Well, well, well. It had been a year off for the Battle of the Ocean State, but on Saturday afternoon it was clear the Friars weren’t ducking the Rams. PC started off hot and despite URI taking a lead at one point late in the first half, the Friars cruised to a 66-52 victory. Let’s take a look at how it went down.
- Ed Crosswell Delivers Again- For the second straight game, it was Ed Crosswell of all guys who was the player of the game. The LaSalle transfer came off the bench to score 13 points (5/6 shooting) and a team high 15 rebounds. Crosswell was inserted to the lineup after the U8 timeout of the first half. After URI took a 18-17 lead, it was Ed who sparked a 18-6 run to close the half. PC essentially never looked back. If Ed continues to play like this it would be huge, especially if Watson gets into foul trouble.
- Mitchell Twins Flop in their Rivalry Debut- One of the bigger storylines going into the game was the Mitchell twins. Makhel and Makhi Mitchell entered the portal two years ago and visited Friartown. Word around PC circles was they wanted only one of two, thus they took their talents to Kingston. Surely the Mitchell’s had a chip on their shoulders for this one but it didn’t pan out. They combined for 13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 5 turnovers, and 8 fouls. They combined for the same amount points as Croswell.
- Board Man Gets Paid- Against a good Texas Tech squad, PC held there own with a +1 rebound advantage. Against Rhody this was a no contest. PC crushed URI with a 45-20 advantage on the glass including 20-6 edge on the offensive boards.
- Dunk Crowd Once Again Excellent- The 8:30pm crowd was awesome for the Texas Tech game, but I was skeptical the 2pm crowd would live up to it. Well, I was wrong. The crowd was an electric factory Saturday afternoon. The students arrived 90 minutes early. The Voice’s Billy Gilman belted out an epic anthem, and the place was rocking. The Dunk production on the other end was a bit of a mess. The dance team were all posed ready for their song to come on, but it never did. There was a screeching mic out of a timeout and at one point it sounded like some drunk gal grabbed a live mic and started talking some nonsense. All and all though a great atmosphere.
On Tap
PC hosts University of Vermont Tuesday night at 6:30pm on FS1 with possibly a Top 25 ranking next to their name.