Friar Basketball

A Look Back on PC’s Big East/SEC Challenge Win over South Carolina

VC_11.29.12

Providence welcomes a struggling Mississippi State group to the Dunkin Donuts Center on Saturday afternoon as part of the Big East/SEC Challenge.  A year ago the Friars went on the road and grabbed a win over South Carolina behind 18 points apiece from LaDontae Henton (18 points, 8 rebounds, 6-9 FG, 3-3 from 3) and Gerard Coleman (18 on 4-9 from the field, 10-13 at the free throw line).

PC also got a lift from the previously benched Bilal Dixon who blocked seven shots off of the bench, but Henton was the story of the game on this site last season.

Another hurdle was Henton’s long-standing relationship with current Iowa State guard Chris Allen, a Michigan State transfer who played in open gyms with Henton since his freshman year in high school.

Despite the previous relationships, Cooley was able to wrangle Henton away from Iowa State, and if Friar fans weren’t thrilled at the time, they should be now.

Where would Providence be this year without him?

Eight months after his commitment to Providence, Henton is playing critical minutes as a freshman and looks to be a pillar for the future.

With Marshon Brooks and his near 25 points per game gone to the NBA, and an already thin frontcourt desperate for help due to the suspension of Kadeem Batts, Henton has stepped in immediately and played with the poise and toughness that Cooley vowed to bring to this program at his opening press conference in March.

Henton was terrific once again on Thursday night – this time in a road win against South Carolina.  His 18 points and eight rebounds are impressive numbers for the freshman, but it’s how he got those figures that showed his maturity.

Not once forcing the action, Henton connected on six of nine shots from the field, 3-3 from three point range, 3-3 from the free throw line, and only turned the ball over twice while playing the full 40 minutes for the second game in a row.

Over his last three games Henton is averaging 17 points and nearly nine rebounds, while shooting 58% from the field.

He nailed a pair of three pointers in the first five minutes of the second half, pushing the Friar lead to double digits with each make, and converted a three point play with under five minutes remaining to give PC a 63-51 advantage.

While the star-studded Dunn/Ledo/Josh Fortune class is often thought of as Cooley’s first, it was Henton who was the first player to commit to Cooley as the head coach of the Friars and it is Henton who is playing within himself, and with toughness, efficiency, and maturity.

He’s just the type of player Cooley vowed to bring in when he took the job last spring.

 

Our highlight reel from last year featured PC’s top 3 players from the game.

 

Providence Friars

STARTERS MIN FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
Ron Giplaye, F 13 0-2 0-0 1-2 0 3 0 0 2 0 3 1
LaDontae Henton, F 40 6-9 3-3 3-3 3 8 2 0 0 2 1 18
Vincent Council, G 39 7-14 1-3 1-2 0 0 6 2 1 5 2 16
Gerard Coleman, G 40 4-9 0-1 10-13 0 4 4 1 0 3 0 18
Bryce Cotton, G 39 3-8 2-4 5-5 2 6 4 1 0 3 2 13
BENCH MIN FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
Bilal Dixon, F-C 22 4-7 0-0 2-2 2 7 0 0 7 2 1 10
Lee Goldsbrough, F 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brice Kofane, F 5 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0
TOTALS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
24-50 6-11 22-27 7 30 16 4 10 15 10 76
48.0% 54.5% 81.5%

South Carolina Gamecocks

STARTERS MIN FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
Malik Cooke, F 33 8-12 3-5 2-2 2 3 3 4 2 4 2 21
Damontre Harris, F-C 15 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 2 0 0 1 0 1 0
Eric Smith, G 28 6-13 3-8 1-2 1 3 1 2 0 0 2 16
Anthony Gill, F 17 3-6 0-0 1-1 2 3 2 0 0 1 0 7
Damien Leonard, G 9 0-5 0-5 0-0 0 2 0 0 0 1 1 0
BENCH MIN FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
Lakeem Jackson, F 24 2-4 0-1 0-0 5 6 1 1 0 2 2 4
Bruce Ellington, G 27 3-11 0-4 0-0 1 2 1 0 0 2 3 6
Carlton Geathers, F 8 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 3 0 0 3 1 1 0
Brian Richardson, G 17 2-12 0-6 1-1 2 4 0 0 0 0 3 5
RJ Slawson, F 22 2-8 0-1 4-4 4 8 1 2 1 2 4 8
TOTALS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A OREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
26-72 6-30 9-10 18 36 9 9 7 13 19 67
36.1% 20.0% 90.0%

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