk in style and was happy to pick up the pace in the decisive second half. Watson replaced an injured Kalif Young, who rolled an ankle, hit all four of his shots and grabbed two rebounds in 13 second-half minutes.
“It was fun,” Watson said.
Ed Cooley clearly is developing more of a trust in his freshman big man who wrapped up Big East play shooting 60 percent from the field.
“Nate has continued to improve and gotten better every single game,” Cooley said. “The great thing about Nate is he’s so positive. He’s energetic and has incredible spirit whether he plays well or plays bad. Nate is going to be a household name around here.”
Fearing the Storm
For the last few weeks the improved play of St. John’s has led to Chris Mullin’s team being called dangerous when the Big East Tournament begins Wednesday night. That’s where the Red Storm will be when Mullin and Patrick Ewing’s Georgetown team match up in the opener at 7 p.m.
“We are dangerous — to ourselves and our opponent,” Mullin said.
Playing without star guard Shamorie Ponds (abdominal strain) for the second straight game, the Red Storm turned the ball over 18 times against the Friars. That came on the heels of 24 turnovers in an overtime win over Butler and highlighted how difficult it is to play without a true point guard.
“We slowed ourselves down, we wanted to play slow,” Mullin said. “We played totally unlike how I’d like to play.”
The winner of the Red Storm-Hoyas game will move to play league champion Xavier on Thursday at noon. “They’re a tough out and you have to go on their home court, Madison Square Garden. That’s a hard game,” Cooley said.
Filling The Dunk
PC finished the season drawing the second-highest number of fans in the last 13 seasons. Over 17 games, the Friars averaged 9,547 fans. The tickets were especially hard to come by for Big East games as Providence averaged 11,922 fans, or 94 percent of the Dunkin’ Donuts Center’s capacity of 12,600. The Friars finished 13-4 at home with marquee wins over Xavier and Villanova, both ranked in the top five.
“The Dunkin’ Donuts Center has been an amazing, amazing building this year,” Cooley said. “Hopefully we can continue selling the building out because our players appreciate it.”
— kmcnamar@ providence-journal.com
On Twitter:
@kevinmcnamara33
|
|
|
Post by colonel on Mar 4, 2018 9:07:14 GMT -5
Cooley couldn't hear me with Harry The Nuisance pounding in his ear from the ridiculous PA system the the DUMP uses. You would think our great AD and his trusted assistant might notice that they can't hear each other speaking during timeouts. Actually, the incredibly loud Harry you hear in the upper deck is hardly audible down at court level! I sat up in section 230 the last five seasons, but found a single seat down near court side this year - completely different experience!
|
|