Friars Get Back on Track Against Brown
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – It’s not often that a game against cross-town rivals from another conference is a must-win game. Usually, the buildup to the game consists of the rivalry aspect and not much more, and that’s enough to get people interested in the game.
This time around, though, Providence’s matchup with Brown was one the Friars needed. Getting people interested in the game didn’t matter much, as most chose to either go north to Foxboro or stay home and watch all of the Patriots’ win over Pittsburgh. With the small crowd, there wasn’t much energy in the arena. Those who did show up at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center weren’t afraid to show that they felt the Friars needed the game as well: when head coach Tim Welsh was announced after the starting lineup, the boo birds came out.
But through all of that, the Friars got a win they needed, a 70-51 decision over a Brown team that beat them last year. It was hardly a work of art, as could be expected from a team that was playing its fourth game in nine days, but a win nonetheless and one they were happy to get.
“I was a pain in the neck yesterday to these guys,” Welsh. “I think somebody smirked and I jumped down his throat like he had just committed a crime. I said, ‘What are you smiling about? We’ve lost two in a row and we’re playing a team that beat us a year ago.’
“The motivation factor was there. I didn’t know if we had it, but we dug down and found a way.”
The Friars enter final exams with a relatively non-descript showing thus far to go with their 6-3 record. They’ve been up and down with a more challenging schedule than they had last year, when they opened the season with seven straight home games and went on the road just twice in non-conference play. There have been flashes of excellence, like their 67-51 win over Arkansas in Puerto Rico, as well as the blowouts of Harvard and Maine that were expected. But there have also been question marks, like blowing a 24-point lead against Boston College before regrouping to win in overtime, and then dropping two in a row before Sunday night, although they were two tough teams.
The inconsistency can be traced to one obvious place: the point guard spot. Sharaud Curry has yet to play this season as he rehabs a foot injury, and while Dwain Williams has played admirably at the point in Curry’s absence, he’s not a point guard. The staff knows this, and the team is run differently without Curry there. Marshon Brooks has some potential and is intriguing at 6’5″, but he’s just a freshman and isn’t physically mature yet. Geoff McDermott handles the ball more with Curry out, and while he has excellent ball skills, the Friars would like to have him inside more than he has been.
“If you take Tyrese Rice, (Parfait) Bitee, (Devan) Downey off Boston College, Rhode Island and South Carolina, they’d look a lot different, too,” said Welsh, referring to three of his opponents thus far. “We’re trying to find a way to play without our head right now.”
Curry is expected to return around the end of the month. It’s possible that he could get into a game or two prior to the Big East opener at Marquette, the first of two in three days in the Midwest (they play at DePaul two nights later). The sooner he gets back, the better, so as to establish some kind of consistency heading into the Big East. But at the same time, they don’t want to rush it because it could easily get aggravated and they could lose him even longer.
The Friars have three more games, all at home, before Big East play gets going. Right now, they’re as good a pick as anyone after Georgetown, Pittsburgh and Marquette as clear top three teams. West Virginia is 7-1 and might be next, and Villanova has the same record but is young. After that, it’s wide open, with many teams not looking like locks to contend right now. Louisville is depleted (especially in the frontcourt) with injuries and suspensions, Notre Dame and Seton Hall are unknowns but playing well, St. John’s is more talented but younger, Connecticut is still a big question mark and Syracuse is very talented but inconsistent, especially at the defensive end.
In other words, it could be anybody’s game at that point. Providence could be right in the mix with all of those teams if Curry gets healthy and this team hits its stride with him back in the lineup.
Helping the Friars out is the continued improvement of Randall Hanke. After missing last season due to personal reasons, Hanke had gone from leading the nation in field goal percentage two years ago to being cheered to go in the game like a walk-on. Sunday night might have been his breakout game for the season, as he scored 13 points on 5-5 shooting in 20 minutes, and also blocked two shots. He topped his entire season output prior to the game in the first half.
“He’s never once winced about not playing,” Welsh said of Hanke. “He and I talk a lot about his progress, and I’m happy because we need him. We need him, there’s no question about it.”
Indeed, with the lone starter lost from last season’s team being Herbert Hill, a double-double machine last year, someone needs to fill in down low. There is no shortage of candidates, and Hanke is as good a possibility as anyone.
Add in 13 points on 6-8 shooting from freshman Jamine Peterson in Sunday’s game, and one can see that there are a few possibilities.
“We have depth, and not the same people are going to do the same thing every game, so knowing that other people can come off the bench and do a great job is reassuring,” said McDermott, who quietly hauled down 11 rebounds to go with seven points.
With final exams holding up play for over a week, there isn’t much momentum the Friars will get from Sunday’s win. It does let them go in on a good note, and while they realize that there’s still plenty of basketball left to play, there’s a question of momentum as well as getting a win or two that would allow them to not have to have a big conference run to have a shot at the NCAA Tournament.
