Friar Fridays: Recruiting Updates, Lunardi Hates Providence, Competition for Joseph

In case you missed it:

Rothstein Interview With Cooley Analysis: https://theprovidencecrier.com/2020/07/14/ed-cooley-interview-with-rothstein-on-college-hoops-today-podcast/#more-2373

Update to Big Board – Version 2.0: https://theprovidencecrier.com/2020/07/16/big-board-2-0-updates-to-providence-big-board/#more-2388

Gianni Thompson Commits to BC – Impact to PC and Next Steps: https://theprovidencecrier.com/2020/07/14/gianni-thompson-commits-to-bc-impact-and-next-steps/#more-2367

Ben Stanley cuts list, PC not included

We heard last week PC reached out to Hampton transfer Ben Stanley. With an extra scholarship available, I thought Cooley could go to the well again and secure another player via the transfer route. Unfortunately, PC did not make the cut. I believe Cooley is still recruiting for that final spot to have some more depth at the 5 position behind Nate Watson.

Lunardi’s Latest Bracketology – PC not Included

It’s probably a bit too early for “bulletin board material”, but the lack of inclusion of PC in the 2021 NCAA tournament is interesting, especially considering who else he included from the Big East. Cooley’s teams tend to thrive when they are overlooked, and this will only fuel the fire.

Villanova – 1 seed – No concern here, they should be a consistent top 5 team throughout the season

Creighton – 4 seed – I am consistently more bullish on this squad than most, and I was shocked to see them as only a 4 seed. I think they finish as a 2 or 3 seed.

UCONN – 10 seed – Comical. Let’s see them win a few games in Big East first. Has everybody forgotten what their AAC conference record was last year?

Seton Hall – 11 seed – This is probably a testament to Willard and the job he does as a coach. They could just as easily be a 6 seed as they could not competing for a bid.

Marquette – 11 seed – Another shocker. Does Lunardi realize they lost everybody from their squad? Joe, the Hausers and Markus aren’t still there.

If you were to ask me to predict where the Friars would land, I would say anywhere from the 6-10 seed range.

Gianni Thompson Commitment Interview

I won’t summarize the entire interview, which was really interesting and a recommended listen, but here are a few key takeaways pertinent to the Friars:

⁃ Besides BC, he was most comfortable with PC as a program. We likely finished second here

⁃ He is actively recruiting PC point guard target Bensley Joseph to join him. Great.

⁃ He cited the Mass Rivals connection as influential to his decision

Gabe Dorsey – PC makes Final 8

Recruit Gabe Dorsey released a final 8, and PC was included. This one appears to be a win for Vanderbilt, as a handful of Crystal Balls came in for them. That’d be a great win for Stackhouse.

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