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Cooley: Friars a “Work in Progress”

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Following Providence’s 64-60 victory over Albany on Saturday night Ed Cooley called the Friars a “work in progress” on three different occasions.

With Kris Dunn shaking off the rust of a season away and four freshman working their way into the rotation, they certainly played the role of a team in transition in the season opener.

Providence shot just 31% from the field in the first half, and missed half of their 24 free throw attempts on the night, yet what stood out to Cooley were the defensive lapses, which he attributed largely to inexperience.

“We have a long way to go, as I’ve been telling everybody,” said Cooley. “This is a different team and hopefully we’ll improve as we continue to play.”

Still, Cooley said he was “one happy coach” following the victory — for good reason. The Friars weren’t at their best, they were playing an NCAA Tournament team from last season, and their veterans carried them when they needed to.

The fattest stat line of the night belonged to LaDontae Henton (21 points, 11 rebounds, 3 steals), but key to this one was the second half emergence of Tyler Harris.

In his first season in Providence, Harris was often criticized for forcing his offense, but on this night he let the game come to him — even when the ball wasn’t making its way into his hands early.

Harris took just three shots in the first half and had five points at the break, but he exploded for 18 points over the final 20 minutes en route to a team high 23 on an efficient 7-12 shooting (6-9 in the second half). When Providence needed a play down the stretch it was Harris providing it.

With PC leading by two with under a minute to play, Harris knocked down a three pointer at the top of the key to push the lead to five. He then made a pair of free throws with six seconds left to seal the 64-60 victory.

Harris also helped spark a slumbering offense out of the halftime break. After the Friars dragged their way through a 26 point first half, the redshirt junior scored in three different ways in the opening minutes of the second, grabbing an offensive rebound for a score, connecting on a 3 and finishing another shot at the rim.

“I thought today’s win was a culture win,” said Cooley. “We’ve played in so many close games, in particular with LaDontae and Tyler.”

Henton was the steady hand throughout, particularly in the first half with 11 points and 8 boards as his teammates were finding their footing.

“Eventually your veterans take over the game. They’ve been there, they’ve done that and the two guys up here with me (Harris and Henton) carried the load — which they should. They’ve been in a lot of high major basketball games,” said Cooley at the podium afterwards.

Shortening the Rotation

Providence shuffled players in and out of the game throughout much of the first half, but Cooley shortened his rotation in the second. Freshman power forward Ben Bentil was the only sub to play over the first 10 minutes of the second half, and he came in after Carson Desrosiers picked up his third foul.

The next sub in was Jalen Lindsey at the 9:46 mark and that came after Kyron Cartwright left the game after a loose ball collision.

Dunn’s Shows Rust, Comes Through Late

Kris Dunn had perhaps his least productive game as a Friar (0-5 shooting, 2 assists), but he made a pair of three throws with 32 seconds left to turn a two point game into a four point PC advantage.

“Everyone saw how rusty Kris looked today, but it’s just a matter of time before he comes around,” said Cooley.

Dunn played a large portion of this one off of the ball, with the freshman point guard Kyron Cartwright getting the start and playing 34 minutes in his college debut. Cartwright was effective, finishing with eight points, five assists and three rebounds.

Providence was held without a point until Cartwright hit a short jumper at the 16:30 mark in the first. He followed that basket up with a pair of assists to Henton (a 3 pointer and a layup) to give PC an early 7-2 lead.

Offensive on the Glass

Both teams finished with 36 rebounds, but the Friars had a significant advantage in second chance points (21-5). Providence graduated the Big East’s top offensive rebounder from a season ago in Kadeem Batts, but they got five offensive rebounds from Henton and three out of Bentil.

Bentil was a noticeable presence on the glass, grabbing six rebounds in just 15 minutes.

The Road Ahead

Cooley noted that a big part of improving the defensive effort was getting film and showing his players their mistakes. Film won’t be hard to come by in another week’s time, as Saturday kicked off an eight day span in which PC plays five times.

Next up is Binghamton on Monday night at the Dunk. Providence then hosts Navy on Thursday night before heading to Mohegan Sun over the weekend to play a pair of ACC opponents in Notre Dame and Florida State.

Email: kevin.farrahar@friarbasketball.com

Twitter: Kevin_Farrahar

7 Comments

  1. Mike Forrester

    November 16, 2014 at 4:42 am

    Glad to come away with a win, but very sloppy. Too many turnovers, lazy getting back on D, too quick to settle for long jumpers, bad free throw shooting, very few set plays, too much transition….The absence of Bryce directing the troops was glaringly evident. But there was enough raw talent and athleticism on the floor to overcome all of it, and this was only step one of a long journey. A win is a win. Go Friars!

  2. Mario Teixeira

    November 16, 2014 at 5:10 am

    ^ cant judge this team until Dunn is playing full minutes at the point. Cartwright is a scorer not a point guard. #believe

  3. Derec Lamendola

    November 16, 2014 at 5:10 am

    LETS GOOOOOOOOOO LaDoante Henton SEE YOU MONDAY NIGHT JAMED PACK MONDAY NIGHT 9:00 PM Ugen Why Evry One Lefing DON’T LEFE MONDAY We Are BIG EAST Champonship GO FRIARS

  4. Anthony Razza

    November 16, 2014 at 5:18 am

    Cartwright better be a scorer wearing #24!! THE PC guard and center is watching from heaven, who wore that number! Walker and Barnes!

  5. Thomas Walters Jr

    November 16, 2014 at 11:15 am

    Dream it -work it -dream it -Work it -go to bed rest , get up early work it ,tomorrow again !

  6. Gretchen Needham

    November 16, 2014 at 12:45 pm

    Cannot believe that Jimmy Burr is still around, first remember he and Timmy Higgins around 1984, they never gave PC an even break, as I remember it.

  7. Eric Broomfield

    November 16, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    Lol I call jim burr the cold miser

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