Thurs 1/16 BE Game Thread (1 Game).

[MooseFriar13]

Fortunate to get the win. Proud of the team and hope we can put on a good performance against Creighton

[dmac80]

Big win for PC, amazing what they're doing with effectively 6 or 7 guys. SJU certainly played well enough to win but didn't win a game they really had to. Right now they are a mess.

[billyjack]

Didn't get a chance to post during game. Friar and Johnnie fans gotta both be exhausted. Just glad to get the win. Really sorry for St John's, they shouldn't be 0-5.

[friars321]

One really good thing about this exhausting win (for PC)...Cooley really heavily recruited Obekpa, Sampson, and Sanchez. He went all in on them 2 yrs ago and PC was the 2cd choice for all 3 I believe. Really disappointing but they are good players, and nice to get a good win for PC. Johnnies need to regroup.

[bman95]

What really impresses me with PC is they I believe the are playing with only 1 true guard in Cotton. How many teams could say that you could play with 1 point guard, let alone 1 guard. At some point Cotton has to get worn down with all the PT.
I know VS SHU Willard kept switching players on Cotton to wear him down, and yet he played well for the entire game playing every minute of regulation as well as both OT's. Just crazy

[XUFan09]

Random stat I just discovered: Providence is the number one free throw shooting team in the country at 80.1% (1.5% ahead of the next team). And they're really poorly ranked on three-point percentage and two-point percentage, so it looks pretty weird.

[Bill Marsh]

Two words re PC . . .

Bryce Cotton

Watched the game. It reminded me a lot of the Seton Hall game. PC almost stumbled again at the end, but this time they managed to come out on top. Cotton played all 50 minutes. This kid is having just an amazing season. What's he's doing for the Friars goes way beyond the stat line, but here are his numbers:

39.3 mpg, 20.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 5.8 apg, 2.2 tpg, 1.2 spg

Leads the league in assists and is 2nd in scoring and in FT%.

[ChelseaFriar]

Random stat I just discovered: Providence is the number one free throw shooting team in the country at 80.1% (1.5% ahead of the next team). And they're really poorly ranked on three-point percentage and two-point percentage, so it looks pretty weird.

Yeah, even Cotton's three point percentage is way down this year from the previous two years. I'd guess it's the result of him playing PG rather than coming off screens and catching passes from Council and Dunn.

[Bill Marsh]

Random stat I just discovered: Providence is the number one free throw shooting team in the country at 80.1% (1.5% ahead of the next team). And they're really poorly ranked on three-point percentage and two-point percentage, so it looks pretty weird.

Yeah, even Cotton's three point percentage is way down this year from the previous two years. I'd guess it's the result of him playing PG rather than coming off screens and catching passes from Council and Dunn.

I agree, Chelsea, but I think it's more than that. Cotton is a little guy. Listed at 165 pounds, I'm willing to bet that he's even smaller than that. The most important part of a shooter's body is his legs. Run this guy out there for 40 minutes a night and his legs are going to go late in the game. With the legs, go the 3 point shot.

Add to your point about him not getting catch and shoot opportunities is the fact that he's about the only guy on the team who can create his own shot. Of necessity, he's throwing up shots late in close games and at other times when the clock is running down that he would never take if there were another option on the team. Harris is a very good shooter, but he can't create.

I think it's amazing what he has done under the circumstances. Imagine what it will be like for him in the Big East tournament if the Friars can win a couple of games. By the third night he'll be playing on fumes.

[HoosierPal]

Only 4,709 in the seats for the Providence game? Really? Gym only seats 5,600, but come on, can't you find 5,600 locals who care about St. Johns? I'm beginning to doubt the enthusiasm for the Big East, outside of the new teams + Marquette. No wonder Fox Sports ratings are exceedingly poor. Looks to me like no one cares. [I'll admit to only seeing home games on TV for St. Johns, DePaul, Seton Hall and Georgetown. So I'll give an asterisk to Villanova and Providence.]