With a 99-85 loss to #4 Syracuse last night, the Providence Friars drop their 7th game in a row, and their 4th in a row to a team ranked in the TOP EIGHT.  It’s been a brutal stretch, with some brutal stretches of bad play leading to these losses.  This time, it was a poor 2nd half against Syracuse after quite the offensive performance in the first.  Even though PC lost and looked quite over matched in last 20 minutes, boy was that first half entertaining.  It was raining threes by EVERYONE (including BMac!), there were alleyoops from Curry to Greedy, and even RAY HALL was dropping some points.  Providence took a surprising 5 point lead (52-47) into the half.

What should the Friars have done?  They should have pulled a George Costanza and left on a high note!  “Alright that’s it for me - Good night everybody!”

Bottom line: Syracuse is freakin’ good and have only lost TWO games all year — we will know more about the state of our program after the final three games (with two of then winnable IMO) and their performance in the BIG EAST Tournament.

(AP Photo/Stew Milne)

Liftoff after the jump!

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The Providence Friars lost another tough one to another tough team, this time against #4/#5 Villanova at the Wachovia Center.  Despite losing their 5th game in a row, and dropping to below .500 on the season (12-13), Providence is showing improvement and fight.  The Friars hung tough until referee Doug Shows decided to shorthand PC by giving a ridiculous foul and unnecessary technical to Sharaud Curry, causing him to foul out of the game with 8 minutes left.  From that point on, the Wildcats ran over Providence like the picture below.

Believe it or not, this was called a blocking foul on Council (AP Photo/Michael Perez)

Read the rest after the jump!

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The third leg of the GUANTLET proved similar to the first few — the Friars played pretty well in the first half, but struggled offensively only to fade late in the second.  Thankfully for some lucky fans, they did not have to witness the momentum changing Georgetown 14-1 run, or the inability to score late, thanks to the fan with the sign below.

Despite only being down as little as three in the final several minutes, Providence could not execute offensively, and continually let the Hoyas score on easy inside baskets.  The Hoyas were clearly the bigger and better team, and the Friars obviously still have some work to do in being able to execute in games down the stretch. The losing obviously sucks, but hopefully the team can look at how they were able to compete with these very good teams for 20 minutes, and start getting closer to 40 minutes of good basketball.

Read the rest of the recap after the jump!

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So PC got to face the weakest Gladiator (I may be incredibly dating myself here, but didn’t Mr. Dewey from “Saved by the Bell” try out for them at one point?) they will see amongst the six-game GAUNTLET, and they came up short despite some really great performances.  If there are any positives to take out of this loss, it’s that Greedy keeps improving and is awesome, and Bilal Dixon keeps getting better.  Vincent Council had a rough going at the end when he forced up a three to tie when nobody was open, but we already knew he was awesome.  Those three are going to be a great part of the team the next few years.

Read more about the game after the jump.

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As original members of the BIG EAST, Providence and Syracuse have a long history.  Aside from the win at the DUNK last year, the Orange have pretty much owned the Black and White recently.  We need to become better rivals.  Why, you ask?  So a blog like Hoya Suxa can create videos like this when they beat us.  You may have seen this floating around the web a few weeks ago when Syracuse beat Georgetown.  If not, here ya go.

Forget wins, NCAA Tournament appearances, blah blah blah.  Keno’s legacy at Providence should be measured by whether or not our team can inspire awesome internet hi-jinks/hatred on opposing teams’ blogs.

Anyways, aside from the Greedy dunk, there wasn’t too much excitement in this game.  The Cuse remembered that they were way better/bigger/faster/stronger than PC right out of the gate in the 2nd half and didn’t look back.

Hit up the rest of the recap, after the jump.

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2009-2010 Providence Basketball for $500 Alex.

Kyle Smiyth

Jonathan Peoples

Darius Johnson-Odom

Cashmere Wright

BZZZZZZZZ

“Who are…random players who have scored their career highs against Providence this season?”

YOU WON!

I think I’ll need some potent potables to get through the rest of this season! Hit up the rest of the game recap after the jump.

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Providence, just when I thought the season could not get any worse, you do something like this AND TOTALLY REDEEM YOURSELF!!

It’s a great day to be a Friar fan.  What a phenomenal job by Keno Davis and his staff getting the team to come together after the South Florida debacle.  The team played intense, inspired basketball in front of an EXCELLENT crowd at the DUNK.  The excitement at the arena really came through on TV as I watched on SNY.

Read the full recap of Providence’s 81-66 upset win over #19 Connecticut last night after the jump!

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In looking at the really depressing game flow chart on StatSheet, I noticed that the 92-83 Friars lead with :49 seconds to go had a 61.7% LEAD SAFENESS.

To quote the great commentary of Tommy Boy when playing checkers with Richard: “Come on, It’s safe I swear!!”

“Haha that’s wasn’t safe it all!!!”

Anyways, obviously a very very tough loss to take.  Fans are frustrated, the coach is frustrated. What can you do other than using this loss to turn things around and pull off a few wins against teams that we aren’t supposed to beat?

LETS TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT ‘THE FOUR FACTORS’

More on the Four Factors

• It’s rare to see a team shoot over a 60% effective field goal percentage and still lose the game, but that is what the Friars managed to do against USF.  The highest eFG% Providence had in a loss this season was their 50.8 eFG% against both URI and Louisville.  I checked last several years as a comparison, and found that this happened only a few times — Most recently in the Jonathan Xavier incident Marquette game the Friars had a 61.8 eFG%, a game the Friars defense also faltered in blowing a 2nd half lead.
• Providence turned the ball over slightly more than usual, but those 14 turnovers proved very costly (especially in the 2nd half).  USF turned 8 Friars turnovers in the 2nd into 15 points.  It was truly a team effort, as 6 Providence players had at least 2, but no more than 3 TOs.
• Rebounding was generally even, and both teams posted similar second chance points totals (USF 19, Providence 17).  Three Bulldogs had at least 4 offensive boards (Toarlyn Fitzpatrick 4, Mike Mercer 4, and Jarrid Famous 5).  Vincent Council put up his second straight game with at least 3 offensive rebounds, and Greedy also got half of his 10 by way of the offensive glass.
• The foul line was a huge reason Dominique Jones was able to put up his massive point totals — He went to the line for 18 free throw attempts!

OTHER STAT NOTES

Possessions: 82

Efficiency Ratings

PC: 128

South Florida: 132.9

• This was the highest offensive rating South Florida put up all season, 5 points higher than their previous high in their win over Florida Atlantic.
• Offensively for the Friars, this was their third highest offensive rating for the season, only behind the George Washington (144.7) and Bryant (129.7).  Doesn’t really matter when you can’t stop the other team.  Only Marquette was able to put up a higher rating against the Friars this season (140.9).

Let’s judge some performances by dishing out some pasta (from 1-4, 4 being awesome). My homage to the Star-Ledger.

Dominique Jones - At least he came up 2 points short of our former Friar Eric Murdock’s BIG EAST scoring record!

Toarlyn Fitzpatrick - I know he’s a freshman and all, but his second career three?  Really?

Vincent Council - Had such a great game with 17 points and 5 assists, but was marred with missing 3 big foul shots in crunch time.

Jamine Peterson - Yeah yeah had a double-double and probably should get 3 bowls, BUT that three off the backboard in OT knocks him down a peg.

Brian McKenzie - Scored only 4, and gave up a big turnover at the end.  And how is he still starting?

BOX SCORES FOR THE STATS NERDS!

Friars.com Boxscore

Friars.com Gametracker

StatSheet.com Boxscore

AROUND THE INTERWEBS

Friars.com: USF Uses Late Surge To Upend Men’s Basketball, 109-105, In Overtime

The Providence College men’s basketball team (11-8, 3-4 BIG EAST) was defeated by the University of South Florida (12-7, 2-5 BIG EAST) in overtime 109-105 on Saturday, Jan. 23 at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. The Friars led the game by nine with under a minute to play, but USF outscored PC 14-5 in the final minute of regulation to send the game into overtime. The Bulls’ Dominique Jones nailed a 3-pointer to open overtime and USF never trailed in the extra session

GoUSFBulls.com: Jones Sets Scoring Record in Overtime Win Against Friars

Junior Dominique Jones played the game of his life as he scored 46 points to break the school’s single-game scoring record in leading the University of South Florida men’s basketball team to a 109-105 overtime victory over Providence Saturday night.

Projo.com: Friars give it away, fall to South Florida in OT

In one of the greatest giveaways in PC’s long hoop history, the Friars let South Florida come from behind in the final seconds of regulation and then lost a 109-105 overtime thriller in front of 9,184 frustrated fans.

Bleacher Report: Providence Friars Shocked After Stunning Loss to South Florida

Homecoming weekend at Providence College and the first weekend back for the students from winter break, filled the Dunkin Donuts Center with anxious and excited fans who were ready to show their support for a Friars squad, 11-7 (3-4) as they entered the heart of their Big East Schedule.

The Sun Chronicle: Friar defense lit up

Until the Providence College Friars learn how to spell ‘defense’ there are going to be more games like there was Saturday night at The Dunk - a 109-105 overtime loss to South Florida, a team which had won just two of its previous 35 Big East road games.

Projo Hoops Blog: Audio: Keno says Friars aren’t good enough, hints at changes to come

Projo Hoops Blog: How about the coaching, Keno?

At no point did Davis include himself in the reasons the Friars suffered an embarrassing loss at home to one of the weaker teams in the conference.

Perhaps, if PC had a more talented coach, they wouldn’t have blown what should have been an insurmountable lead.

Friar Basketball: Wait Until Next Year (or the year after)

This site has targeted the year after next as Providence’s most realistic NCAA tournament bid.  Sure, there is a chance that both Gerard Coleman and Joe Young can both defend and give you 10-15 points on a nightly basis and one of the Still/Kadeem Batts/Ron Giplaye trio will be able to spell Dixon effectively, but that is asking a lot out of kids who have never played at the Big East level.

Tampa Bay Online: Bulls pull off miracle rally for win over Providence

Jones finished with a career-high 46 points by making 15 of 23 field goals and 14 of 18 free throws. He fell two points shy of the Big East single-game scoring record, set by Providence’s Eric Murdock in 1991 against Pittsburgh. Jones also tied his career best with 10 rebounds and added eight assists. In the past six games, Jones is averaging 28.5 points.

TampaBay.com: Dominique Jones has school-record 46 points as USF Bulls rally to beat Providence in overtime

Granted, the Bulls still are only 3-35 all time in Big East road games since joining the conference four years ago. But they’ll be hard-pressed to come up with a more memorable win.

USF Sports Bulletin: Was Friars’ OT loss to USF ‘unacceptable’?

Providence coach Keno Davis, doing a Q&A with ScoutFriars.com last summer, had this random jab at the Bulls, which we posted here on the blog back in June:

“If you take a game off vs. Rutgers, or vs. South Florida or vs. DePaul, those are the losses that are unacceptable,” he said. “If you play really hard, and you happen to drop one at Seton Hall, you can live with it. If you play hard and you just get beat you can live with it.”

Boring-ass AP Writeup: South Florida Defeats Providence 109-105 in OT

Dominique Jones scored a career-high 46 points, the second-most by a Big East player in a regular-season game, and South Florida mounted a furious comeback in the final minutes of regulation to take a 109-105 victory over Providence on Saturday night.

STAFF TWEETS

Rodell Davis Tweet

FEATURED FAN TWEET

Friartown Tweet

OTHER TWITTER REACTIONS

PCDen No words. Simply no words at all for that horrible travesty of a game tonight.

LilCease I can’t believe the #friars gave that game away…I’m still out here n providence yall..I’m hungry.where can me and sis eat at out here?

gregjbutler On to the next one : UConn Wednesday

PSUBecket Can’t tell if I should be upset I missed the #friars game. Seemed exciting, but it shouldn’t have been. Lets hope we steal one from UConn.

neilfrancisco What the hell #friars

TTAPCBBall I’d write a blog now, but I think I need to step back for a minute and contain my rage. Also I’m drunk. So there’s that.

PFabe21 @friarblog Im suck to my stomach with that loss. How do we even follow them after that!! UGHHHHHH

JADuffy @friarblog, the only stat: 12-3 run by SFU w/ 1:36 to go. Great offense. No defense/lock down intensity. But still huge future. Crazy?

JMulley @friarblog What the heck is going on with this team? #Friars # fail.

kdk711 @friarblog just terrible. Bmac should never touch the court. Irresponsible turnover. Later 23

squinn02 @friarblog well, you know where to start your worst losses of the 2010 decade article

Friartown Absolute heartbreaker.

raphiellej 109-105 #USF wins it in OT. 46, 10 and 8 for Dominique Jones. Should be Big East Player of the Week. Tough loss for the #Friars.

So a few buddies of mine ended up making the trip to Chicago for the game last night (the three of them probably made up 20% of the crowd).   Two are followers of the site (Fact of the Matter and ChiFriar), so I thought, cool maybe I’ll get some good in-game action photos, or first hand accounts of the DePaul crowd trying to taunt our players.  Well I got something even better than that.  Apparently this guy sat directly in front of them.

Is that Michael McDonald? Is he a DePaul fan?

“I don’t care. Anything. I would rather… I would rather watch “Beautician and the Beast”. I would rather listen to Fran Drescher for eight hours than have to listen to Michael McDonald. Nothing against him, but if I hear “Yah Mo B There” one more time, I’m going to “Yah Mo” burn this place to the ground.”

How did they even see the court with that in front of them?

Anyways, so yeah the game.  Well Providence was down by 7 with about 3 minutes to go after playing the worst basketball you can possibly play.  If DePaul had any offense whatsoever, PC could have been down 20+.  Thankfully Marshon Brooks (who didn’t start because of his ankle) took charge and really sparked the ridiculous run that turned that deficit into an eventual 20 point advantage early in the 2nd half.

LETS TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT ‘THE FOUR FACTORS’

More on the Four Factors

• DePaul just could not score from anywhere on the court.  Anywhere.  Three pointers? Clank.  Easy close layup?  Rimmed out.  Their 39% effective field goal percentage was pretty dreadful.  Against the Friars, only Vermont shot worse this season (just barely, 38.3%).  This was even bad by DePaul’s standards, as it was their 4th worst shooting performance of the season, and 2nd in 4 BIG EAST games.  PC’s numbers could have been a lot better, if not for the slow start and the fact that the bench guys got a lot of run in THIRTEEN PLUS MINUTES of garbage time.  At least Johnny Lacy finally popped his cherry of making a three pointer this season (1-5 last night, 1-17 on the year).  It’s all uphill from here baby.
• Turnovers were a big problem for both teams in the first half, and was a big reason DePaul was able to grab the lead until late in the 1st half.  The Friars offense just came out very sluggish and couldn’t get any good looks.  Even though both teams were a little better in the 2nd, PC still had a great 19-9 advantage in points off turnovers.
• Without Mac Koshwal, the Blue Demons did surprisingly well on the rebounding front. Tony Freeland had a game high 4 offensive rebounds, but, and correct me if I’m wrong, he was the guy who kept getting the ball at the end of the first half as time expired and his final shot was waved off.  For the Friars, Bilal Dixon (3 ORB), Greedy Peterson (2), and Marshon Brooks (2) paved the way for getting 16 second chance points (versus DePaul’s 6)

OTHER STAT NOTES

Possessions: 73

Efficiency Ratings

PC: 108.2

DePaul: 84.9

• DePaul’s offensive rating was the fifth lowest the Friars have held their opponents to this season.  It was surprisingly better than St. John’s!

Let’s judge some performances by dishing out some pasta (from 1-4, 4 being awesome). My homage to the Star-Ledger.

Marshon Brooks - Didn’t make the start because of the ankle, but really sparked the Friars run at the end of the first half.  Every time he takes a three he either gets fouled, or tries to make believe he got fouled.  Sneaky.  I love it!

Mike Stovall - The lone, completely by himself by a country mile, bright spot for   DePaul.  It’s pretty bad that I really didn’t notice him putting up 30 points.  Then again, the last 15 minutes of the game seemed like 4 hours and I was easily distracted.

Vincent Council - Had a few turnovers here and there, but had his daily dose of spectacular passes that even left ESPN announcer and PC alumn Doris Burke impressed.  If Gerard Coleman was at home watching the game, he probably sh*t his pants out of pure joy.

Duke Mondy - 9 points on two three point-plays (on two really tough shots) and a sweet stroke three pointer.  I think it came in a stretch of like 5 minutes or so (IIRC), so it was big during the run that put away the Blue Demons

Jamine Peterson - It’s weird to give a player only two bowls after getting a double-double with several highlight dunks, but his first half was mostly pretty poor, and it led to the Friars being down by as many as seven.  Lots of bad shots it seemed.  At least he finished his game strong.

Will Walker - This was the same guy that torched us for 30 something points last year?  0-5 from downtown and 2-10 overall.  With Koshwal out he needed to carry the load.

Brian McKenzie - …

BOX SCORES FOR THE STATS NERDS!

Friars.com Boxscore

StatSheet.com Boxscore

AROUND THE INTERWEBS

Friars.com: Men’s Basketball Defeats DePaul, 79-62

The Providence College Friars improved to 3-2 in BIG EAST action (11-6 overall) when they earned a 79-62 league win over DePaul (7-9, 0-4) on Thursday, January 14 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. The Friars were led by a team-high 17 points from junior Marshon Brooks (Stone Mountain, Ga.) and sophomore Jamine Peterson (Brooklyn, N.Y.), who recorded a double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds).

DePaulBlueDemons.com: DePaul’s Loss to Providence Not So Divine

This could have been the perfect night for DePaul to cast aside the burden of a BIG EAST Conference losing streak.

It could have been a new beginning for the Blue Demons in their first game being directed by interim coach Tracy Webster.

Instead, Providence spoiled Webster’s debut with a strong second-half performance in a 79-62 victory over DePaul at Allstate Arena that extended the Blue Demons’ BIG EAST losing streak to 23 games.

Projo.com: After slow start, Friars overwhelm DePaul

“DePaul came out with an incredible amount of energy and took it to us the first 15 minutes of the game,” said PC coach Keno Davis. “But I’ve been saying all year that our team may be young but we seem to know how to adjust to situations. We never give up and now we’re learning to play with leads. We’re getting experience and we’re getting better. To get a second road win in the Big East, I can’t be prouder.”

Projo Hoops Blog: PC blows out DePaul, 79-62

The Providence Friars shook off a slow start and have finished blowing out DePaul, 79-62, tonight at Allstate Arena.

Chicago Tribune: DePaul loses 23rd straight in Big East

The only truly perceptible change before things started Thursday was the editing out of Wainwright from the pregame video montage, as scores of seats remained unoccupied and a general uneasiness reigned.

Chicago College Basketball: Change at DePaul doesn’t change result in Big East

You can replace the coach, but unfortunately you can’t replace the players and you can’t change your whole scheme in a week. DePaul found that out the hard way as the Blue Demons showed many of their old tendencies, even while displaying some new tricks, in a 79-62 loss to Providence on Thursday in front of 7,533 at Allstate Arena.

Chicago Breaking Sports: Second-half swoon dooms DePaul in Webster debut

The new beginning for DePaul had a familiar, melancholy ending.

Clinging to a chance at ending their Big East misery in interim coach Tracy Webster’s debut, the Demons imploded in the second half and lost 79-62 to Providence at Allstate Arena.

Daily Herald: Good and bad signs in Webster’s debut

For Tracy Webster’s first game as DePaul’s head coach, the school chartered a season-high 12 buses to tote its students from the Lincoln Park campus to Allstate Arena for Providence’s 79-62 win in Rosemont.

Go Friars: Complete Team Effort Leads Friars Second Half Blowout Win

DePaul (7-9, 0-4) suffered a huge blow when the found out Mac Koshwal would be out 2-4 weeks with a foot injury.  The bigger blow might have been the disappointing effort the Blue Demons played with in the second half, as the Providence Friars (11-6, 3-2) clicked in every aspect of the game and defeated DePaul, 79-62 in Chicago.

Boring-ass AP Writeup: Providence 79, DePaul 62

Marshon Brooks scored 17 points and Jamine Peterson added 16 as Providence defeated DePaul 79-62 on Thursday night, ruining Tracy Webster’s coaching debut.

STAFF TWEETS

FEATURED FAN TWEET

TheRoundtable Tweet

OTHER TWITTER REACTIONS

PCDen Took Ash to her first NBA game! Too bad the C’s tanked it. At least PC won on the Deuce tonight for an overall good night!

KatieJaneONeil Great to be able to watch the #Friars all the way from Atlanta!!

rjsuperfly66 friars win, friars win. lets go!!!

CoxSports #Friars take care of business. This win was expected; on to Marquette. Go Friars!

PCAthletics PC wins!!

MCMSwets Great road win for the Friars tonight! 79-62 over DePaul. Jamine Peterson’s alley-oop #5 on ESPN’s Thursday Top 10.

Spano8 good to see my boys tear it up 2night!they all(for the most part) get along real well with eachother & showed that tonight vsDePaul #friars

JohnGasaway DePaul fan in 90 pct empty Allstate Arena just made the “No. 1!” sign to the camera. “No. 1!” is literally unavoidable.

chicolbball If there was enough height on this team for Mike Stovall to play 2-guard instead of forward it would help a lot.

BaxDaddy Providence is killing DePaul on national TV, ESPN 2. We are going to be 3-2 in the #BigEast ! #Friars #DePaul Go #PC

neilfrancisco Did Greedy just try to pass it to himself off the backboard? #friars

JADuffy Council is a steal great to watch> #friars

KevDC Mondy is tearing it up! I’m impressed with him and Council’s assists. #friars

raphiellej I’d like to propose a trade: DePaul and future cash considerations for Memphis. I think it would work out for both sides. $5 mill for C-USA

PhillyFriar Credit where it’s due: #Friars have picked it up since about the 3 minute mark in the first half.

I had a great weekend up at Providence, and was able to visit the Dunkin’ Donuts Center for the first time since it was renovated.  Checking into the hotel, I noticed a big RU bus, and some of the Rutgers players at the lobby.  I saw Mike Rosario and whispered ominously into his ear “You are going to shoot 1-11 tonight” and walked away.  OK, that didn’t happen, but I did see Rutgers head coach Fred Hill come out of the elevator and chatted with him for a few minutes.  I forgot that he knew my uncle, so he was happy to talk to us.  Real nice guy.  Right before he left, I said “Don’t pay any attention to Greedy Peterson.  He’s banged up and not playing well.  Don’t guard him all.  It’s safe I swear!”.  OK, well that didn’t happen either (the Greedy part, I did talk with Freddy).  I probably didn’t need to psyche out any of them, as the Friars just completely outworked and outplayed the Scarlet Knights in the first half.  Even though Providence let up a little in the 2nd and Rutgers kinda fought back, it was never really close.  If I wasn’t so sound asleep thanks to one too many fine beers from downtown Providence, I probably would have had trouble sleeping due to the weeping and groaning coming from the floor above where the players stayed.

I also want to point out that since I started this site last year, the Providence Friars are 4-0 in games that I have attended.  OK, so the opponents have only been Rutgers, Seton Hall, and DePaul, but I still like to take credit for the wins.

LETS TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT ‘THE FOUR FACTORS’

More on the Four Factors

• It’s amazing the shooting ended up being so close after the Friars just blew Rutgers out in the 1st half.  It seemed like RU just kept launching threes off the rim left and right. I guess it helped that Dane Miller was 10 of 16.
• The Friars once again had a great night taking care of the ball, and won the points off turnovers battle 23-9.  This was the 4th game that PC coughed it up less than 10 times.  Given their style of play and youth, it is really surprising the team continues to put up excellent turnover percentage numbers.  Definitely their biggest strength this year, and good to see after last year’s problems (see McDermott, Geoff).
• Although Greedy Peterson made all the headlines with his dominant 20 rebound performance, Dane Miller had the game high with 6 offensive rebounds (but strangely  only 1 defensive board). It appears that Keno’s motivation worked not only on Greedy (5 ORB), but also on Marshon Brooks and Brian McKenzie (4 offensive each).
• Providence had not really done a good job at getting to the line this season, but put up their 3rd best free throw rate of the year.  Once they got there? Um, that’s another story.  Sharaud Curry was the only Friar to have success at the line, as PC went a dreadful 13-27 (48.1%) from the line.

OTHER STAT NOTES

Possessions: 76

Efficiency Ratings

PC: 123.7

Rutgers: 106.6

Let’s judge some performances by dishing out some pasta (from 1-4, 4 being awesome). My homage to the Star-Ledger.

Jamine Peterson - 13th player to ever get 20/20 in BIG EAST play.  Most damage done in the first half, as he was drilling threes and making numerous highlight dunks.

Dane Miller - Impressive performance from the Freshman.  5 turnovers though

Vincent Council - Seeing him make no-look passes in person was truly amazing.  I’ve been super impressed watching him all season, but he just looks that much better in person.

Sharaud Curry - Can he lead some free throw drills in practice? He’s the only one who can shoot them apparently

None

Mike Rosario - Rutgers leading scorer was shut down for the 3rd time against Providence.  For some reason, they have this guy figured out.

BOX SCORES FOR THE STATS NERDS!

Friars.com Gametracker

Friars.com Boxscore

StatSheet.com Boxscore

AROUND THE INTERWEBS

Friars.com: Men’s Basketball Downs Rutgers, 94-81

The Providence College men’s basketball team (10-6, 2-2 BIG EAST) defeated Rutgers University (9-6, 0-3 BIG EAST) by a score of 94-81 Saturday, Jan. 9 at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Sophomore forward Jamine Peterson (Brooklyn, N.Y.) had an incredible effort for PC, leading the team with 29 points and 20 rebounds. It marked the 32nd time in school history that a player has posted at least 20 points and 20 rebounds in a game and Peterson becomes only the sixth player in Friar history to accomplish the feat. The last time a Friar hit the mark was November 11, 2006 when Herbert Hill recorded 20 points and 20 rebounds against George Washington. It also marks only the 13th time in BIG EAST history that a player has eclipsed the mark.

ScarletKnights.com: Career Nights from Miller and Mitchell Not Enough as RU Falls at Providence

Freshman wing Dane Miller (Henrietta, N.Y.) scored 26 points and redshirt junior forward Jonathan Mitchell (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) added 18 points to both post career-high scoring totals, but it was not enough as Rutgers (9-6, 0-3) fell to Providence (10-6, 2-2) by a 94-81 score Saturday evening at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Miller shot 10-of-16, including 3-of-6 from behind the arc, and grabbed seven rebounds, while Mitchell also had seven boards, to spark the Scarlet Knights.

Projo.com: McKenzie, Peterson get Friars back to winning ways

“There was a little whisper going on throughout practice,” said McKenzie, “and that definitely was a motivator. He didn’t really come out and say it. He would just hint towards it, but that little murmur motivated everybody.”

Projo Hoops Blog: Greedy’s Big Night

Peterson totaled 29 points and 20 rebounds in PC’s 94-81 win over Rutgers Saturday night. You could make a case that it was the greatest individual performance ever by a Friar against a Big East opponent. Sound like a stretch? Not really.

Sun Chronicle: Friars Rebound

“Everything came to me, I was more patient instead of rushing things,” said Peterson, the 6-foot-6 Brooklyn, N.Y. resident, who was scolded and reminded by PC coach Keno Davis of his responsibilities after a stink-a-roo, three-point in 29-minute effort against Louisville four days ago.

Go Friars Blog: Friars Roll; Greedy’s For Real

It was only the 32nd time in school history that a player has posted at least 20 points and 20 rebounds in a game. Peterson becomes only the sixth player in Friar history to accomplish the feat. It also marks only the 13th time in BIG EAST history that a player has eclipsed the mark.

Friar Basketball: 29, 20, and 5 (great recruits)

As for the game itself, the story was Greedy Peterson.  Is there such a thing as a good missed dunk?  When Greedy missed a one hander late in the 2nd half (he was fouled) it sent the crowd buzzing because he took off from Smithfield, but it was perhaps even more significant as it symbolized a rousing 29 point, 20 rebound effort in which he continually attacked the rim for the first time in a while.

Truth About PC Basketball: Rutgers Postgame

All of that said, there is certainly still work to be done. The Friars just seemed unable to deliver a knockout punch in the second half, allowing the Scarlet Knights to hang around for too long. Against a better team, that might have been a bigger problem.

State of Friars Basketball: Peterson’s Career Game Propels the Friars Over Rutgers

Well, this game certainly had its moments.  The Friars of the first half seemed a lot like the team that fans would like to see every night.  They moved the ball well, and all of our important players were hitting shots.

It seems like Keno Davis’ rumors of a lineup shakeup really scared the players.  Both Peterson and Brian McKenzie, both rumored to be moving potentially to the bench, had big games.  McKenzie had 11 points on 3-6 shooting, although he did not provide much offense in the second half.

PFB: Postgame: Providence 94, Rutgers 81

Overall though it was a good game.  The team didn’t play with the intensity we probably all would have liked over the entire 40 minutes, but they played with enough to win, which last night was good enough.  Considering the league we are in we will take it, but we know that if we want to knock off any of the top teams this season nothing less than an all-out 40 minutes performance will do.  It is something we have still yet to see

Star Ledger: Providence steamrolls Rutgers, 94-81, to continue rough weekend for program

Tough night? No, last night’s 94-81 loss to the Friars was a painful exercise of what happens to sluggish teams in the Big East. It was the bitter punctuation to a weekend to forget for the Scarlet Knights. Barely 24 hours before they tipped off, Rutgers endured the news that one of the building blocks for their future — sophomore center Greg Echenique — was transferring.

Star Ledger: Ugly first half against Providence could be a sign of things to come for Rutgers

Really? Fifty-five points in the first half against Providence?
You better believe it and it was every bit as ugly as it looked on TV or sounded on radio. That was as bad of a first half — or any half — as I’ve seen Rutgers play.

Daily Targum: Providence piles on misery for Knights, more Echenique fallout

The day after news broke that sophomore forward Gregory Echenique would tranfer, the Rutgers men’s basketball team suffered another disheartening defeat.

Providence forward Jamine Peterson scored 29 points and grabbed 20 rebounds as the Friars handed the Scarlet Knights a 94-81 loss Saturday night at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. It was the Knights’ third straight defeat to open conference play and fourth in a row.

Boring-ass AP Writeup: Peterson has 29 points, 20 rebounds as Providence rolls over Rutgers 94-81

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squinn02 @vc_32 just gets people the ball in the right spots #friars

SteveHartnett92 RU kidding me??? Greedy Peterson with 29 points and 20 rebounds in a Big East win? Best part was that it all came within the team concept.

raphiellej That should do it. #Friars win 94-81. Good sign for #Rutgers: the play of Dane Miller. Very good night for that freshman. #rubb

phriarphreak greedy with a 20-20 day. wade phillips tells @jhpenfield to suck it

JMulley Rutgers mens basketball team is really bad! #Fail #Friars

MCMSwets Great win tonight for the Friars to get back to 2-2 in the league. 94-81 over Rutgers.

chris_tredeau greedy gettin greedy on the boards pullin down 20. go friars

BrendanPrunty Who teaches Providence FT shooting? Seton Hall? 91-81 PC with 41.9 left. #rubb

rjsuperfly66 Friars looking real solid right now in all aspects of the game