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Who Gets the Call vs. the Hoyas?

Josh Smith

As gratifying as Tuesday night’s come-from-behind victory was for Ed Cooley and his Friars, it presents a challenge for Providence’s coaching staff.

The Friars won behind grit and determination, with Cooley playing whom he called his five “toughest” players in Indianapolis. The win also set up a bit of a “now what?” situation in which PC’s coaching staff has to determine if Tuesday’s victory was a one-game lesson for the four regulars who sat for virtually all of the second half, or if Junior Lomomba, Paschal Chukwu and Ted Bancroft earned themselves more playing time.

As challenging as it was for Bryce Cotton and Providence’s Core 6 to log so many minutes a season ago, it also simplified things for Cooley, who relied heavily on a six-man rotation throughout the season despite any inconsistency from his role players. He had to.

Just when it seemed like the Friars were settling on a regular rotation, along came this past road trip in which the effort and execution sputtered before Cooley’s second-half switch against Butler.

So now what?

Two of the Big East’s most talented teams come to the Dunk this week, beginning with Georgetown on Saturday and St. John’s later this week.

The hope from this corner is that Chukwu and Lomomba have played their way into additional playing time.

Providence has been soft on the glass for large portions of this season and, while Chukwu’s production will fluctuate like any freshman, he stabilized the Friars in the paint on Tuesday night by grabbing all nine of his rebounds and being credited with two blocks in the second half. PC had been out-rebounded 20-12 in the first half and eventually won the rebounding battle for the game thanks to the 7’2 center’s ability to grab, and hold on to, seemingly every shot in his radius.

In Lomomba PC could have a secondary ball handler — one who provides more length and muscle than Kyron Cartwright. Cartwright has done an admirable job playing alongside and behind Kris Dunn, but if Lomomba is half the defender he was billed as, he and Dunn would be an effective defensive duo.

We’ll also see how the three starters who sat the entire second half and the sixth man respond to watching their teammates winning with force over finesse. Cooley was proud of their engagement on the bench during the Butler game — it was noticeable on television.

Saturday would be a fine time to play with force. Observers of the Big East are waiting for this Georgetown team to take off. They have all of the pieces in place.

D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera is right there with D’Angelo Harrison as far as big shot makers in the Big East. He was voted the Big East Preseason Player of the Year, and while he’s struggled to find consistency, he’s as dangerous a scorer as there is in the league. Smith-Rivera is a powerful guard who can get it going quickly from outside. He’s scored 29 points twice this season — against Wisconsin and Indiana.

The Hoyas have a good balance of steady veterans and promising newcomers. 6’10, 350ish lb center Josh Smith is the biggest interior mismatch in the league when not gasping for air. The Friars benefitted from him missing PC’s victory at the Dunk last season, as he’s capable of carving out space against anyone and he possesses an incredibly delicate touch around the rim.

Jabril Trawick is a typical Georgetown veteran guard, Mikael Hopkins is one of the more under-appreciated d0-it-all big men in the league and Aaron Bowen is a senior forward whose minutes fluctuate.

Their freshman class was as well regarded as any in the conference heading into this season. LJ Peak is already a double digit scoring guard, 6’8 Paul White plays 20 minutes a game and Isaac Copeland was ESPN’s 16th ranked player nationally last season, but has not had a major impact to date. All three players were ranked in ESPN”s top 40 in the class of 2014.

Georgetown has won five of their last six games, and they stand 10-4 on the season and 2-1 in the Big East.

Tim Brando and Bill Raftery will be on the call for Fox Sports 1, while John Rooke and Joe Hassett are on 103.7 WEEI for the noon start.

Twitter: Kevin_Farrahar

 

8 Comments

  1. Thomas Walters Jr

    January 10, 2015 at 1:05 pm

    We can win big not hang a round

  2. Thomas Walters Jr

    January 10, 2015 at 1:07 pm

    Game

  3. Christopher Hanley

    January 10, 2015 at 3:07 pm

    Bench Harris. The starting five should be: Henton, Dunn, Lomomba, Desroisers, Lindsey with Chukwu, Bentil, Cartwright, Bancroft coming off the bench. Harris should get very limited playing time.

  4. Nick Cabral

    January 10, 2015 at 3:31 pm

    Harris is the 3rd leading scorer on the team

  5. Christopher Hanley

    January 10, 2015 at 4:04 pm

    True Nick Cabral but that is so misleading. I just think it is frustrating to watch him. The rhythm of the game always seems to have no flow when he is in the game. He also plays with no intensity or urgency like he’s sleepwalking. There is a reason he was one of 4 players on the bench vs Butler. With his talent he should be the 2nd leading scorer.

  6. Christopher Hanley

    January 10, 2015 at 6:14 pm

    Harris is the 3rd leading scorer on the team by default.

  7. Christopher Hanley

    January 10, 2015 at 7:19 pm

    Harris misses a layup.

  8. Christopher Hanley

    January 10, 2015 at 7:21 pm

    But makes the steal. Win!!!!

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